


Shattered Bonds and Steeled Resolves

by Greivous166



Category: Bleach
Genre: Adventure, Angst, F/M, Hurt/Comfort, Romance, Transformation, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-17
Updated: 2019-12-17
Packaged: 2021-02-26 02:47:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 38
Words: 552,473
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21826168
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Greivous166/pseuds/Greivous166
Summary: When Timothy Durn and his loving wife, Susan, fall victim to murder, and then to Aizen's experimentation with the Hogyoku, he must adapt to his new life in the Soul Society while preparing for his revenge against the traitorous Captain. Unfortunately, fate, as it were, has a tendency to interfere in both good ways, and bad.
Relationships: Nelliel Tu Oderschvank/Original Character(s)
Kudos: 4





	1. So it Begins

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome readers. This is a story that has been in my mind for quite a long time, and it was only about a year ago that I started putting it down in words. This will be Nelliel/OC pairing, along with a few surprise minor pairings in later chapters. This will be a long one, eventually around 700-800K words in total, possibly longer. Hope you all enjoy.
> 
> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 1

**(So it begins.)**

** 67th District, South Rukongai, Fallen Tree, Present **

The sun was high in the sky and slightly to the west. It was a mildly hot day and most of the residents of Fallen Tree were either sitting in the shade conversing, taking afternoon naps, or down by the river cooling themselves off. Afterall, there really wasn’t much to do in Fallen Tree.

The 67th District of South Rukongai was named so, because of a large sycamore tree in the middle of town that had fallen over, but because the majority of its roots were still in the ground it continued to grow on its side.

Being in the 6th level of Rukongai, the living conditions were mediocre at best. Most of the houses, if one could call them so, were really no more than simple shanties comprised of a simple framework with boards and planks for walls. The windows consisted of a simple hole were no boards were placed, with worn out rags acting as curtains. The clothing that the residents wore were no better, also consisting of rags. Most residents did not even possess foot wear.

What was worse was the constant crime that plagued them. Day after day, local thugs and crime organizations would pester the residents for whatever money, possessions, or even food that they had, even if they had nothing to give. Kidnapping, assaults, and murder were also somewhat common there as the criminals would make the residents pay anyway, one way or another.

But if you were to ask any of the residents what they thought about the crimes, most of them would tell you that it really wasn’t that bad, compared to the soul reapers. Indeed, the soul reapers were supposed to be their guardians, supposed to stop the criminals. But in truth, that really wasn’t the case.

The fact was, certain sectors of each side of Rukongai were assigned to certain squads of the 13 Court Guard Squads as their responsibility, and it just so happens that districts 60-80 of South Rukongai were assigned to Squad 11.

Anyone in any sector or district of Rukongai knew that Squad 11 was full of nothing but blood thirsty bullies. Where they were supposed to protect the residents, they instead acted worse than the criminals that they were supposed to stop. A lot of times, they would fight and beat up the residents simply because they were bored.

This was the life that Timothy Durn had quickly grown accustomed to. Timothy arrived in the Soul Society 12 years ago, waking up in the woods next to a tree with simple rags for cloths and a sword next to him. But what had happened next had terrified and scarred him, the fact that the sword spoke to him and he immediately recognized the voice.

** World of the Living, Manassas Texas, August 1989 (12 years ago) **

The streets were somewhat vacant, but still showed some life as people were driving or walking home from work, or going to work. Amongst them was a single couple, on their way home after catching a movie at the theaters. They were enjoying their slow walk as they enjoyed their conversation consisting of discussions about the movie, simple topics, and occasional friendly insults.

The man was in his late 20s, had blue eyes, and was just a little shorter than average height at 5 feet and 5 inches. His hair was a dirty blonde that used to be red, but became lighter over the years.

The woman was a couple years older than him, and just a hair taller as well with green eyes and chestnut hair that hung low to her mid back.

“I don’t know honey, I thought that movie was a little ridiculous. I mean, really? How can you even ‘attempt’ to make a 3 foot wide pancake? And not just one, but five?! Five! Can you even imagine how long it would take to eat that?” the woman explained.

The man next to her chuckled and turned to her. “Come on, you have to admit that John Candy is funny. I thought the best one was when he was getting mad at the washing machine.” he replied.

She in turn laughed as well. “Yes, I will admit that was funny. The look on that lady’s face was priceless. But still, I still think that Spaceballs is his best so far.”

The man nodded in agreement. “Yes, that was by far his best. Funny how you go to watch a movie with John Candy, and see a preview for his next movie at the same sitting.”

“What was that movie called again hun?” she asked, causing him turn and think for a minute.

“Hmmmm…..I know that the kid from this movie is supposed to be the main actor in it. Give me a second…...Ah! Home Alone, that was it. That also looks like a good one too.” He commented, causing her to nod.

“Yes, it does. We should go see it too. So, what do you say, dear husband of mine? Is it a date?” she asked with a smirk on her face, causing him to chuckle.

“Yes, it’s a date, dear wife of mine.” He finished by taking her lips with his in a quick, but loving kiss.

The couple continue walking down the street, arms intertwined with her head resting on his shoulder. That’s when the worst night of their lives began. As they walked up to an alley, a man comes out and turns to them, stopping them.

“Wallet now, and I won’t have to use this.” He stated.

The husband looked down to see that the man had a small knife in his slightly outstretched hand. The wife gasped and held tighter onto her husband’s arm, tears starting to form in her eyes. The husband slowly held up both of his arms in surrender.

“Ok….ok. Just….take it easy….let me grab it….ok?” the husband replied, earning a nod from the thief.

Keeping his left arm up, he slowly reached around behind him with his right in a gesture to grab his wallet. At least, that was what it appeared to the thief.

In a quick move, he caught the thief by surprise, using his left hand to push the knife away to the right, away from his wife. At the same time, he quickly thrust his right hand, now in a fist, into the thief’s face. The force caused the thief to back up a couple of steps and he stood there a second, rubbing his mouth where the husbands fist made contact.

The thief’s lip was now bleeding, and the husband could see that he managed to knock a tooth loose. The thief spit the tooth into his hand, looking at it before lifting his head to glare on the husband.

“You’re gonna pay for that, you fucking bastard.” He stated in a cold and deathly tone.

The husband quickly pushed his wife behind him and balled up both of his fists.

“Stay away from us, I’m warning you. Just leave, and we won’t call the cops.” he responded as he glared back.

The thief started to chuckle. “How are you gonna call the cops….if I cut your throat?” the thief growled.

He then charged at them, knife ready to thrust, and dodged the left swing from the husband. The thief then jabbed the knife into the man’s right side, right under the ribcage. The husband yelped with pain before turning and hitting the thief with his right fist, hitting the thief’s chest.

The thief gave a quick cough, then lunged again. The husband swung with his right again and hit the thief in his left shoulder, but the thief managed to swing back, cutting the man across the chest, from the left side under the ribcage to the right side of his chest.

The husband again cried in pain, but stood his ground. The wife immediately starts yelling for help, seeing that her husband was losing the fight of life and death. The thief stops his assault and stares at the man, grinning.

“Heh, you have got a mean punch you bastard, but I’m done with you. And after I kill you, your wife is next.” he taunted.

The husband slightly gasped and gave the thief an evil look. “Don’t you fucking THINK about touching her! Just leave!” he yelled, causing the thief to chuckle.

“Oh, I will….after I’m done with you.”

He charged again, ducked under the husband right hook, and thrust his knife. The knife hit home, right in the husband’s left side of his chest.

The wife stopped and gasped at the sight of her husband getting stabbed, fear taking her over as the husband slowly slid to his knees. He sat there for what seemed like eternity, before finally tilting and falling over onto his right side. She placed both hands over her mouth and tears began flowing from her eyes.

“No…..no….” she whispered and turned to see the thief coming for her.

“And now you pretty thing….you’re next.” He said with a grin.

She took one timid step back as he slowly walked up to her, then jabbed her with the knife in the same spot that finished off her husband. He quickly withdrew the knife and she put her hand over the wound, feeling blood seep through her fingers.

The thief ripped her purse from her arm, causing her to fall forward and land face down on the pavement. He walked over, reached into her husband’s back pocket, and took the wallet. He then looked at her husband and shook his head.

“Should’ve just given me the wallet, you stupid fool. Now your wife can join you in hell.” he coldly stated and ran back into the alley, the sounds of his footsteps disappearing into the night.

The wife lifted her head, her vision starting to blur, and looked at her husband. “Tim….please….Tim….answer me. Tim…” She was starting to get light headed as hear vision started to now black out.

“Su…Susan…I’m…I’m sorry.” He tried to reach behind him to grab he hand, but then it simply fell to the ground.

“No…please..” was all she could muster before she, too, blacked out.

** 20 minutes later. **

Timothy woke up to numerous flashing lights and the hustled chatter of many people. His vision was still blurry, so he blinked a few times to try and clear it up, which helped. After a few seconds, he slowly started to push himself up until he was on his hands and knees. Doing so caused him to become slightly light headed, so he shook his head slowly a few times.

After a few seconds more, he managed to lean back to where he was now sitting on his legs. He started looking around, still confused as to what was going on. He stopped when his wife came into view, laying prone and face down on the ground.

“Susan…” he weakly called, then shook his head again to clear more of his disorientation.

“Susan…” he called again and saw no movement.

He slowly crawled to her and gently shook her shoulder. “Susan, wake up.” he whispered, and relaxed when he saw her start to stir. “Susan, come on honey, wake up.” He nudged her again and she slowly opened her eyes.

Her hair fell off her back as she turned her head back around to face him, apparently as dizzy as he was a minute ago.

“Tim?” she asked and he started gently to rub her.

“I’m here hun. Are you ok?” he asked, responded by a slight moan, then a little nod.

“I…I think so honey.”

He let out a sigh and slightly nodded. “I’m glad hun. Can you sit up?” he asked, getting another slight moan.

“I think so. Can you help me?” He nodded and slipped his hands under her shoulders, lifting them slowly as she started to get to her hands and knees.

“What happened honey? Why are we here?” she asked, causing him to turn and look around.

“I don’t know Susan. It looks like something bad happened here. Can you remember anything?”

He turned back to her seeing she was still on her hands and knees trying to shake off her dizziness.

“I…I remember someone trying to rob us.” She stated.

He thought for a second before it clicked. He then remembered everything; getting stopped by that man, fighting him, then getting stabbed. Susan then sat back onto her legs and let out a tired moan. That was when he saw it.

“Susan…what the hell is that?” he asked worried.

She looked at him, confused. “What’s what?” she asked, and he pointed at her chest.

“That.” he stated with worry in his voice.

She looked to where he was pointing and slightly gasped at what she saw. “Uh…”

On her chest was some sort of white disk with a one-foot chain attached to it. “I…I don’t know…What is this thing?” she asked now starting to worry herself.

She slowly reached up and grabbed ahold of the chain, giving it a slight tug. The disk on her chest didn’t budge at all. She tried again a little harder, but to no avail.

“Whatever it is, it’s stuck.” She stated, now starting to get even more worried.

“Let me see.” He leaned forward, but stopped when he heard her gasp, causing him to look up.

“What’s…” he started, but stopped he saw her with wide eyes, pointing at him.

He looked down, only to see that he had the same white disk and chain on his chest as well.

“What the hell?” he mumbled, then grabbed his own chain and started pulling on it.

“Mine…mine’s stuck as well!” he said with worry.

“Honey, what is going on here?!” Susan asked, now very clearly worried.

At first, he didn’t hear her, fear starting to cloud his head as he sat there staring at the chain and disk.

“Tim!”

He broke out of his trance and looked at her. “I’m sorry hun, I really have no idea what the hell is happening here.”

He looked at her and she gestured to the people behind him. “Maybe we should go ask for help…”

He turned back to the people, then nodded. “Yeah, lets go ask.”

He slowly stood up, taking his time as he was still slightly dizzy. Once he was on his feet, he reached down and helped Susan to her feet as well. She almost lost her balance, but remained standing.

“You ok?” he asked.

She nodded and stood straight. “Besides this weird thing on our chests, just fine.” she stated as an attempt at a joke, causing him sigh, but nod.

“Alright, lets go.”

He took her hand in his, then they started walking towards the ambulance. “Excuse me, sir.” he called to the paramedic, but got no reply. “Hey sir. Can you help us?” But yet, still no reply.

He reached his hand forward to put it on the man’s shoulder and stop him. “Sir, excuse…”

He quickly stopped and Susan gasped when his hand simply went right through the man’s body.

“What?! What the…?!” he choked.

He walked forward to the next man, a police officer, and slowly tried to touch him. Again, his hand simply went right through the man as if he wasn’t there.

“Tim…! What is happening?! What is this?!” she stated through her hands, filled with fear.

He slowly brought his hand up to his face, and touched his cheek. To his surprise, his hand didn’t go through him. He put his hand back in front of his face and looked at it.

“I…” he started.

“Hey, what have we got here?” a voice asked.

The couple was brought out of their daze to see a police sergeant talking to the paramedic. “Two adults. One male, one female. No IDs. Male seems to be in his late 20s, female in her late 20s, early 30s. Male has two stab wounds and a gash across his chest, female has a single stab wound to the chest. Both died from stab wounds to the heart.”

Tim and Susan both couldn’t believe what they had heard. The paramedic had just described the exact wounds that they remember receiving from the thief. Tim turned to his wife and slowly closed his eyes.

“Wait here…” he said in a gloomy voice.

Susan tried to stop him, but he quickly walked over to the ambulance and stepped inside. He sat down on the bench next to the gurney with a white sheet draped over and took a look. She fearfully, but patiently waited for him. Her eyes went wide when her husband sat back on the bench, eyes wide with fright.

“Tim…” she meekly called, but he didn’t respond.

After a few seconds, she swallowed, then started walking over to the ambulance as well. She stopped at the doors and stared at him.

“Tim?”

He slowly leaned forward and buried his face in his hands. “Susan, I…”

She swallowed again at the tone in his voice, then slowly and fearfully climbed the steps into the ambulance. She walked over to him and placed her hand on his shoulder.

“Tim? Are…”

He shook his head in his hands. “I…”

She turned to the gurney and slowly peeked over to see that one corner of the sheet was pulled over to reveal the body’s face. Her face.

“I think…we’re dead…Susan.”

Her eyes went wide as saucers as she placed both of her hands over her mouth and slowly backed up until she went right through the side of the ambulance, landing on the ground. She braced herself up on her arms and sat there in absolute shock.

After a minute, Tim came out from around the back of the ambulance to find his wife sitting there with a face filled with more fear and shock than he had ever seen before.

“Susan…” he called, but his words never reached her.

She was simply filled with so much fear that nothing could reach her.

He lowered his head and tears started pouring from his eyes. “Susan…” he tried again.

And again, his words never got to her. After what seemed like eternity, he lifted his head back up and started walking towards her. He knelt down next to her and placed his hand on her shoulder. She slightly jumped, then turned to him.

“We’re…dead?!” she asked in shock.

He lowered his head again, then after a few seconds, nodded again. “I…I believe so…Susan.”

She turned back towards the ambulance, stared for a minute, then lowered her head as well. She then placed her head in her hands and began sobbing.

After a brief moment, he shifted over behind her and embraced her in a hug from behind, sobbing himself. They both sat there as the ambulance crew with her body closed the vehicle doors. They then climbed in and pulled away. After a while, the only thing left in the area was a single, ghostly couple sitting in the road, crying.

Time passed endlessly, before Susan finally began to calm down. She then crossed her arms and placed her head in-between them. Yet, more time passed until he finally stood up and nudged her arm.

“Susan…let’s get out of the road.” He barely choked out, but she simply shook her head.

“What does it matter? We’re both dead anyway…”

He lowered his head and let out a sigh. “Honey…come on.”

She sniffed, but finally nodded and began to stand up. Once she did, he placed his arm behind her and rested his hand on her shoulder. He walked her to the walkway and they began their very slow walk towards home.

Neither one of them spoke a word for what seemed like hours, until finally Susan broke the silence. “Tim…”

He turned towards her to see she stopped crying, but could still see tears in her eyes.

“Yes…honey?” he replied.

They took a few more steps before she continued. “What do…what do we do now? We’re dead…dead…”

Every time she spoke that word, more tears began to appear in her eyes. Taking his hand off her should, he tilted her head to where it was now laying on his shoulder.

“I…don’t know honey…I don’t think there’s anything…we can do.”

After a while, she finally spoke again.

“We could...we could go…haunt somebody…” she stated before she broke out in tears again, failing to try and lighten the mood.

He simply sighed and started stroking her hair. That was one of the reasons he loved her. No matter what the situation was, no matter hard life wanted to treat them, she always tried to make a joke about it to make them laugh and forget the pain. Somehow, she always succeeded.

But tonight, it was evident that that was not going to work, at least not the way it was intended. Because he still managed to smile, not because of her joke, but because he could see that even after death she hadn’t changed.

“If we do…” he started, causing her to look to him, where he turned back to her. “Can we…start with your mother?”

Her eyes welled up and she lowered her head again. But after a few minutes, she chuckled. He then turned back to her, relieved to see the hint of a smirk on her face.

“You…always did…hate my mom…”

He faced forward and simply couldn’t help but smirk himself. “No.” She lifted her head and looked at him. “I never hated your mom…just her attitude…and that dog.”

He turned back to her to see her eyes stop crying and slightly widened.

“You…never told me you hated Sampson…”

Again, he couldn’t help but chuckle. “Well…I guess I just did.”

She turned back and sighed. “And what the hell was wrong with Sampson?”

He simply turned to her and turned her head to him with a cold stare in his eyes. “Do you have any idea how many times that mutt climbed on me in the middle of the night and yelped, scaring me half to death, just because he wanted to be petted?”

She scoffed and turned away from him. “He just wanted attention is all.”

He shook his head. “Yeah…IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT! God, I lost count of how many times I wanted to kill that dog.”

She quickly turned to him and slapped his shoulder. “Don’t you dare hurt my dog!”

He didn’t turn his head, he just simply looked at her in a side glance. “Can’t now, we’re dead.” Then an idea came to his head. “Maybe I should just go haunt the dog and make him bark, waking your mother. Two birds, one stone.”

Nothing could have stopped her, as she suddenly started laughing, causing him to as well. They finally settled down as they came to their apartment complex and the tears returned.

“Well…I guess we’re home.” She stated, getting no return from him.

After a moment, he let out a sigh. “Yeah…home. Or…it used to be.”

** 67th District, South Rukongai, Present **

“Hey! You! Wake the hell up maggot!” Timothy was disturbed from his sleep by a sharp kick to the legs.

‘Oh great, what now?’ He let out a long yawn, then slowly looked up to the aggressor.

It turned out to be a man only a couple inches taller than him with a tad bit of muscle and a hint of extra weight around his midriff. He had black hair that hung down the sides of his head, nearly touching his shoulders. The man sported a goatee that looked like he had pulled it from a back-alley dumpster.

_‘Him again?’_ Timothy thought. He looked past him to see he had brought 4 friends with him.

One was Timothy’s height, but way skinnier than him.

The next one was about the same height as the man in front of Timothy, same build, but not as pudgy.

The one after him was the same height, but packed a little too much ‘extra baggage’.

The last one was a good foot and a half taller than Timothy, but like the second guy, he was skinny as well.

All of them had swords in their hands.

“What do you want Yokoma?” Timothy asked, and the man simply grunted.

“It’s tax day you runt! Plus, you owe me for last week, so the cost is triple!” he finished with a smile. The men behind him started chuckling with wide grins.

Timothy yawned again and turned back to him, inwardly sighing. _‘Is he for real? Can this fool ever take a hint?’_

Timothy slowly stood up and started stretching his back, hearing audible pops.

“So, what do I owe you now Yokoma? Shouldn’t you be aware by now that I, like the rest of Fallen Tree, have nothing to give you?” Timothy pointed out.

Yokoma shook his head and chuckled. “You know the law here runt! One way or another, you’re gonna pay up! Now, hand it over!”

Timothy simply stared at him with a raised brow. “Hand what over? I just told you I have nothing.”

Yokoma then pointed down to Timothy’s side and he turned to see his sword.

The sword Timothy had was a standard sized katana. The guard was a black cutout of a fox pouncing, fangs bared. The hilt was black as well with an orange cord wrapped around it as a handle. The sheath that it was in was solid black with an orange stripe running down the length on both sides.

‘If he thinks that I will hand her over, he’s got something else coming.’

Timothy slowly turned back to Yokoma with an emotionless stare.

“Are you serious?” Timothy asked in a monotone voice and Yokoma held out his hand palm up.

“Give it here runt, or I’ll kill you where you stand! Either way, we’re leaving here with that sword!”

Timothy lowered his head and let out a quick sigh. “See boys? I told you he’d give up. You just gotta know how to handle puny runts like this.”

Timothy simply stood there while Yokoma spoke to his goons.

‘Well, I guess break time is over. Back to work.’ Timothy thought.

He raised his head back up and Yokoma was a little confused to see him raise his right hand up with his index finger outstretched. “Huh? What are planning to do maggot? Poke me?”

‘I’ve had enough.’ Timothy inwardly moaned.

“Hadō #1…Shō” Timothy announced.

Suddenly, a quick burst of energy left the tip of Timothy’s finger and hit Yokoma in the chest, pushing him back into his goons and knocking them all down.

Not by the force itself as it was nothing more than the force of someone simply pushing you with their arm, but enough to knock them off balance.

Timothy stood there as they all grumbled and yelled at each to get off them.

“Please take that as a warning and leave. I have no quarrel with you.” Timothy warned in a low tone.

After a few seconds, Yokoma was standing up looking at Timothy with pure rage. Timothy returned the glare with an emotionless look.

“You wanna play you maggot?! Fine by me!” The rest of his goons managed to make it to their feet with swords at the ready.

“I’ll admit runt, you caught us by surprise with stunt of yours. And I don’t know how you can use Kidō, but it’s not gonna help you in this fight. Now draw!” Yokoma demanded.

Timothy stood there staring at them with the same emotionless look for a moment, before he sighed. “Look fellas…I don’t want to fight you. I rather prefer if you would just turn around and leave. I don’t want to hurt you, but take my word for it that that does not mean I won’t. This is your last chance. Leave.”

Timothy could see that the statement had struck a nerve as Yokoma was now clenching his teeth.

“You take me for a fool?! If you don’t wanna fight, then it’s your funeral! Kill him!”

Without hesitation, all five of them charged after Timothy with full intent to kill him.

Timothy let out a sigh. “I guess it couldn’t be helped. I really didn’t want to do this, but you left me no choice.” He then drew his sword and pointed it straight at them.

“Tease.”

Upon saying this they all quickly stopped in their tracks staring at Timothy with wide eyes.

“He’s…he’s bluffing…right boss?” the tall one asked and Yokoma just scoffed.

“Of…of course he’s bluffing you idiot! No runt like him has a zanpakutō! Now get him!” Yokoma yelled back.

They resumed their charge at Timothy and he closed his eyes.

“Moeru Kitsune.”

The blade on Timothy’s sword immediately burst into flames. Yokoma and his men all watched in fear as the blade straightened out and shortened itself to a length of 17 inches. while the guard dissipated.

Afterwards, the flames disappeared, and Timothy swung the sword to hold it at his side.

Yokoma’s eyes slightly widened while the men behind him were simply terrified. “B…boss…we should leave! We can’t fight someone who has a zanpakutō!”

Yokoma quickly turned back to him. “What are you, a coward?! He doesn’t have a zanpakutō! It’s just a cheap kidō trick!” He then turned back to Timothy.

“Heh! Impressive display young man! Again, I don’t know how you can use kidō, but I’m not gonna fall for your pathetic tricks!”

“Interesting.” Timothy stated, causing Yokoma to raise a brow.

“By simply releasing, I’ve evolved from a runt to a man. I’m curious to see what you would think of me after I finish with you.” Timothy stated, keeping my emotionless stare.

Yokoma got ready to charge at Timothy, but stopped when he saw a small flame ignite next to him. “What the…?!”

He quickly turned when he saw another flame ignite to his right.

“B…b…boss…w…what’s going on? the large one asked.

“L…look! Another one!” the short one yelled, pointing to the group’s left.

“A…and another!” the tall one cried looking behind them.

“T…there’re everywhere!” the short one yelled again.

In all, there were fifteen flames surrounding the group.

Yokoma turned back to Timothy with rage filled eyes. “Enough!!! YOU DIE!!!” he yelled and continued his charge at Timothy. He held his sword high and to his right, ready for a diagonal slash across my chest. He came to within ten feet of Timothy before he swung down.

The sword came to within a few inches from Timothy’s shoulder…then he suddenly vanished.

Needless to say, the entire group was completely surprised, with the four goons now freaking out.

“H…h…he disappeared!” the strong one whined.

“W…where did he go?! the tall one followed.

“I don’t know you fools!” yelled Yokoma.

“B…boss…let’s get outta here!” the tall one added.

“I don’t think so.” Timothy coldly stated, now appearing behind them.

Yokoma and his men all turned around just in time to see Timothy cut the strong one across his chest from his left shoulder to his right hip. They all stood there in total shock as to what had just happened.

Yokoma was quick to recover and charged at Timothy yet again.

But also, yet again, Timothy quickly disappeared with Yokoma’s blade striking empty air. “What the hell is this?!” he yelled.

The other three goons were now absolutely frantic. “B…boss! He cut down Ryochiro! We gotta get outta here now!” the fat one yelled.

Yokoma was now completely stark mad as he turned to him. “Shut the fuck up!!! Quit your crying and find h…”

Yokoma froze when he saw Timothy standing behind the tall one with his sword arm raised. “FOOL! BEHI…”

Timothy swung down on him, slicing open his back on the right side from his shoulder to his lower back.

The last two goons turned and swung at Timothy, but he disappeared again, and they missed.

They simply couldn’t take it anymore as the two men both dropped their swords and started running away.

“COWARDS!!!” Yokoma yelled. He gasped when he realized that Timothy was now right behind him with the point of his sword to his back.

“Those two had the right idea. Your two friends here are still breathing. I strongly recommend that you stop this pointless fight and take care of them.”

Yokoma slowly turned back to him, fear now dominating his eyes.

“As you can finally see, you cannot fight me. Drop your sword, and I will let you take your men away, so they may live. Continue to fight me, and all three of you will die. Right here…right now.” Timothy stated with a cold tone.

They both stood there, unmoving. Yokoma because was fearful and contemplating what to do, Timothy waiting to see what Yokoma would do.

_‘Don’t do it…just give it up.’_ Timothy thought.

What felt like hours passed, before Yokoma finally released his sword. “I…I yield.”

Timothy stood there keeping the blade to Yokoma’s back more a few moments more, to get the point across to him not to try anything.

Finally, Timothy withdrew his blade and hung it down to his side. “You may leave.” he coldly stated, and Yokoma nodded, moving over to go grab his two comrades.

Timothy’s head and eyes were watching his every move.

Surprisingly, Yokoma managed to sling both men over his shoulders and started to leave.

“Don’t come around here again. You were lucky today to even receive two warnings. Next time, you won’t even get one.” Timothy warned and Yokoma quickly nodded and started walking off into the woods.

After a few minutes, once Timothy was sure Yokoma was gone, the flames around him extinguished themselves and his sword returned to its original state. He slid the sword back into its sheath and let out a depressed sigh.

**_“Well well, it’s been a while since you’ve let me have a little bit of fun.”_** The sword stated happily.

Timothy closed his eyes and lifted his head to the sky. _“I don’t wanna argue with you right now. As you can see, I’m not in the mood.”_ he replied in his mind.

He heard a slight chuckle. **_“Yes, well I can see that. Either way, don’t feel bad about what just happened. Afterall, you gave them plenty of chances to turn and walk away.”_**

_“Yes, but nevertheless, it shouldn’t have happened. I could have killed those men.”_ Timothy stated with a hint of regret.

**_“True, but they plainly deserved it.”_** The sword added.

Timothy lowered his head and crossed his arms. _“Since when did you become the bloodthirsty type? No one deserves death. No one.”_

He could hear a faint growl. **_“Except that man!”_**

Timothy’s eyes snapped open upon hearing that comment. The comment was completely true, no one deserved to die more than that man. I

He closed his eyes again and began to growl himself. _“Don’t you worry. He will get what’s coming to him. One way, or another, he will die! And that…”_

Timothy opened his eyes and stared out into the woods with an evil glare. “…is a promise!” he stated out loud.

** Squad 8 Headquarters, Seireitei, Present **

Deep within the heart of the Seireitei, the home of the soul reapers, stood the headquarters for the 8th squad of the 13 Court Guard Squads.

Inside, many of the seated officers, and a small portion of the squad itself, were moving about conducting their normal operations. Some were completing and filing paperwork, some were holding meetings discussing the agendas for the day.

The squad’s Captain was in his office finishing up his part of the squad’s paperwork.

Or at least, that was what he was supposed to be doing.

In truth, he was nowhere inside the headquarters, much to his lieutenant’s dismay. He was actually up on the roof of the building sitting next to another man.

The Captain of Squad 8 was none other than Shunsui Kyōraku.

The man stood at three inches over six feet tall, had long brown hair that he kept tied into a ponytail with bangs that hung loosely down the left side of his face. He was a clam, somewhat carefree individual that valued the peace and quiet.

He was well known for the straw hat and pink, flower styled kimono that he always wore. He was also known for how casual he was when speaking with others, regardless of rank, and his absence of a temper.

No matter how minor or severe one of his subordinates did something wrong, he always approached them with kindness and compassion to help them correct their mistakes. Just about everyone in the Seireitei respected Captain Kyōraku.

He only had one flaw…he was lazy.

Normally around this time, he was supposed to be in his office filing paperwork and coordinating with his officers about the daily activities. Instead, most of the time he could be found sprawled out on the roof laying in the sun sleeping, or in this case, sitting on the roof drinking sake.

The man next to him was his closest friend, the Captain of Squad 13, Jūshirō Ukitake.

The man was quite similar to Captain Kyōraku in many ways, sharing the same compassion towards his men and rarely ever showed any form of anger.

He stood only a couple inches shy of Kyōraku, had long, white hair that hung loose, stretching down to his mid back, and a loving smile the rarely left his face. The only notable difference between their personalities was the fact that he was nowhere near as lazy as Kyōraku.

But unfortunately, he frequently suffered from an illness of the lungs that he had since birth.

The two men sat there on the headquarters roof sharing a bottle of sake between them, enjoying the comforts of conversation and the warm sun shining down on them.

“It’s quite the nice day, isn’t it Shunsui?” the white-haired man asked, gaining the nod from Kyōraku.

“Indeed. Too bad everyone’s too busy worrying about Aizen’s treachery.” he states, taking a sip of sake.

Jūshirō turned his head to his friend. “Yes, even I am concerned about this whole ordeal.”

Shunsui let out a sigh and turned his head as well. “Relax Jūshirō, he had us all fooled. No one could have predicted what he was up to.”

Jūshirō shook his head and turned back forward taking a sip as well. “No, he covered his tracks far too well. I’m still having a hard time believing what he did.”

“So am I. What I find even more confusing are the events leading up to it.”

Jūshirō turned back to his friend, brow raised. “Are you referring to the ryoka boy, Ichigo Kurosaki?” he asked and Shunsui nodded.

“Indeed I am. It’s funny how he manages to break into the Seireitei, fight, and defeat many soul reapers, including two captains, and in the end turn out to be an ally. He is one odd boy, with even odder circumstances.”

Jūshirō simply chuckled.

“Yes, it’s amazing how the situation played out for him. I’m glad he accepted the position of substitute soul reaper. His resolve is amazing, and I have a feeling that he may still have a role to play in the near future.”

Shunsui tilted his straw hat and looked up to the clouds. “Yeah, I don’t think we’ve seen the last of him. Judging by the way he acts, I’m sure we’ll see him around sooner than we think.”

Jūshirō smiles and turns his head back forward with closed eyes. “Yes, I agree.”

Kyōraku takes a sip of sake and lets out a relaxed sigh.

“Changing the subject, did you get the memos from yesterday’s Captain’s meeting?” Kyōraku asked, earning a slight nod.

Captain Ukitake’s illness had struck him again, causing him to miss the Captain’s meeting that was held the day prior.

“I did. Although, I have not looked at them yet. Anything important?”

Kyōraku shrugged his right shoulder and slightly waved his hand side to side.

“Besides old man Yama and a few of the others discussing Aizen’s actions, and the fact that he spent too much time in Central 46’s chambers, not too much. He said that he was gonna assign someone to look through 46’s records and find out what he was doing in there.”

Jūshirō turned to him with a raised brow. “Did he say who?”

Kyōraku shook his head. “No, but knowing him he would more than likely assign either myself, or you for it.”

Jūshirō turned back and sighed, taking a sip. “Did he say anything else?”

“Yeah, he’s also gonna change up the Rukongai assignments. He said that the new assignments would be given to us within the week. Besides that, he also made the official announcement that the Lieutenants of squads 3, 5, and 9 will take over as acting Captains until replacements can be found.” he finished, then took a sip and refilled his saucer.

“Yes, well, who knows how long that will take. With the Seireitei as disorganized as it is right now, and with everyone still in shock over what Aizen did, it could be a couple years before replacements are found.”

He held his saucer over to his friend, and he filled it.

“Maybe, but then again maybe not. We’ll just have to wait and see.”

Jūshirō nodded and turned back. “Yes.”

Both men continued drinking in peace.

** 67th District, South Rukongai, Fallen Tree **

The sun was getting low in the sky, and after the…unfortunate…events from earlier, Timothy decided to call it a day a little earlier than normal. He had gone out to his secluded training area before the sun rose, and except for a quick nap and the earlier fight, he hadn’t stopped.

In the past, he only trained a few times a week. At first, the training was simply for him to become stronger and be able to defend himself whenever one of the criminals wanted to cause him grief. For the first few months, it just made matters worse for him as they became far more abusive towards anyone that tried to put up a fight.

But as he got better, and after a few fights, fewer and fewer of them kept bothering him. Some of them even stopped pestering the townspeople, fearing that they would end up fighting him again. But the truth is, he really didn’t even care about the townspeople.

When people first arrive in Fallen Tree from the human world, they tend to get adopted, or adopt themselves into one of the makeshift families. Afterall, it’s exceedingly rare that a person will ever meet any one of their family members from their life in the human world. In fact, in the twelve years that Timothy had been there, he had never heard of even one such occasion. So, people just simply accept a new family once they arrive there.

But for Timothy, he had no interest in such things. He simply wanted to be left alone to himself, and everyone in town accepted that. “Hey, Timothy!” Except one. Timothy let out an inward sigh and slowly turned around to face the voice. “What Albert?” he replied in a monotone voice.

The voice came from a young man, slightly taller than Timothy, with green eyes and brown hair that hung loosely to his shoulders. He arrived here in the soul society about 56 years ago. They first met a few weeks after Timothy came to the soul society. Timothy was sitting on the ground leaning against a residence, still recovering from the shock of ending up there, when he happened to walk by and stop.

** 67th District, South Rukongai, Fallen Tree, 12 years ago **

It was a cold and windy evening…it was raining. Timothy sat next to one of the shacks that the people here seemed to call ‘houses’. He sat there with his arms crossed and his head between them, his sword tucked in the crook of his arm, soaking wet from the rain.

But he didn’t care.

He had nowhere to go to get himself out of the weather.

But he didn’t care.

Timothy was so filled with despair…how could he care?

In one night, he had lost his family…his home…his life. He had lost everything.

The rain continued to pound on his head as he continued to be lost in thought. ‘What do we do now…Susan…?’ He was so deep in thought that he never heard the squishing sound of footsteps approaching him.

“Hey, you alright?”

The voice managed to break Timothy’s trance, so he slowly looked up to see who was talking.

It was a young man holding a makeshift umbrella that consisted of a bamboo pole with a rag over top, held open by a few smaller bamboo twigs.

“What?” Timothy asked in a low voice and the man stepped a little closer.

“I asked, if you were ok?” he repeated.

They both just stared at each other for a few moments before Timothy finally answered. “Yeah…just peachy.”

He continued to stare at Timothy for a few seconds more. “Can I help you?” Timothy asked in an annoyed tone, causing the man to tilt his head slightly.

“Uh…no. But…why are you sitting out here in the rain?” he asked with a hint of concern in his voice. Timothy scoffed and turned his head away.

“Maybe cause I feel like it...What’s it to you?” Timothy answered, even more annoyed.

“I’m just asking sir, calm down, I didn’t mean anything by it.” the man answered with his free hand up in surrender.

After a minute, Timothy lowered his head and sighed. Timothy knew the man didn’t mean anything by it, but he just simply wanted to be left alone. “Sorry…I know you were just asking. Sorry for my rudeness.” Timothy told him in a low, but calmer voice.

The man started to chuckle, and Timothy turned to him. “It’s fine, don’t worry about it. I’m Albert by the way. Albert Müller.”

Albert finished by squatting down and holding his hand out to Timothy. “And you are?”

Timothy looked at his hand, then back to him and sighed. “Timothy, and look Albert…I don’t mean to be rude…but I would prefer to be left alone.”

Albert raised his brow again.

“Ok…well I don’t mean to be rude either, but why don’t you come home with me? At least so you can get out of the rain.” he finished with a smile, hand still outstretched.

Again, Timothy continued to stare at him for a moment longer. “Why are you trying to help me? For all you know I could be one of those guys that keep robbing you people. Afterall, I do have a sword here.”

Albert turned and looked at it, then back to Timothy and shrugged his shoulders.

“So what? You have a sword…If you wanted to tax me, you would have done it by now. And if you wanted to tax my home, you also would have done so by now. Besides, it’s not like any of us has anything to give. Hell, you have more than most of the town with that sword of yours.”

“Point taken. However, you still didn’t answer my question. Why are you trying to help me?” Timothy stated in an annoyed voice, his patience wearing thin.

Albert chuckled again. “Simple, we all have to help each other in order to survive here. Otherwise, the criminals would have kidnapped, or killed us all by now.”

Timothy let out a sigh with a slight growl of annoyance.

“Look…I don’t want your help. I don’t wanna help any of the rest of the people here. I just wanna be left alone, to myself. Is that SO much to ask?” Timothy retorted with a slightly raised voice, but Albert just continued to smile.

“I see…well…nevertheless, I’m taking you back home with me, so you can dry off.”

It was now Timothy’s turn to raise a brow. “Excuse me?”

“You’re coming home with me. I’m not the kind of person who is just gonna let someone sit out here in the rain.” Albert stated, his voice never wavering.

“And if I refuse?” Timothy asked, and Albert shrugged his shoulders again.

“Then I’ll just sit out here with you until you decide otherwise.”

Timothy lowered his head in defeat and gave a loud, annoyed sigh. “Fine.” Timothy moaned, and Albert started to slightly chuckle.

“I knew you’d give in. Now come on, my home is just a few houses down.”

Timothy nodded, then took Albert’s hand as he gave him a boost to his feet, pulling Timothy under his umbrella.

“See? Not so hard is it?”

Timothy turned to him. “Don’t get cocky, I can still choose to sit back down.”

Albert started to laugh. “Then we would just start all over again, wouldn’t we?”

“Whatever. Let’s just go.” Timothy moaned.

Albert gestured down the road and they began walking towards his ‘house’.

“By the way…” Timothy started, and Albert turned to him. “…what kind of a name is Müller?”

Albert turned back to the road chuckling. “It’s German. I was born on the outskirts of Bremen, Germany in 1928…human world time.”

Timothy raised a brow. “1928? So, you’ve been here a while, huh?”

Albert nodded. “Yeah. I died in 1945, when I was 17.”

Timothy thought about it for a moment, then his eyes went wide when the figures hit him.

“Wait a minute! You were in a Hitler Youth Brigade?!”

Albert’s eyes then went empty and he lowered his head.

Timothy quickly held up his hand. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to offend you.” he quickly stated, and Albert shook his head.

“No, it’s fine. And no…I wasn’t. You seem to know your history pretty well.”

Timothy turned back forward and sighed. “Let me guess…you were among the ones who refused to serve…weren’t you?”

Albert nodded. “Yes…The war was pretty much over…we were just waiting for our military to give up…but it didn’t happen. The soldiers came through, grabbing any teenage man or woman to serve for the fatherland. They finally came to our farm and took my younger brother and I. They told him to get into the truck, and he did, not knowing any better…but I refused.”

Timothy turned back to him. “And they shot you…” he stated, and Albert nodded.

“I know we finally lost the war, only a few months after I died. Some of the residents who had died years afterwards told me…It’s a funny thing…”

Timothy raised a brow. “What’s that?” he asked, and Albert chuckled.

“That I had to die…because of the will of a madman.”

Timothy turned back to the road to see that they had arrived at Albert’s home.

“So…” Albert started, and Timothy turned back to him.

“So?” He returned, then Albert turned to him.

“What happened to you? I can tell you haven’t been here long, and if you know historical events, such as the ‘Hitler Youth Brigade’, then you must be one of the lucky ones to keep their memories from the world of the living.”

Timothy turned back to the shack. “…Mugging…”

Albert frowned and turned back as well. “I see…”

Timothy closed his eyes and let out a sigh. “Me and my wife.”

Albert quickly turned back with slightly wide eyes. “I’m…I’m so sorry…Have you…tried to find her?”

Timothy sighed and lowered his head. “I found her…but not the way I intended…Enough of this sob stuff, let’s go inside.”

Albert nodded and they both went inside.

** 67th District, Rukongai, Fallen Tree, Present. **

Ever since then, Albert’s kept up with Timothy, trying endlessly to become friends with him, never taking the hint that Timothy didn’t want friends.

Although, even Timothy had to admit that Albert’s persistence was legendary.

“Hey Tim, have you heard?”

Timothy rolled his eyes and let out a sigh. “Heard what?” he stated in an annoyed tone.

“Yokoma and some of his boys, they got their asses handed to em?”

Of course, Timothy knew exactly what Albert was referring to, but even he didn’t know that Timothy went out training, so he played dumb.

“Is that so? Well, I guess either a rival gang got ahold of em, or they managed to piss off a soul reaper.”

Timothy turned and started walking back to the shack, Albert following after a moment.

‘Sigh, of all the days…why can he just leave me be?’

Albert caught up and placed his hand on Timothy’s shoulder, now walking beside him.

“Aw come on. Are you sure it wasn’t you?”

Timothy turned to him with a raised brow. “And why would you think that it was me?” he asked in his monotone voice, and Albert pointed to Timothy’s sword in his rag sash.

‘Oh, give me a break…this again?’ Timothy thought.

Timothy rolled his eyes again. “Really? Just because I have a sword doesn’t mean that it was me. I only have it to protect myself, nothing more.”

It really wasn’t a lie, but it wasn’t the entire truth either.

Albert held his hands up in surrender. “Ok, ok. No need to bite the head. I was just joking with you.”

Timothy side glanced him. “You’re the only one joking here, so you’re not really joking ‘with’ me.”

Albert then chuckled. “Touché. But anyway, it doesn’t look like they’ll be bothering us again anytime soon.”

“Nope.” Timothy plainly stated. ‘They would be more stupid than I thought if they did.’

Albert then held his chin in his hand. “Come to think of it…I have noticed that fewer and fewer criminals have been showing up in town over the past few years. Do you think that the soul reapers have finally started to help us?”

Timothy sighed. ‘Like they would ever help us.’

Albert turned to him and Timothy shrugged my shoulders. “Who knows? Not like I care. As long as they leave me alone.”

Albert then shook his head. “Yeah yeah, I know, Mr. Recluse.”

Timothy rolled my eyes. “Aren’t you like…5000 years old by now? Shouldn’t you be acting more grown up than that?” he replied in an annoyed tone and Albert laughed.

“Try 56 and 17 human years.”

Timothy then growled in annoyance. “Albert, is there something you want from me? If not, can’t you please leave me be? I’m tired, and I’m in no mood to play your damn games.”

“Alright, alright. Calm down. I just wanted to know how your day was.” Albert quickly stated with hands up and a smile on his face.

Timothy let out another sigh and turned to him. “It was fine, thanks for asking.”

Albert nodded in understanding. “And your training? How did that go?”

Timothy slightly flinched but kept his composure. He rolled my eyes and turned to the road. “What are you rambling about now?”

_‘Crap…there’s no way he could know…’_ Timothy worried.

Albert leaned over to him and whispered. “Oh come on Tim…Did you really think that after all these years living together I wouldn’t notice? And that’s not the only thing I know.”

Timothy slowly turned to him in a side glance.

“What are you talking about?” Timothy asked with a faked annoyed tone, trying to hide his slight shock.

“I know that you possess spirit energy Tim, and that you know some kidō.”

The shock overtook Timothy as he grabbed Albert’s shirt and tossed him into the split between shacks next to them. He was a little surprised, but kept his smile.

“How the hell do you know that?!” Timothy asked through clenched teeth and Albert shrugged.

“Easy, I’ve seen you eating in the woods before, and always around the same time. We all know that normal souls don’t need food and water, only those that possess spirit energy do. Plus, I’ve seen you use kidō before. So, I put two and two together.”

Timothy let go of him and leaned back against the opposing shack.

“Hey, don’t worry Tim…I’m not gonna say anything. In fact, I’ve known about it for a couple years now.”

Timothy lifted his head back to him in slight shock. “Years?” he dumbly asked, and Albert nodded.

“Yeah. But again, I won’t say anything. I mean, how could I? I’m not stupid you know. I know that it was you that has been chasing away all these criminals.”

“Not by choice. I just simply wanted to be left alone. They’re the ones who wanted to pick a fight, not me.” Timothy corrected in a normal tone and Albert just held up his hands, palm up.

“Well, like they say. Tomato, tomáto. Anyway, regardless of how it happened, the people’s lives here have gotten better, thanks to you.”

Albert finished by placing his hands on his hips.

“Albert…” Timothy started, and Albert raised a brow. “You better not tell anyone…”

Albert then closed his eyes. “I already told you, don’t worry I won’t.”

Timothy then looked at him. “I mean it Albert…no one can know about this. I don’t wanna hurt you…but if you tell anyone…I won’t think twice about cutting you down.” he warned through his teeth.

Albert’s expression never changed, he just continued to stare at Timothy with his smile.

“Is that all? And here I thought I would be cursed to hell by you.” Albert finished in a chuckle.

Albert then held up his right hand. “I swear on my life…er, soul…that I will never tell anyone.”

Timothy simply stood there staring at him, evaluating the situation. “Fine. Just remember what I told you, Albert. Now, if you don’t mind, I’m going to bed.”

Timothy turned back towards the street and began walking.

“Hey Tim…”

Timothy stopped and looked at him with a side glance. “Just don’t push yourself too hard, alright?”

Timothy simply closed my eyes and shook his head before turning back to the street.

“Yeah yeah, whatever.” Timothy called, waving over his shoulder.”

Timothy returned to the road and continued walking home, thinking about the new situation.

**_“Do you think he would tell anyone?”_** Timothy’s sword asked in his head and he sighed.

_“Who knows? I don’t consider him a friend, and I may be a little thick headed, but even I can see that he’s a trustworthy person.”_ Timothy replied mentally and his sword then began to chuckle.

**_“Only a little?”_ **

Timothy let out a low growl. _“And just what is that supposed to mean?”_ The chuckling stopped.

**_“Oh, come on Tim, he’s been trying to be friends with you for twelve years. But no, you keep trying to push him away, insistent on being alone.”_ **

Timothy slightly shook his head. _“And for good reason. We can risk anyone finding out our secret…not even him. You know what could happen if it got out into the open.”_

_**“Yes, I do. Have you ever thought that maybe he would keep that secret as well?”**_ the sword asked.

Timothy then stopped and lowered his head. _“That is not a risk I can take. And the closer I let him get to me, the higher the chances are that he will discover it. It’s not worth it.”_ Replied solemnly.

Timothy then heard the sword sigh. **_“I understand that Tim…but you can’t do this on your own, even you have to admit that.”_**

Timothy raised his head back to the road. _“Again, that is not a risk that I am willing to take. This discussion is over.”_ The sword sighed again.

**_“If you say so, just don’t do anything stupid. That’s also a risk you can’t take. We have a job to do, and you can’t afford to do anything stupid.”_ **

Timothy sighed and started walking again. _“I know.”_

Timothy arrived at the shack that acted as home that him and Albert shared, on the days that he didn’t decide to sleep out in the woods. He pushed the rag door aside and stepped inside, walking over to the wall on the right side near the small fire pit dug in the floor. He sat down and leaned his back against the wall, setting his sword down beside him.

Timothy crossed his arms and leaned his head back against the wall and closed his eyes in thought over recent news.

The news that was spreading around Fallen Tree was that a few Court Guard Squad Captains had turned against the soul society and fled. It was big and terrifying news, sure. But the name of one of the Captains was what hit Timothy the most…Aizen.

Afterall, it was his doing that had caused Timothy to be in the situation that he was currently in.

It was because of him that Timothy’s life was filled with sorrow and despair.

He had to die, and Timothy had to be the one to make sure he died. The problem Timothy faced, was how he was going to get to him.

Originally, Timothy’s plan was to find a way into the Seireitei, find him, then kill him. And as if breaking into the Seireitei wasn’t as close to impossible as it was, finding Aizen without getting caught was going to be even more of a challenge.

But now everything had changed. Now he was supposedly no longer in the soul society, meaning that he was now out of Timothy’s reach.

What’s more, Aizen now had the entirety of the 13 Court Guard Squads hunting him, meaning that Timothy’s chances of killing him before they did were very low.

Timothy had to come up with a new plan, to try and find some way to get to him. He couldn’t leave the soul society…and even if Aizen came back in the future, how would Timothy get to him before the 13 Court Guard Squads do?

Timothy let out a depressed sigh and started rubbing his temples.

“What the hell am I going to do?” Timothy whispered.

**_“Keep training…at this point that’s really all you can do. At least until we figure out a new plan.”_** His sword answered.

Timothy lowered his hand and leaned his head back again. _“Yeah, but for how long? The longer we wait, the more likely that the Court Guard Squads will find him before us…so it takes us back to the question…what do we do?”_

A brief moment of silence passed, then a sigh. **_“I don’t know Tim. We’ll think of something…”_**

Timothy was brought out of his thoughts by the rag door sliding over and he turned to see Albert walk in.

“Hey Tim…” Albert greeted with a slight bit of worry in his eyes.

Timothy rose my brow. “What’s wrong?”

Albert pushed the rag door back kneeled down next to Timothy. “The soul reapers are here…” he stated with a worried tone.

Timothy closed his eyes and slightly banged his head against the wall. “What do they want now?” he moaned.

Albert turned to the door frame, then back to Timothy. “I don’t know…but it doesn’t look good.”

Timothy lowered his head and let out a loud sigh. “Well, just stay inside and maybe they’ll ignore us. It usually works.”

Albert then shook his head. “Not this time…”

Timothy turned to him with both brows raised. “What do you mean?”

“They’re searching all of the houses…I think they’re looking for something…or someone…”

Timothy’s brows dropped, then they heard a voice.

“Nothing here sir.” said a man with a low, gruff voice.

“Well keep searching! We’re going to find him! Gather everyone in the street, be it man, woman, or child! I want everyone out here!” said another voice.

Timothy turned to Albert with concern in his eyes. “Let’s get outta here…” Timothy stated, and Albert nodded.

Luckily, Albert was a smart individual, and over 500 years of constant threats from thugs had taught him a key lesson…always have an escape route.

They both got up and quietly stepped over to the back wall. Albert pulled out a purposely loosened nail, then pulled away a small three-foot-wide, two-foot-tall piece of wall and slid it to the side.

“You first…” Timothy stated, and Albert began crawling through the opening.

“Nothing here, let’s check the next one.” Timothy heard from the shack next door.

He turned to see Albert had made it through the opening, ending up behind our shack. He then got down and crawled through as well.

Timothy could now hear the footsteps approaching the doorway to the shack and quickly turned around to replace the slat over the hole.

The wall had one nail that was exposed and bent so that the slat would rest between the head and the wall, holding the slat in place. Timothy heard the slat tap into place, and immediately afterwards heard the rag door be thrusted open.

They both sat motionless for what felt like an eternity. “No one’s here, let’s hit the next one.”

They heard the rag door unfold back into place and the footsteps disappear. They both then let out a quiet breath of relief and looked at each other.

“What do we do Tim?” Albert asked, now clearly worried.

“I don’t know, but we need to get a better look at what’s going on.” Timothy replied.

Timothy looked over to his left and gestured Albert with my hand. “This way, keep low, and keep quiet.” he whispered, and Albert started to follow.

They both carefully moved from one shack to another. They would then stop for a second to listen, then move on to the next shack.

Once they got behind the fourth shack, they froze when one of the soul reapers stopped right in front of them and started looking into the woods. Sweat started pouring from their heads as they sat motionless, waiting for inevitable moment when the man would turn to his left and spot them.

_‘Don’t turn left…don’t turn left…’_ Timothy thought as the man continued to stare out to the woods behind the shacks.

After what seemed like forever, the man finally turned around to his right and walked back in the direction he came from.

After they could no longer hear the man’s footsteps, they both let out the breaths that they were holding in.

“That was too close Tim…” Albert stated, his voice starting to crack.

Timothy nodded and gestured for them to keep moving. He looked around the corner to make sure the man wasn’t standing there.

It turned out he was, but he was facing the street. Timothy turned around to Albert and gestured for him to wait here, he nodded.

Timothy looked around the corner again to see the soul reaper was still facing the street. He quickly, but quietly darted across the opening to the other side and waited a moment.

After a few seconds, Timothy peeked back around the corner to see the man turning around. Timothy quickly backed away and gestured for Albert to back up, which he did.

Timothy heard the footsteps again and coming closer. His body froze as they kept getting louder...but suddenly stopped. Timothy and Albert both sat on either side of the opening, paralyzed.

After a brief moment, Timothy heard the footsteps again, but getting fainter. He took a chance at a glance around the corner to see the man walking away.

Timothy quickly turned to Albert and gestured him to quickly move across.

Albert got off his knees and quietly darted across the opening to Timothy, stopping just passed him. They both took a second to calm their heart rates down, then moved on.

After about ten minutes of peeking corners, and darting across openings, they finally made it to the last shack on the row. Timothy took a peek around the corner to see no one there, then gestured for Albert to follow.

They snuck alongside the side wall of the shack and stopped just before the edge, next to the street. Timothy took a deep breath, then carefully peeked around the corner, stunned by what he saw.

Timothy could see the entire town gathered in the middle of the street with nine soul reapers guarding them. He could also see five more soul reapers doing the ‘house calls’ at the far end. He pulled myself back and turned to Albert.

“There’s at least fourteen of them…they’ve gathered the entire town in the street…I think you were right…” Timothy turned back towards the street. “…they are looking for someone.”

Timothy then heard a familiar voice and his eyes went wide. ‘No way!’ he thought.

He peeked around the corner again and froze when he saw Yokoma standing next to one of the soul reapers, the one who looked like he was in charge.

Timothy slowly backed away from the corner and rested against the wall. “It’s Yokoma…he’s here.”

Albert’s eyes widened for a moment. “I can give you three guesses as to who they’re looking for…but I’m pretty sure you’ll only need one.” he stated, and Timothy nodded.

“Yeah…they’re looking for me.”

Timothy let out a sigh, then froze when they heard a woman scream.

Timothy’s eyes widened, and he quickly peeked around the corner to see an elderly woman being pulled from the group by one of the soul reapers.

“Alright everyone. We’re looking for the guy who assaulted this man and his friends! He is wanted for questioning in regards to this incident! Now, we know he lives here, and we know that you know who he is! You should be aware that harboring a fugitive is a serious crime, and anyone who is harboring him will be punished!”

Timothy backed away and lowered his head. “They’re holding onto one of the elder women…it looks like Yokoma lied to the soul reapers, telling them that I assaulted him and his goons. They’re threatening to ‘punish’ the woman for ‘harboring’ me.”

Albert’s eyes went wide as saucers. “Tim…you know that they will kill her if they suspect that she’s harboring a fugitive!”

Timothy slowly nodded and turned back towards the street.

**_“Tim…we can’t let that happen…”_** Timothy’s sword started.

Timothy sighed and lowered his head. _“I know…but we can’t fight them without your ability…and we can’t let people know about you…”_ he replied in his head.

He heard the sword sigh. **_“I know…but Tim…we can’t just sit here and let this happen…you have to do something, or she’ll die…”_**

_“I know! But we can’t risk it…we just can’t.”_

A moment of silence passed, then Timothy peeked around the corner to see the woman now on her knees.

**_“Tim…we can’t let her die because of our secret…it’s not right.”_** The sword yelled.

Timothy pulled himself back and lowered his head. _“And what do we do after everyone finds out about you, huh? What then?”_ Timothy retorted.

He heard another sigh. **_“That is just a chance that we are gonna have to take…but I can’t stand just sitting here knowing that we have the power to stop them!”_**

Timothy let out a deep sigh. _“Are you absolutely sure about this…there is no turning back from this…you know that right?”_ He then heard a growl of anger.

**_“I’m aware of that! And I’m sure about this, now go!”_** the sword ordered.

Timothy slightly nodded, then turned to Albert. “I’ve got no choice, I’m gonna try and stop them.”

Albert lowered his head, then nodded a second later. “Yeah…” He then raised his head to Timothy and placed his hand on Timothy’s shoulder. “Just…be careful Tim…and remember…”

Timothy rose his brow.

“…they’re just doing their job…so don’t kill them.”

Timothy nodded and turned back to the corner. “Yeah…for once.” he whispered.

_“Sigh…you ready?”_ Timothy asked inwardly.

**_“Ready!”_** the sword stated.

Timothy stood up slowly, then took a deep breath. “Here we go…” he whispered and started slowly walking out from around the corner.

Yokoma and the lead soul reaper noticed Timothy at once. “T…That’s him! He’s the one who did this!” Yokoma yelled. The leader pushed the old woman aside and walked forward.

“So, you’re the one who attacked this man and his friends?” he asked, and Timothy shook my head.

“No, I merely defended myself. They are the ones who had attacked me.”

The leader turned to Yokoma and rose a brow. “Is this true?”

Yokoma quickly turned to him and waved his hands. “No! No, we did no such thing! We we’re only walking through the woods when he came up and attacked us! We tried to defend ourselves, but he took down two of my friends, almost killing them, then took off! I swear!” he yelled.

The leader turned back to Timothy, looking at the sword in his sash. “Well, it’s blatantly obvious that you’re the one who cut them down, so whether or not it was self-defense, or assault, you’re coming with us. And we’ll be taking that sword.” the leader demanded.

Timothy lowered his head and sighed. “No…you won’t.” he calmly stated, and the leader rose a brow.

“Excuse me?! I don’t think I heard you correctly…care to repeat that?!” he asked and the other soul reapers placed their hands on their zanpakutō.

“I said…” Timothy started, then lifted his head to them. “No…you won’t.” he answered in a cold tone.

The leader then smiled, teeth bared. “I see, so resisting arrest, are we? The penalty for that is death. So, tell me…” The leader then drew his zanpakutō and the others followed suit, getting into ready stances. “…Are you ready to die…smartass?”

Timothy lowered his head and let out a sigh. “I’ll tell you the same thing I told him…I don’t want to fight you, but you persist…I will.” he turned back to them with his emotionless stare and the leader began laughing.

“And just what do you think you’re gonna do to us, huh? You may have a sword, and you may have been able to fend off this man and four of his friends, but what could you possibly do to seventeen soul reapers.”

Timothy then heard footsteps come up behind him and he side glanced to see three more behind him, swords at the ready.

“And not just any soul reapers…” the leader started, and Timothy turned back to him. “…but members of Squad 11!”

Timothy then drew his sword and held it to his side. “I know that from what I heard, Squad 11 prides themselves with their combat abilities. To lose without dying is an insult to the squad. So…I will give you this one, last chance to leave with the pride that you have left.”

The man then clenched his teeth and growled. “Not only do you have the balls to insult me…but now you’ve gone on to insult our squad! Forget what I said earlier about bringing you in for questioning…you will die right here…right now!”

Timothy sighed and lowered his head. “Very well…I warned you.”

He rose his sword to where it was now pointing at the leader. He then raised his head stared right into the man’s eyes. “Tease…Moeru Kitsune…”


	2. Discoveries and Knowledge Acquired

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTORS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 2

**(Discoveries and Knowledge Acquired.)**

** Squad 11 Headquarters, Seireitei, Present **

The halls of the headquarters for Squad 11 were quieter than normal, mainly due to most of the members and officers being out at the training field either honing their skills, settling grudges, or simply fighting for the fun of it.

For the exception of a few members doing the typical paperwork, the only other person here was the Captain, napping in his office.

Down the hall, the Captain of Squad 7, Sajin Komamura, was on his way to meet the Captain of Squad 11.

Captain Sajin Komamura was a very…unique…soul reaper, in fact that he was not human…in a manner of speaking. Captain Komamura was from a distant line of creatures that quite closely resembled that of a werewolf from the human world’s folklore.

He stood at a towering nine feet and five inches, making him the tallest soul reaper in the Seireitei. While most of his body looked similar to that of a human’s, his face was that of a wolf’s. The fur on the top of his head and face, going down past his neck and across his body was brown with a slight hint of red to it. While the lower half of his face, and the inside of his wolf’s ears was a cream color. He also possessed golden eyes that were also very similar to a wolf’s.

He had a calm, yet stern demeaner, treating all of his subordinates and fellow Captains with respect. Enough so, that others never judged him by his appearance, once it had gotten out into the open.

Like many of the other Captains, Sajin really didn’t get along with the Captain of Squad 11. He didn’t really even want to be there in their headquarters.

But today, he had some important matters to discuss.

He came up to the doors that led to the Captain’s office and knocked with a solid thump. He waited for a moment, but heard no response, so he tried again. After a second, he got a reply.

“Yeah, who is it?” he heard a deep and annoyed tone answer.

“It’s Captain Komamura, Captain Zaraki. I have something to discuss with you.” He waited for a minute.

“Whatever, just make it quick.” It was evident that the man was clearly annoyed.

Sajin pulled the door open and stepped inside the find the Squad 11 Captain laying on the sofa against the right wall with closed eyes. “What do you want, wolfman?” he asked, his annoyance getting worse.

Sajin took a moment to stare at him.

Captain Kenpachi Zaraki, the man considered by all, even Sajin himself, to be the Seireitei’s strongest, while also the most gruesome and terrifying fighter. There was no one within the soul society that could even come close to holding a candle to Kenpachi Zaraki; for the exception of the Head Captain. He was a lean built, six-foot, 7-inch man with black hair that he kept styled to look like multiple spikes.

At the end of each spike, he wore a single bell that sounded with every move that he made. He bore a scar vertically across his face, stretching over his left eye. In addition, he also wore an eye patch over his right eye.

But he didn’t wear it because of an injury, as the eye was perfectly fine. No, the patch itself was a device that he had the Department of Research and Development create that would consume large portions of his endless, and monstrous amounts of spirit energy that he constantly radiated.

He wore this, as well as the bells, for only one reason…to make fighting harder for himself, that way his battles would last longer, giving him more enjoyment from it. In fact, he never really too much cared about his position, or anything for that matter, as long as he could fight. Fighting was all he cared about.

This was why Sajin Komamura had very little respect for him. He respected his fighting strength, of course, but held very little for the man himself.

“I have come to retrieve the reports and information for your sectors of Rukongai. My squad has been assigned to them now.” He calmly stated.

He just wanted to get the paperwork and leave, having no interest in conversating with the man. Zaraki then opened his eye, staring at the Captain.

“Is that right? Well, if you want em, take em. They’re over there on the desk.” He stated and gestured to the desk with his thumb.

“Thank you, Captain.” Sajin answered and proceeded over to the desk.

He saw the paperwork he was looking for spread out and disorganized, leading him to inwardly sigh. He gathered the papers together neatly, and took a brief moment to look at a few of the top ones to get a basic insight of what he was facing.

“I see by some of these reports that your men have been having some issues with tyrants.” he stated, causing the other Captain to scoff.

“Tsk…no longer my concern. You said it yourself, the sectors are now your problem, not mine. So go fuss about it somewhere else.”

Sajin side glanced him. “I see. Anything of importance I should know about?” he asked in an annoyed tone, losing his patience.

The tone got the other Captain’s attention as he quickly sat, then stood up, walking to the furry Captain. He stopped just a few feet from him.

“Look wolfie, it’s not my job to do the work of welps. If there’s something of importance, it’ll be in the papers. So stop bugging me over stupid things. If there’s nothing else, you can leave.” he told him in an angry tone.

Sajin wanted to smack him down a few notches for his blatant disrespect and carelessness, but thought better of it.

“Very well, Thank you Captain Zaraki. I’ll take my leave now.” Sajin stated in a low tone with a hint of a growl.

He turned back to the door and walked towards it.

It was at this time that Zaraki’s Lieutenant, Yachiru Kusajishi, made herself known.

She was a small girl, standing only three-foot-seven, with pink hair and blemishes on her cheeks, just under her eyes. She always had a happy demeaner, and was essentially the exact opposite of Kenpachi in regards to personality.

She hopped up on top of Kenpachi’s shoulder and waved to the furry captain.

“See you later, Bow-Wow! Thanks for visiting! Come back soon, okay?!” she yelled cheerfully.

He turned to her and nodded before leaving the room.

The Captain and Lieutenant stood there watching as the door closed. “Tsk…what a pain in the butt. Wasting my time over pointless paperwork.” He grumbled with crossed arms.

“Awww…don’t be like that Kenny! I like it when Bow-Wow visits.” She stated with a wide smile.

He turned to her. “Be quiet Yachiru. He’s nothing but a pain in the butt.” he moaned, and she simply smiled more.

“Okay!”

Meanwhile, Sajin walked out of the Squad 11 headquarters and he heard the sound of a flash step behind him.

“It seems we have our work cut out for us Tetsuzaemon.”

The man behind him was his trusted Lieutenant, Tetsuzaemon Iba, a man of average height with black hair in a flat top cut and a slim, long mustache. He wore sunglasses, and always seemed to have a sense of urgency about him.

“Why do you say that, Captain?” he asked, and Sajin simply handed the paperwork back to him.

“It appears that Squad 11 has become quite lax with handling reports.”

“I see, should I dispatch troops immediately?”

Sajin nodded, and side glanced him. “Yes, I want them at their posts by this evening, and the initial reports by tomorrow afternoon.”

Tetsuzaemon promptly stopped and bowed. “Sir!” he acknowledged, then disappeared in a flash step to complete his task.

Sajin turned back front and stopped before sighing. _‘I have a feeling that this will not be pleasant.’_ he thought, before he, too, disappeared in a flash step.

** 67th District, South Rukongai, Fallen Tree, Present **

Timothy stood there, in front of seventeen soul reapers with his sword extended out, pointing at their leader.

“Tease…Moeru Kitsune.” Timothy commander in a low tone.

Like before, the blade burst into flames and began its transformation into a 17-inch, straight blade, before they disappeared.

The soul reapers looked at me with a mix of emotions, including surprise and confusion.

“What the hell?!” the leader yelled.

Their looks got even worse when the floating flames started appearing.

“What the hell is that?!” one of the men asked.

“Is that a…flame?!” asked another.

Timothy could see in the leader’s eyes that he was trying to figure the situation out, but eventually gave up.

“Alright, that’s enough with the firework show, get him!” he yelled, and they all went after Timothy.

Timothy glanced behind him to see that the nearest one was only a few feet from him. He then suddenly vanished and the soul reaper’s zanpakutō swung through the air.

“What? Where’d he go?” he asked.

They were now all completely confused and started looking around trying to find Timothy. Only now did they notice the numerous flames surrounding them.

“What the hell?! Where the hell did all these flames come from?” the leader wondered.

They kept looking around and started to separate as they started looking around buildings and under baskets.

“Here.” Timothy stated as he showed up behind the one who struck at him earlier.

The man quickly turned, only to be met to the blunt side of Timothy’s sword against the side of his head, knocking him out.

“There he is! Get him!” one yelled and they started to flood towards him. He stood there with his arms at his sides and waited for them to get close.

But, like before, just before one got there, Timothy disappeared. Like the last soul reaper, he hit nothing but air.

Timothy re-appeared behind him. “Missed me.” he stated and swung on him, again using the backside of his blade to render him unconscious.

“Hold still you bastard!” the next man yelled, and Timothy quickly vanished.

Instead of swinging, the man quickly caught on, turned around and swung behind him, expecting Timothy to be there. But he wasn’t.

“Missed again.” Timothy stated as he reappeared right where he was before and took the man out as well.

“I’m impressed…you figured out my pattern and reacted accordingly. Too bad patterns are easily changed.” he taunted and turned to one right behind him.

This time, Timothy didn’t disappear, he simply ducked as the soul reapers blade passed over his head, then stood back up and punched him, putting him down as well.

“Four down…” Timothy stated, then turned to the rest, coming at him with fury. “…thirteen to go.” he finished.

Meanwhile, Albert sat there, watching the entire ordeal happen before his eyes. And he simply couldn’t believe what he was seeing.

Sure, he knew for a couple years that Timothy had been training tirelessly, but he never expected this. A non-soul reaper, with a zanpakutō, and with a shikai as well.

In the years that he had been in Fallen Tree, he had never known such an instance to have happened. And not only that, but it was his friend that was doing it.

He watched as one after one the soul reapers fell to the ground.

Another thing he couldn’t grasp, was the fact that Timothy was fighting several members of Squad 11, the most feared squad of the 13 Court Guard Squads.

Not to mention, he wasn’t even causing them any harm.

So far, he had taken out four in the first minute, and all of them were only knocked unconscious. Time-after-time, Timothy would suddenly vanish, then shortly afterwards reappear in a different location, right next to one of the soul reapers.

It was a marvel in itself.

Meanwhile, the soul reaper leader was absolutely furious. He couldn’t understand how such a pathetic bastard, in such a lowly district, could possibly have a zanpakutō.

But what puzzled him even more was how he was disappearing, then reappearing right next to one of his men. Then his senses clicked and he turned just in time to see another one of his men get knocked down.

“What the hell is this?” he mumbled.

In just a few minutes, Timothy managed to take down five of his men.

He then clenched his teeth as he figured out what he was doing. “Men, fall in! He’s trying to pick us apart one-by-one! Stay close to each other and watch each other’s backs!” he ordered, and they began closing in to each other.

“Tight formation men! Keep an eye out for when he shows back up!” he yelled.

“Yes sir!” they responded.

Timothy was currently at one of his flames that he kept hidden from sight as he watched the leader pull his men back into a tighter group.

_‘Heh, he’s not stupid…he figured out my plan…or at least part of it.’_ he thought.

He quickly appeared next to one of the stragglers and gave him a blow to the gut with the hilt of his sword, causing the man to double over in pain before Timothy disappeared again.

“Quickly men! Fall back now!” the leader ordered, and they picked up their pace.

**_“Looks like they’re falling for it.”_** Timothy’s sword stated, and he nodded.

_“Yes. It’s sad, cause it almost too easy.”_

The sword chuckled. **_“You’d think that they would know better, right?”_**

Timothy scoffed. _“Well, they’re too confused to think straight at the moment, so what do you expect?”_

He saw one more straggler, so he quickly popped up behind him and since the man was as short as Timothy was, he gave him a kick to the head, knocking him forward, out cold.

But instead of disappearing, he stood there staring at the rest, now in a tight group.

The soul reapers all turned to Timothy and got ready to attack.

Timothy then held up his sword in front of him and sideways. He then placed the palm of his hand against the backside of the blade.

“Hadō #32…” he started and the soul reapers all went wide eyed.

“What…” the leader chocked.

“Ōkasen.”

A small, yellow ball appeared on the blade in front of Timothy’s hand, then swiftly extended to cover the whole blade before shooting out towards the group.

“What the hell?! Kidō?!” a tall one yelled out.

The yellow beam struck the first two and tossed them into the next three.

The area was then covered in dust from the attack, so Timothy lowered his arms and stood there waiting for it to clear.

After a few moments, he reached out with his mind to try and detect the group.

‘Hmm…no one has moved yet. I know that didn’t take all of them out…I’d be lucky if it got the three behind the initial two…’ Timothy calculated.

After a few seconds more, he could now see that the attack had indeed rendered the first two, as well as one of the three afterwards unconscious. The other two were pretty banged up, but were still standing, leaving a total of seven left.

All of the soul reapers were trying to recover from what they had just seen, but the leader’s head was beat red with anger.

“Enough.” Timothy stated, and the men looked at him confused.

“Stop this now…You have already lost over half your men…and have yet to even touch me. Please stop this so I won’t have to harm your men even further.” he finished with an emotionless stare.

That was the breaking point for the leader as he was now growling with pure rage.

“You think you can defeat us?! You’ll die where you stand!” he yelled, and Timothy sighed.

“One…I don’t ‘think’ I can defeat you…I know I can. And second…you don’t have the ability to even lay a finger on me. So, stop this pointless fight.”

“Get Him!” the leader yelled at the top of his lungs.

They all charged at Timothy at once and he lowered his head.

“Pity…your men will suffer…because of your pride. Hadō #57…Daichi Tenyō.”

All at once, numerous small objects began floating up around Timothy, causing the men to go wide eyed, but they continued their assault.

Timothy pointed to an object with his finger, then flicked his wrist towards the group.

The object, a small hand cart, flew right towards the lead man. The cart caught him in the side, shattering on impact and throwing him out of the way.

The men started to hesitate and slow down, but kept coming.

Timothy then pointed to the next object, a small boulder, and flung it to the next man, catching him in the chest. Now it was down to five.

Timothy chose his next piece of ammunition, a long board, and sent it careening towards two of them. It struck both of them in the gut and simply knocked them over, both of them holding their midsections in pain.

‘Three.’ Timothy thought as he chose his last piece of debris, another boulder, and sent it into another man’s shoulder. He flew to the side, catching the guy next to him and bowling him over.

But after a second, the second one got back up and came running. ‘Two.’ Timothy continued.

Timothy quickly disappeared and let the remaining soul reapers run by. They stopped and started looking around, now back-to-back.

Timothy decided to stay hidden and let the lull of battle play on the soul reaper’s minds.

Three minutes passed…then four…then five, yet Timothy was still hidden.

Both men were now very worried, giving the effect Timothy intended.

“W…where are you?! Show yourself!” the leader choked, but Timothy still remained hidden.

“I’m right here.” he spoke, now on their left, causing both to turn.

“Now I’m here.” he added, now from the right, where they turned again.

“I’m everywhere.” Timothy’s voice said from multiple angles.

And that, did the job.

The last one then took off in a full sprint down the road.

“What the hell?! You fucking coward!!! Get back here or Zaraki will have your head!!!” the leader yelled.

“Zaraki you say?” Timothy asked, now behind him.

With his quick reflexes, the leader swung at him, but Timothy stopped the man’s blade with his.

“There you are! Gonna play your tricks again?! Gonna hide like a little bitch?!” the leader taunted.

Timothy stared at him and slowly shook his head. “No…since you were so adamant about killing me, I thought I’d give you the chance.”

The man glared at Timothy. “What is this? Some kind of trick?!”

Again, Timothy shook his head. “No…no tricks…just you and me, face-to-face.”

The leader pulled his sword back and turned to him. “Oh really? One-on-one with me?! Do you even know who the hell I am?!” he raged, and Timothy simply tilted his head.

“An idiot?”

The man’s eyes went wide, and he took a quick swing at Timothy, him ducking and rolling back onto his feet.

“Listen here you bastard…I’m the 7th seat of Squad 11…Tetzuma Ōnaido. That means that I’m the 7th strongest person in Squad 11, the strongest squad it the soul society! What do you have to say about that?!” the leader demanded.

Timothy stared at him for a moment.

“Well?!” he demanded again, and Timothy sighed.

“I take back what I said…” Timothy mumbled, and the man laughed.

“Hah! I thought so! Now you…”

“Allow me to rephrase…you’re an idiot ‘and’ your squad is weak.” Timothy stated coldly, and the officer twitched.

Timothy looked down to see the man’s hands shaking with rage. “Enough! Die!!!”

He charged at Timothy, blade high and right, ready for a slash across his chest. Timothy could see the full intent to kill him in his eyes, a look that he knew all too well.

“It’s over.” Timothy stated as he simply took one single step to the right and swung straight across to the right with the sharp end of his blade.

The officer passed him and they both stopped. The officer with his blade low and to the left, Timothy’s outstretched to the right. Timothy lowered his blade and turned to see the officer look down at where Timothy had struck him.

His robe had a perfect slash across it, and it separated just enough to see a perfect cut along his stomach. It wasn’t a deep cut, just one of those scratches just deep enough to cause it to bleed. The officer slowly turned back to him.

W…what?” he asked.

Timothy sighed and lowered his head. “Can you see now? I could have very easily cut you open…killing you right here. But…I didn’t. It’s as I told you…”

Timothy lifted his head to him. “…you can’t hurt me.”

The officer’s face then scrunched up and he growled. “Hah! You really think you’ve won?! You missed me, we both missed!” he yelled, causing Timothy to raise a brow.

“If you truly believe that…” Timothy started and turned to face him. “…then please…feel free to try again. But I warn you…I won’t show you the same restraint as last time.”

The man audibly gasped and stood there frozen. They both stared at each other as time flew by, before the officer finally lowered his head.

“Fine…you win.” He stood straight and sheathed his zanpakutō. He let his arms fall to his sides, fists balled. “What’s your name?” he asked, and Timothy closed my eyes.

“Timothy Durn.”

The officer turned to him. “Well…Timothy…you’ve won…for now. But don’t let it get to your head. We’ll be back.”

Timothy let his sword return to normal, the flames around the two disappearing, then returned it to its sheath as well.

“Warning noted. Now leave.” Timothy demanded, and the officer scoffed.

The man then turned, and flash stepped away. Timothy let out a sigh of relief as he lowered his head. But what happened next caught him by surprise.

He heard cheering and applause from behind him, so he turned to see the residents clapping and praising him. He turned to see Albert running up to him and he let out a moan. Albert stopped in front of him and placed his hand on Timothy’s shoulder.

“Albert…what is this?” Timothy whined, and Albert just smiled.

“What does it look like dummy? Everyone’s cheering for you.”

Timothy brought his hand up to his head and rubbed his temples.

“Well tell them to stop…I don’t want their praise. I didn’t even want to help them, and now that I have, everyone knows my secret.”

Albert shrugged his shoulders. “So? It’s not like anyone’s gonna do anything about it. I mean…you took on seventeen members of Squad 11 by yourself, and without so much as a scratch.”

“Oh yeah?” Timothy asked, then turned to him. “And what happens when Kenpachi Zaraki finds out?! You know he would more than likely come out here looking for a fight! What then, huh?!” Timothy yelled.

Albert just stared at him with worry while Timothy maintained his glare. But it was at that point that they both noticed something wrong. It was totally quiet. They both turned back to the residents to see them staring at them…but not at them.

**_“Uh…Tim…”_** Timothy’s sword warned.

Timothy’s eyes went wide. _‘Uh oh…’_

They both slowly turned around to see that they weren’t alone. Much to Timothy’s dismay, there where now over twenty soul reapers in front of them.

“Shit…”

No one moved for the longest time, until one of soul reapers started walking towards them. Timothy grabbed the hilt of his sword ready to draw, but the man just held his hand up.

“Hold on, wait a minute. We’re not here to attack you. We just want an explanation.”

Timothy rose a brow. “About?”

The man stopped and looked at the unconscious bodies littering the street. “About that.” he stated in a calm and polite manner.

Timothy release the grip on his sword and stood straight. “Long story…but the short version is that they were lied to, forced to think I had assaulted someone.”

The man turned his eye to Timothy. “And did you?” he asked, but before Timothy could answer, Albert stepped up.

“No, he didn’t. He is innocent, but they believed the false story and tried to take him.” he cleared, and the man turned to them.

“Well, they were probably going to take you in for questioning. You are aware that it’s standard procedure, right?” the man inquired.

Timothy and Albert both nodded.

“Yes…but they wanted my sword…and no one touches this sword but me. And I must warn you…you try the same thing and you’ll end up just like them.” Timothy coldly stated, earning a nod from the man.

“Noted. Allow me to introduce myself…I am Hetoku Watashu…5th seat of Squad 7.”

Timothy raised a brow. “Squad 7? What brings you out here? Last time I checked, this wasn’t your sector.” he stated, and Hetoku nodded.

“It is now. The sector responsibilities have changed, so this sector now falls under Squad 7. And it seems that things have gotten pretty out of hand here.” Hetoku observed.

“You have no idea.” Albert deadpanned.

The soul reaper turned back to his men and nodded. “Alright men, spread out and conduct your inspections.” the one behind Hetoku ordered.

“Yes sir!” the rest yelled in unison.

The men all went their separate ways, leaving the three of the men standing in the street. The three of them continued to stand there for a while longer, the officer watching his men, making sure they were doing their jobs.

After a moment more, Hetoku turned back to Timothy. “Well, now that that’s over, how about you explain to me what happened here.”

Timothy rose a brow again, now confused as to why he was asking the same question again.

“What do you mean? I already told you what happened.” Timothy retorted.

The man rose a brow back, a little surprised. “That’s not what I mean…you know exactly what I’m talking about.”

Timothy’s stare went cold as he came to the realization of what the officer meant. “And what’s it to you?”

The man took his glasses off and started wiping them.

“You see…we were watching you for a little while, ever since you used that 30s level hadō…”

Timothy’s eyes widened a bit, because that meant that the man saw pretty much all of the fight.

**_“Tim…I don’t like where this is going…”_** Timothy’s sword stated timidly.

_“Neither do I…we may have another fight on our hands…”_ Timothy warned.

The man placed his glasses back on his face and pushed them back on his nose. “The truth of the matter is…I’m quite impressed…we all were. After all, it’s not every day that you come across a non-soul reaper that can use a 50s level kidō without an incantation.”

Timothy let out an annoyed sigh and crossed his arms. “Look, why don’t you just cut to the chase here? Albert here can tell you that I don’t take well to lollygagging. So just state your business, and let me go my way.”

The officer looked to Albert, who shook his head, then turned back to Timothy.

“Very well. Where did you learn kidō?” he asked with a serious look.

Timothy tilted his head, brow raised. “Why?”

The officer huffed and shook his head. “You said it yourself that you have no patience for ‘lollygagging’…well as it turns out…neither do I. So, answer the question, please.”

Timothy straightened his head and moved his hands to his hips. “Look…that’s my business, not yours. If it is a crime to know and use kidō without being a soul reaper…”

Timothy spread his arms out. “I’m right here…take me away. Or that is…try to.” he taunted, and the officer glared at him. Timothy lowered his arms and returned the glare.

After a few moments, the Hetoku started laughing. “Alright, that’s enough. I guess my intimidation won’t work on you.”

Timothy rose my brow and shook his head slightly. “Apparently not.”

Hetoku calmed down to simple chuckles and stroked his hair. “Truth is, you’re right. It’s not illegal to practice kidō without being a soul reaper. But my curiosity got the better of me, naturally, and I couldn’t help it. My apologies.”

He finished with a slight bow, that Timothy returned with a nod.

Hetoku then held up a finger. “However…”

Timothy gave a heavy sigh, mentally begging for it to end. “Possession of a zanpakutō is.” Hetoku cautioned.

Timothy’s eyes widened, and he lowered his hands. “I see…so what do you plan to do? Try and take it? Look behind you…you can see what happened to the last group that tried. Hell, you even saw the fight. So, let me ask ‘you’…do you really think you can take it?”

The officer started to chuckle again. “No…I know that, even with more than 20 squad members here, I wouldn’t be able to take it, that is…not easily. That’s what impresses me the most. So, at this point, I’m left with only being able to file a report to the Captain. It would then be up to him on what to do about it.”

“And…in ‘your’ opinion…what do you think he would do?” Timothy inquired, and Hetoku simply shrugged his shoulders.

“Don’t know, I’ve never came across a situation like this. I’ve come across individuals with swords before, but those were swords without a zanpakutō’s spirit. Yours however, obviously has one, making it a zanpakutō. So, I couldn’t tell you. Just let me give you a warning…if the Captain does decide to take action…it won’t be pretty.”

Timothy lowered his glare and nodded. “Warning noted.”

Hetoku nodded back. “Well, if you’ll excuse me, I have some inspection reports to write for the change in responsibility.” He stepped back and gave a deep bow. “Thank you for your assistance.”

Timothy returned the officer’s bow with a slight one. The man then straightened himself and walked around the two.

Timothy and Albert looked at each other for a moment, then the officer stopped and glanced back. “Oh, and one more thing.”

Timothy and Albert both turned to him.

“I’ll be sure to include in my report what happened here over the past few years. Judging by the words of the residents, you’ve been doing some good things around here in regards to the local thugs. That may or may not be of some benefit to you. Take care.”

He turned back and continued to walk down the street.

Timothy crossed his arms and Albert turned to him. “So…what do you think will happen?”

Timothy shrugged his right shoulder. “Who knows? Either way, it might be best if I left Fallen Tree and found somewhere else to live.”

“So…you’re gonna just up and leave?” Albert asked in worry, causing Timothy to sigh.

“At this point…I really don’t know. I’ll think about tonight and I might have a decision in the morning. For now, I think I’ll go to bed. Two fights in one day is enough for me.”

Timothy’s stomach then started to growl causing Albert to chuckle. “I guess not yet, huh?” Albert commented.

Timothy turned to him with a growl. “Shut your mouth, Albert. I’ve already got them to worry about, so I don’t need any grief from you.” he stated in a monotone voice and Albert chuckled more.

“Alright. How about we go find you something to eat?”

Timothy rose a brow. “And how would you know what’s edible?” Albert simple huffed.

“Pfft…please. So now you’re gonna take me for the fool? I thought you would have learned by now that I’m not an idiot. Now let’s go.”

Albert starting walking and Timothy let out an annoyed breath while closing his eyes and tilting his head.

“Why can’t he just leave me alone?” he moaned.

**_“Maybe cause he likes you?”_** his sword teased.

Timothy inwardly growled. _“Don’t you start.”_

****

**_“Hey, I was just answering your question.”_** the sword pointed out.

_“Clearly not helping…”_ Timothy warned.

****

**_“Oh, quit crying you big baby. Anyway, nice job on the fight, you really gave it to em.”_** the sword complimented.

_Yeah, well…they’re the ones who had no teamwork. Clearly it was a fight they were destined to lose.”_ Timothy cleared.

**_“Teamwork? Hah! That’s rich coming from you.”_ **

Timothy flinched and growled. _“Shut up!”_

The sword started laughing. **_Calm down Tim…you know I’m just messing with you.”_**

Timothy let out a sigh. _“Just shut up.”_

**_“Fine then, Mr. Grouchy.”_** The sword stated in an offended tone.

_“I sooo want to slap you right now.”_ he mentally whined.

**_“Hmm…I’m sure you do~”_** the sword said in a suggestive tone.

Timothy opened his eyes, blushing, and held his sword up to his face.

“Just shut up!” he slightly yelled out loud.

“Tim…”

Timothy turned to Albert who had a confused look on his face. “Uh…who were you talking to?”

Timothy flinched from falling for his sword’s taunt. “Uh…no one…just getting some pressure of my mind.”

Albert shrugged his shoulders, then kept walking, Timothy in tow. He held my sword back up.

“I swear I’ll get you for that!” he whispered.

**_“Oh…I’m sure you will~…he he he.”_** The sword replied, continuing the suggestive manner.

Timothy let out a sigh and tucked his sword back into his sash.

“Damn fool.” he whispered, and the two men continued their walk to find something to eat.

** Squad 11 Barracks, Seireitei, 2 hours later **

Sixteen members, and one officer, stood bowing, frozen with fear.

“Alright, so let me get this straight…the seventeen of you were screwing around in Rukongai…fought a ‘single’ man…AND LOST?!”

The entire building shook, and books fell off their respective shelves from the sheer volume of Captain Zaraki’s voice. The seventeen men flinched, but didn’t move while their Captain berated them.

“Y…yes sir…C…Captain. H…he just kept d…disappearing sir. It was like fighting a ghost sir.” the officer frightfully explained, causing the Captain to raise his brow.

“A ghost?! What the hell are you blabbing about?!” the Captain asked with confusion.

It took a few seconds for the officer to gather his nerves, then he explained.

“W…well sir…he released his sword…then all these weird…flames…or something started appearing…every time one of us got close, he would just…vanish.”

Zaraki tilted his head. “What do you mean ‘vanished’?”

The officer gathered the courage and looked at his Captain. “It’s just that simple sir…he just…disappeared…no longer there.”

Zaraki turned to the rest and they all nodded quickly.

He turned back to the officer. “Go on…”

The man nodded. “Then…after a few seconds, he would just…re-appear where we least expect him, then attack.”

Zaraki again turned to the others and they again quickly nodded.

“I see…So tell me…” he started, then turned back to the officer. “Is he strong?”

“Y…yes sir. He took all of us out and…” The officer froze, and Zaraki raised a brow.

“And…? Go on…” he ordered with annoyance.

The man swallowed. “Well it…it didn’t even seem like…he was even trying sir...Like…he put no effort into it. So…yes, I would have to say he is very strong.”

This earned an evil, sinister grin from the Captain, and they all knew exactly when that grin meant. It meant that man was going to end up fighting him…and dying.

“Excellent. And his name is…?”

The officer thought for a moment, then it came back to him. “T…Timothy…Timothy Durn, sir.”

Zaraki started to lightly chuckle. “You are all excused. Now go train yourselves until either I come back for you…or you die, whatever comes first.”

They all quickly bowed. “YES SIR!” they yelled in unison and quickly left the room.

Zaraki remained standing there, filled with the utmost happiness. His Lieutenant Yachiru then popped up on his shoulder, hanging off it.

“Ohhhh…You look happy Kenny! Did what Red Man say make you happy?!” she cheerfully asked, and Zaraki chuckled.

“Do I? Well…Ichigo’s gone back to the world of the living, so I don’t have a good sparring partner anymore. But now…”

He laughed a second, then started walking down the hallway to head back to the headquarters.

“...I think I may have found someone to fill that spot. And his name is Timothy Durn!”

Zaraki finished with his ‘happy’ grin and Yachiru started bouncing up and down.

“Yay! Kenny gets to have fun!”

****

** 67th District, South Rukongai, Fallen Tree, 2 hours later. **

It took quite a while, but things were finally starting to calm down. Most of the new soul reapers had already left town, spreading throughout the district to continue their ‘inspections’. Only a few remained, and they were spending the time with residents getting information about the district and recent events.

Albert and Timothy were just now walking back into town, when one of the soul reapers, who was talking to the woman from before, stood up and walked over to them.

The man stopped and gave a slight bow before starting. “Excuse me gentlemen, do you have time that I may ask you a few questions?”

Albert returned the bow, where Timothy just nodded. “Uh, I can…but I doubt that Tim here would want to.” Albert answered, causing the man to turn to Timothy for a second.

“Might I ask why not?” he inquired.

Timothy closed his eyes and slightly shook his head. “I don’t have anything to tell. Besides, I already talked to your officer, so if there is something you want to know about me, ask him.”

The man rose a brow, but nodded in understanding. “Very well, then I’ll speak with you.” he answered now looking at Albert, who nodded.

Albert turned to Timothy and held his hand up. “I’ll catch you later Tim. Go get some rest.”

Timothy turned to him and nodded before he left with the soul reaper. Timothy continued to stand in place for a moment more before he turned and walked to the shack.

The sun had already set, but there was still a little bit of light in the sky. It had been a long day, and at that point, all Timothy cared about was laying down and getting some sleep. He walked into the shack and strode over to his bed area.

Like it was for everyone else, Timothy’s ‘bed’ consisted of a sheet tossed over a pile of straw to act as a mattress, with another sheet for a blanket. It wasn’t much, but it was better than nothing. Not like it mattered much to him as he only really stayed there two or three times a week.

Timothy set his sword down next to the bed and laid down on top of it, rolling onto his side to try and sleep.

He laid there for a while, waiting for sleep to take him over, but it just wouldn’t happen. There were too many thoughts flooding his mind about the day’s events, and wondering about the near future.

The secret about Timothy’s training was now out, and now he also had to worry about possessing a zanpakutō being illegal. He didn’t care about the repercussions, no one was getting his sword, no one, but he really didn’t want to fight either.

Timothy rolled onto his back and slipped his hands behind his head, looking up at the ceiling. Getting sleep was starting to become less and less likely. He let out a deep breath and closed his eyes to think better.

But just then he heard the rag door get pushed aside, so he turned to see who it was. Albert walked through the doorway and let the rag door close back before he turned to Timothy with a hand up.

“Hey Tim.” Timothy nodded back to him. “Can’t sleep?” he asked, and Timothy gave him a slight head shake.

“No…too much on my mind.”

Albert gave a slight chuckle. “I bet. The rest of the soul reapers have left except one. He said he’s staying to keep watch tonight and see how things are at night here.”

Timothy thought about for a second. “Makes sense…if what they said is true, and their squad really is taking over this sector, why wouldn’t they want to know everything that goes on.”

Albert nodded in agreement, then walked over to the wall near the fire pit. He sat down and let out a relaxing breath as he leaned back.

“What a day…at least we don’t have to worry about Squad 11 bullies anymore.”

Timothy scoffed at him. “No, now we have to worry about Squad ‘7’ bullies.” he retorted, and Albert waved him off.

“I don’t think so…if they wanted to cause us grief, they would have done so by now. Especially after watching you fight those Squad 11 guys. I mean…they don’t take to attacking their comrades lightly.”

Timothy turned back and shrugged his shoulders. “Good point…either way, it’s not looking too good for me in the near future.” he pointed out.

Albert let out a sigh. “Cheer up Tim, everyone here will back you up. You’ve made their lives easier over the past couple of years, and they’re thankful to you.”

Timothy scoffed and turned onto his side, facing away from Albert. “Yeah…whatever.”

Silence followed for a while, until Albert broke it again. “Can I…ask you something Tim?”

Timothy gave an annoyed sigh. “Sure…” Albert didn’t speak for a moment, so Timothy turned back to him in a side glance. “What?” he asked, and Albert sighed.

“Well…” He choked up and Timothy rolled his eyes.

“Spit it out, Albert.” Timothy demanded.

Albert rubbed the back of his head and nodded. “Where exactly…did you learn kidō?”

Timothy rose a brow. “Why?”

Albert scoffed and held up his hands. “Look Tim…I know how you feel about me…and I know you don’t want any friends. I’m alright with that, I’ll still be here to give you a hand. That’s the kind of person I am…But you’re gonna tear yourself apart if you don’t at least let someone help you out.”

Timothy turned back to him and sat up. “Albert…”

He held his hand up again, stopping Timothy from continuing.

“Hold on…I can tell by the way you act…how you’re always training…just your demeaner in general, that you are on a personal mission.”

Timothy’s brows both rose.

“Like I’ve kept telling you over the years…I’m not stupid, Tim. You’ve got a mission, that’s fine. You don’t want anyone close to you cause you’re afraid it might make the mission more difficult, I accept that. But the truth of the matter is, it doesn’t matter what the mission is, or what goal your trying to accomplish, or whatever. You can’t do it alone while pushing people away. If you don’t want my help, that’s fine, but don’t push me away Tim. The more you push people away, the harder your mission is going to be.” Albert stated in a serious tone.

Timothy let out a sigh, lowered his head and closed his eyes.

He sat there thinking about what Albert said. He wasn’t wrong, everything that he said was true. But the problem Timothy had was he still had a secret that he knew for certain that Albert didn’t know, that nobody knew.

And Timothy was dead set and determined to ensure it stayed that way, regardless of the consequences.

“Albert…I thank you for telling me this…and I thank you for trying to be there for me. You really have been a pain in the ass.”

Albert let out a chuckle. “I’ll take that as a compliment.”

Timothy couldn’t help it, He let out an amused scoff. “Whatever…what I’m trying to say is that…ohh, how can I put this…?”

Albert shrugged his shoulders. “Just ‘spit it out’.” he retorted, and Timothy glared at him.

Not an evil one, but one to show that he was annoyed. “Smartass…anyway…there are things about me that no one knows…that no one will EVER know…I’m fighting with everything I’ve got to ensure it stays that way.” Timothy finished in a determined voice.

“So, you push people away to try and keep it hidden…” Albert stated, and Timothy nodded.

“It’s not that I don’t want friends, Albert…it’s simply that I can’t risk anyone finding out my secrets, nothing more.”

Albert gave an understanding nod and Timothy took a deep breath.

“Ok, I won’t ask about it at all…promise.” Albert stated with sincerity. Timothy nodded back and tilted his head back. “So…with that out of the way…” Albert started. Timothy brought his head back down to him. “Where did you learn kidō?” Albert asked again.

Timothy scoffed and shook his head. “This again?” he moaned, and Albert nodded with a determined look.

“It’s no longer a secret that you know it, so what does it hurt to tell me how you learned it?” Albert pointed out.

Timothy sighed and started rubbing his temples. Albert did have a point, and how Timothy learned it didn’t have anything to do with his secret…in a way.

“Fine…I’ll tell you, but keep it between us, alright?” Timothy asked in a serious manner.

Albert held up his right hand. “I swear. Also, could I ask you about your sword as well?”

Timothy quickly scoffed. “Hah! Not gonna happen, and don’t ask again.”

Albert nodded in understanding. “Fair enough, so go ahead.”

Timothy took a deep breath and started recalling the events. “It started 11 years ago…”

** 67th District, South Rukongai, 11 years ago. **

The woods were quiet and peaceful, unlike it was back in town at the moment. For some reason, the Seireitei’s Shin’ō Academy decided to have a field day in a few sectors of South Rukongai. There were students everywhere, asking residents about their lives, learning about being on assignments, among many other things.

Albert stayed in town, but Timothy walked off into the woods. He had no interest in getting hounded by non-stop questions, plus he didn’t want to deal with them inquiring about his sword and risk it being taken away from him.

The risk was always there as at any time one of the thugs could try and take it, but as he usually kept himself hidden when they were around, so they never noticed he had it.

Timothy was a couple miles outside town walking towards the creek, when he suddenly heard someone scream. He froze and started looking around, trying to find out where it came from.

“Help! Someone help me!” he heard a feminine voice yell.

The voice sounded like it was coming from right in front of him, so he started running towards it.

“Help! Please, someone!” the voice yelled again, but much louder, meaning that he was close.

He came up to a wide tree and stopped when he saw what was wrong.

It was a female student, wearing the academy’s standard white kosode and red hakama. She was on her back, supported by her arms, trying to back away.

In front of her were four men, one had a sword while two had similar length wooden poles. Her school books were behind the men in a crude pile.

“He he, so what’s a girl like you doing way out here, huh?” one asked.

“Looks like she’s lost boss.” the second added.

Timothy quickly backed up and hid behind the tree, moving to where he could peek around it. Two of the men walked around behind her to keep her from backing up more.

“It’s looks like she could use some help, don’t it boys.” the third man, Timothy assumed to be the leader, stated.

“Yeah…so how bout it girl? Want some help?” the second one taunted and she backed up a few inches.

“Please…just leave me alone…” she begged.

Timothy could now see that she had an empty scabbard across her back. It looked like the leader was holding her sword.

‘They must have snuck up on her and took her sword before she could react…’ Timothy concluded.

The leader then walked up to her and held her sword up to her chest.

“Yeah, I think she does need help. We should give her a hand.” the fourth one coldly stated, causing the leader to grin.

“Yeah…but help around here don’t come cheap. So, what you gonna pay us with, huh?” the first one asked and the leader chuckled.

“I could think of a few ways…” he hinted in a suggestive tone while tucking the blade of her sword under her garment. “Lots of ways.” he added as he started to push aside her robe to try and expose her chest.

She quickly pushed the blade aside and held her robe shut tightly. “No! Get away from me!” she cried, causing the men to laugh.

“Oh ho, looks like we got a fighter here, boss.” the second one teased and the leader nodded.

“Indeed it does…but that’s how I like em…feisty!”

Timothy turned back behind the tree and held his head low.

**_“Tim…we have to do something…”_** his sword stated in a low voice.

He slowly nodded. _“But what…? I don’t know what to do…”_

Timothy started to cry, knowing that he had to do something, but couldn’t. Sure, he had his sword, but he had no idea how to use a sword.

He heard the woman scream again and he quickly peeked again, and his eyes went wide. The two men behind her were holding her arms while the fourth man was holding her legs. The leader was trying to strip her of her garments. Timothy turned back and clenched his teeth.

**_“Tim! Do something!_** his sword yelled, and he choked.

_“What?! What ‘can’ I do?! I’ll be killed!”_ he stated in a sad tone.

He heard my sword growl in anger. **_“She will die after being humiliated if we don’t do something! We can’t just stand here and do nothing!”_**

Timothy twitched, and his hands started shaking. he lowered his head and stared at open palms.

_‘What can I do?! I have to help her! I have to!’_ he thought.

He quickly swallowed and slowly drew his sword.

“God help me…” Timothy whispered, then fully drew his sword turned around the tree. “Hey! Stop it!” he yelled and the men all stopped and turned to him.

“This is none of your business runt! Now leave, before we kill you!” the leader yelled.

Timothy started slowly walking towards the group.

“Sir! Please, help me!” the woman yelled.

“Do you want to die punk?! I said leave!” the leader ordered again, but Timothy just kept walking.

The leader growled then faced one of the men with poles. “Kill him!”

The man nodded and released the woman’s arm. He stood up and started walking towards Timothy. “Should have left when you had the chance, stupid.”

Timothy held the sword with both hands in front of him in a weak stance.

“S…stop it…now.” he meekly ordered.

The man laughed. “Or what? You gonna kill me? Look at you! Can’t even hold a sword right. You probably just found it somewhere.”

Timothy’s body started shaking more and more the closer he got.

The man then swung at Timothy and he held his sword up to block it. But the man simply knocked it out of the way and the pole struck him in the shoulder. Timothy fell over and scooted across the ground, his shoulder stinging in pain.

“Heh, what a weakling…can’t even block a wooden pole.” he taunted and started walking towards Timothy.

Timothy slowly stood back up and held his guard again.

“Want more? Fine by me.” He swung again, and again broke Timothy’s guard, hitting him in the stomach.

Timothy was forced back a few steps, and he bent over, clutching his stomach in pain.

“What a waste of time.” the man stated as he set his pole on his shoulder, waiting for me to recover.

“I almost feel bad hitting you cause you’re so pathetic.” he taunted.

Timothy leveled himself and took up another guard. He looked over to the woman and could see fear in her eyes as she watched the whole ordeal.

“I know, she’s a cutie, right?” the man asked, and Timothy turned back to him.

“Shut up.” Timothy weakly warned.

The woman then yelled, and Timothy quickly turned to see the leader groping her and kissing her neck while she tried to wiggle away.

“Leave her alone…” Timothy growled.

“Or what? What the hell you gonna do? There’s nothing you can do. And, if you ask nicely, I may let you stay alive just long enough to watch.”

Timothy turned back to him. “Shut up!” he ordered through clenched teeth.

“Sir…please…!” the woman pleaded, and Timothy lowered his head.

No one noticed it, but the blade of Timothy’s sword started emitting steam off it.

“He ain’t gonna do nothing. He’s nothing but a little runt trying to play hero.” the man taunted again.

“I said…” Timothy started, then looked up to the man. “Shut up!” Timothy yelled.

It was at that moment that the blade burst into flames catching everyone by surprise.

Timothy glanced over to the sword to see it slowly change shape. The blade was starting to straighten out, while at the same time becoming shorter.

“What…what’s happening?” Timothy whispered in surprise.

The blade stopped transforming, then the flame vanished.

“What the hell?! What did you do?!” the man in front of me yelled.

“I…I don’t…” Timothy started, but his voice was choked by his shock.

The man lifted the pole off his neck and got into a guard stance.

_“W…what did you do…?”_ Timothy asked his sword.

**_“I don’t…I don’t know…but it feels good!”_** it growled.

Suddenly, a small flame lit up, floating in the air next to Timothy.

“W…what the hell is that?!” the first man yelled, and Timothy turned to it.

_‘What the…’_ Timothy wondered, confused by the sight.

Then another flame lit up next to the man in front of him, causing the man to quickly back up.

“What the…?!” he choked.

Another flame then appeared next to the group.

“What the hell?!” the leader yelled, then turned to Timothy.

“Kill him!” he ordered.

The man in front of Timothy came after him, and swung, causing him to stumble back into one of the flames. Before Timothy knew it, he was, somehow, now behind the man, next to the flame that appeared next to the man before.

“What the…” Timothy started in shock.

Everyone was confused as to what was going on, Timothy being the worst.

The man quickly turned around to him. “How the….how the hell did you do that?!” he asked, and Timothy turned to the flame next to him.

“Could that…” Timothy whispered in wonder, then the man growled.

“I’m done with this…now die!” he yelled.

Timothy turned to see the man running at him, and an idea came to mind.

_‘I wonder…’_

Timothy decided to chance it, so he waited till the man was a few feet from him, then stepped over to the flame. Like last time, Timothy suddenly found himself next to the opposing flame, again behind the man. Timothy took this chance and ran at the man, swinging his sword and cutting the man across his back.

“Yahhhhh! he yelled as he fell forward onto the ground.

“What?!” the leader yelled.

Timothy froze and looked at the blade that now had blood on it.

_‘I…I killed him…’_ he thought in shock.

He was too frozen in shock to see the next man get up and run after him.

“You’re gonna pay for that!” the next man yelled.

The man’s voice brought Timothy back to his senses and he turn just in time to quickly dodge a fist to the face. The man turned and swung again, hitting Timothy in the same shoulder from before. Sore muscles roared with pain, causing Timothy to yell.

The man swung again, this time hitting Timothy in the chest and knocking him back into the flame behind him. Timothy then found himself behind the men and woman where the third flame was.

Because it was behind them, they didn’t notice Timothy at first. He took this moment to recover from the hit to his shoulder, but the fourth man turned and saw him.

“T…there he is!” the man yelled, causing everyone to turn to Timothy.

“I’ll get him!” the man stated, then got off the woman and charged at Timothy. He held his pole high and got ready to swing down.

Timothy rolled to the side as the man swung, rolling on his hurt shoulder and causing more pain as he hissed.

“Hold still, you bastard!” the man yelled.

He charged again and as he swung, Timothy dove under him, ending up behind him. Timothy rolled onto his back and swung as he turned, causing his sword to hit the man’s side.

The man dropped his pole and held onto the wound screaming in pain. Timothy let out a sigh of relief, but stopped and turned to see the second man right behind him, swinging down with his fist.

Timothy rolled to the side and the man’s fist hit the ground. The man grunted in pain, but still turned and swung with his other fist. He hit Timothy in the face, and Timothy’s world became blurry.

“Got ya!” the man sneered.

Timothy was dazed and trying to come back to his senses as the man came up and put his foot on Timothy’s sword hand. He yelled in pain as his hand was being crushed between the man’s foot and the handle of his sword.

“I’ll admit, you caught us off guard…but now it’s over.” the man growled.

Timothy’s senses finally started to clear as the man pulled his fist back, getting ready for the knockout punch. But then they heard the leader yell in pain.

Timothy lifted his head to see the woman getting up and the leader’s ear bleeding. As she turned to them, Timothy could see blood on her lip, making it evident that she hit bit the man.

She ran up to them and punched the man standing over Timothy, knocking him over. She then knelt down next to Timothy and grabbed his arm.

“Get up! Hurry!” she ordered, and Timothy rolled over to get up.

He managed to make it to his knees and was in the process of getting to his feet, when she suddenly gasped. It wasn’t a gasp of shock, or surprise… it was a gasp of pain.

Her eyes went wide, then they both looked down to see a blade sticking out of her chest. Timothy’s eyes went wide as saucers, as he came to realize what happened. He looked up to see the leader behind her, holding the sword that was run through her.

The leader then pulled back, pulling the blade out from her chest and she immediately fell forward onto Timothy. They both sat there for a second while Timothy tried to recover from what just happened.

“T…thank you…” she stated, then simply slumped over and slid off Timothy’s shoulder, landing on her side.

Timothy looked down and saw her blood on his clothes, then looked up to the leader. The man had an evil grin on his face.

“Stupid bitch! That’s what you get! And now you’re next!” he stated and brought the sword high.

Timothy quickly flinched and raised his sword to block him. Timothy was now on one knee holding his sword up, blocking the man who was standing above him trying to bring his own blade down on top of him.

“I’ll kill you for that!” Timothy growled, and he laughed.

“Ha! Try it!” he taunted, and Timothy coldly glared at him.

“As you wish.” he replied.

Timothy let the end of his sword drop a bit, so the man’s blade would slide off the end. Once it did, Timothy now had his sword above his left shoulder. Timothy swung around and across to the left, going right through the man’s midriff.

After a split second, Timothy could see the gash where he had cut the man as it began to bleed profusely. The man dropped the sword and backed up, holding onto his stomach trying to stop the bleeding.

But it was no use. Timothy had slit him wide open and there was no way the man was going to survive.

Timothy got back to his feet, walked over to the man, and kicked him over onto his back. The man was howling in pain as Timothy stood over him.

“Help…help me! Don’t let me die!” he begged.

Timothy gave him a cold, deathly glare.

“Like you helped that woman?” he asked through his teeth. “Very well.” Timothy stated, then held his sword facing down and stabbed the man through.

The man looked at Timothy with terrified eyes, then after a second, they lost the life in them as the man slumped against the ground. Timothy pulled his sword out and stood there with his head lowered.

He was so lost in his grief that he didn’t notice that his sword started to emit steam as it slowly returned back to its original form.

Timothy continued to stand there for a moment more, then his senses came back. He quickly remembered the woman and ran over to her see if see was alive.

When he got to her, he knelt down and dropped his sword next to him, then slowly picked up her body, resting it against his chest.

“Hey…are you alive? Talk to me.” Timothy pleaded.

He looked at her face and saw her eyes slightly opened, but lifeless.

“Come on…don’t die…” he begged, but he then realized it was too late.

Tears came to his eyes as he buried his head in her hair and started crying.

“I’m sorry…I couldn’t…I couldn’t help you…” he whispered.

He sat there cradling her body for a while.

**_“Tim…”_** his sword started, bringing him to his senses.

**_“Tim…we should go…If someone sees us like this…they may think we killed her…”_** Timothy’s sword advised.

Timothy sniffed then nodded. “Alright…” he whispered and lowered her body gently down on the ground.

After a second more, Timothy grabbed his sword and slowly stood up.

He was about to leave, but then noticed her books lying only feet away. He wiped his tears away with his sleeve and walked over to them. He knelt down, grabbed one of the books, and opened it.

He took a quick look inside, and instantly could tell that the woman was a third or fourth year. Some of the books were introductions to arts and skills, while the rest led on the more advanced methods.

Timothy briefly flipped through it and saw that this particular book taught something called kidō.

**_“Tim…what are you doing?”_** his sword asked.

Timothy closed the book and looked at the cover.

“I think…I may have found a way to help us.” he whispered, and the sword sighed.

**_“Come on Tim…do you really think you could understand that stuff?”_** the sword asked in a sarcastic manner.

“I can always try. At this point…I’m willing to try anything.” Timothy answered.

He held the sword sigh again. **_“Alright…but I hold you know what you’re doing.”_**

Timothy grabbed his sword and put it back in the sheath. He started gathering the books and picked them up.

**_“Tim…what about her?”_** the sword asked.

Timothy stopped, then turned back to the woman.

“Nothing we can do…if we bury her, they will start sending search parties, and that could end up being bad. We can’t tell the other students cause then they might think we did it.” He pointed out.

****

**_“But we can’t just leave her here…”_** the sword stated.

Timothy nodded. “I know…”

But some sort of fate or luck was with Timothy that day, because he then started hearing voices deep in the woods.

“Sounds like her friends are coming. They should be able to find her.” Timothy mumbled.

He stood back up, books in hand and started to run but stopped. He lowered his head a moment, then turned back to her.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t save you…I’m sorry…” Timothy said in a low and solemn voice.

He turned back then started running deeper into the woods.

** 67th District, South Rukongai, Fallen Tree, Present **

Timothy sat there telling Albert the story how he came to learn kidō. He had to lie a little bit to hide the details behind his sword. Albert sat there with a heavy look on his face.

“So…yeah…that’s how I was able to learn kidō…” Timothy finished, and Albert slowly nodded in sadness.

“Did they…ever find her?” he solemnly asked, and Timothy nodded.

“I went back to where it happened a couple days later, and her body and sword were gone, but the men’s bodies were still there. So, I assume so.”

Albert lowered his head and Timothy saw a tear fall down. “Thanks for telling me Tim…”

Timothy turned away, but nodded. “Sure…”

They both sat in silence for a while, Albert trying to comprehend what Timothy told him, and Timothy trying to get over recalling a painful memory.

“Well…” Albert started with Timothy turning to him. “I guess we better get some sleep.”

Albert stood up and walked over to his bed. “See ya in the morning, Tim.” he said with a wave, then climbed in bed.

“Yeah…” Timothy mumbled.

Timothy laid back down on his side and took a deep breath. He laid there staring at the fire pit and thought more about earlier that day. Eventually, his mind went blank as sleep finally took him over.

** Squad 7 Headquarters, Seireitei, The next morning **

Captain Komamura sat at his desk facing the window behind him, enjoying the sunrise and his tea. He always enjoyed the quiet and calmness that came with the early morning. It was one of the rare occasions during the day where he could relax and think about things.

This morning, as it had been since Aizen’s treachery, his mind dwelled on the thought of former Captain Kaname Tōsen.

He and Sajin were close friends and shared many of the same views. Sajin was furious about Aizen’s traitorous actions, but Captain Tōsen joining and leaving with Aizen had hurt him the most.

Even now, he still believed that there was something good in Tōsen, and Sajin believed that Tōsen was simply too dense to see it.

His quiet morning was disturbed by a loud knock on his door. He finished his tea and turned back around to his desk.

“You may enter.” he politely announced.

The door opened, and Sajin looked up to see that it was his squad’s 5th seat, Hetoku.

He then remembered that he was sent to inspect the new sectors of South Rukongai after they had been transferred to the squad.

“Good morning, Captain. I’m here to report.” Hetoku greeted.

Sajin nodded and gestured for him to take a seat. “Very well. Please, join me.”

The man bowed, then walked over to sit in front of him.

“Tea?” Sajin offered, but the man held up his hand.

“No, thank you sir. I’m afraid I can’t stay long as I still have to put the reports down on paper.” Hetoku stated with a smile.

“Very well. So, what is the report, Hetoku?” Sajin asked, setting his tea cup aside.

The man bowed again, then pulled out a small scroll from under his shihakusho. He untied the binding cord and unrolled it part way. Hetoku began to read from it.

“Well sir…the initial reports are pretty much the same ‘almost’ everywhere. Heavy crime, mainly mugging, kidnapping, and the occasional murder. Most residents, regardless of sector, all possess very little, to nothing at all. It was very difficult to speak with the residents at first. They were all very reluctant to speak with us. After a while, some of them opened up and told us some…pretty disturbing things.”

Sajin rose his brow. “Explain.”

The man lowered the scroll and looked at Sajin directly.

“Apparently…Squad 11 hasn’t been doing their jobs…at all. In fact…it was quite the opposite.” Hetoku clarified with a frown on his face.

Sajin lowered his head a little. “Go on.”

Hetoku set the scroll on the table, took his glasses off and started rubbing them with a cloth.

“It seems that the Squad 11 members assigned to the sectors have been acting just as bad as the criminals, sir.”

He finished wiping and put the glasses back on his face. “All of the residents that we talked to…or at least…the ones that would…all said that Squad 11 had been acting like bullies. Not stopping the crime…unless a higher up was there…and picking on the residents. Some even said that they saw some members beating on the residents because they were bored.”

This made Sajin’s blood boil. The soul reapers were supposed to be guardians, not pitiful bullies.

“Any names?” he asked with anger in his tone.

Hetoku shook his head. “No sir, and as you saw, Squad 11 didn’t keep any records of who was assigned to where and when. So…I’m sorry to say sir…but there’s nothing we can do at this point. All that we can do is try to gain the resident’s trust back and try to make their lives better.”

Sajin growled and closed his eyes. “Continue…”

Hetoku nodded. “Yes sir.” He picked the scroll back up and found where he left off.

It was then that something clicked in Sajin’s head. “Wait…”

Hetoku looked back at him and Sajin lowered his head. “You said that the reports were the same ‘almost’ everywhere. What did you mean?”

The man raised a brow, surprised that the Captain caught that. He set the scroll back down on the desk, took off his glasses again and rubbed his temples.

“Yes sir. The reports are the same everywhere…except for one.” Hetoku stopped for a moment.

Sajin raised his head back to him. “Go ahead.” he stated, and the man returned his glasses.

“District 67 sir, Fallen Tree. Apparently, there is a soul there, he goes by the name Timothy. When we first arrived in town, we saw the assigned members with their swords drawn.” Sajin raised his brow in surprise.

“They were closing in together into a tight group, looking around like they were expecting an attack. But what we found even weirder was all of the strange flames floating everywhere.”

Sajin tilted his head slightly. “…Flames?” he asked and Hetoku nodded.

“Yes sir, flames. But it gets weirder still...we also saw the soul I mentioned suddenly appear behind the group, opposite of us. He then used Ōkasen.”

“Wait a minute…this soul used kidō?” Sajin asked completely shocked.

“Yes sir. And he did it with no incantation. He took out three of the members with that, then he turned around and used Daichi Tenyō without an incantation.” Hetoku cleared.

Sajin held his hand up, stopping the man as he rubbed his temples. He was starting to get a headache trying to contemplate what he was hearing.

“So, let me see if I have this right…this soul used a 30s level, and a 50s level kidō?” Hetoku nodded.

“Both with no incantation?” He nodded again, then Sajin leaned back and sighed. “Go on…”

Hetoku sighed and shrugged his shoulders. “Well sir…he used Daichi Tenyō and took out all but two of them. And if the kidō wasn’t enough, what he did next shocked all of us.”

Sajin lowered his head to him. “He just…vanished.” Sajin rose a brow.

“…Vanished?” Sajin asked in disbelief.

Hetoku started scratching his head, but nodded.

“I know it sounds silly sir…but it’s the truth. After he disappeared, he was gone for about four or five minutes, one of the members freaked out and started running away.” Sajin gave him a shocked look.

“He made a Squad 11 member run away in fear?!” he bellowed and Hetoku nodded.

“After that, he suddenly just…re-appeared right behind the last one. They talked for a minute, then after a single attack the last one gave up. He sheathed his sword and left using flash step. I managed to talk with the soul for a few minutes, asked his name, and where he got his training. But, besides his name, he refused to answer any questions.”

“I see.” Sajin let out a sigh and started stroking the fur on his chin.

“Not only that sir, but I believe that he may have a zanpakutō.” This got Sajin’s attention.

“I see. Perhaps I should have a talk with this soul.” Sajin said in thought.

Hetoku nodded. “I told him that I would report the situation to you and it would be up to you on what to do.” Sajin tilted his head.

“Why didn’t you simply take it?” Hetoku shook his head.

“I thought that action wasn’t the best course with the men I had there. I forgot to mention sir, out of those men he took out, not a single one was harmed. Every one of them was rendered unconscious. And in my opinion sir, it looked to me like he wasn’t even trying to fight them.”

Sajin lowered his head a bit. “What do you mean?”

Hetoku readjusted his seat. “It’s as I said Captain, he wasn’t even trying. He fought them all like it was second nature.” Hetoku stated with a shrug.

That last bit took Sajin back a minute. Both men sat there while Sajin thought about what to do.

“Hetoku…what do you suggest?” The man raised his head for a minute, then looked back.

“Sir, I…I don’t think you want to know what I think.” he calmly stated.

“Yes…I do. What are your thoughts, Hetoku?” Sajin looked at him at him with sincerity.

He took a deep breath and took off his glasses. “My advice sir…induct him.” Sajin raised a brow.

“He’s proven he knows what he’s doing, he can obviously fight, and he knows at least a 50s level kidō. That’s more than enough to pass the academy. If you wanted to, you could test him yourself to determine that he doesn’t need the academy and bring him right into the ranks. Under normal circumstances, it wouldn’t be possible, but we are in a state of emergency. Because of that, certain rules can be omitted. In my opinion sir…I think this is too good of an opportunity to pass up.” Hetoku pointed out.

Sajin closed his eyes and sighed.

The man had an odd, but very valid point. But this wasn’t a matter to take lightly.

If he brought him to the headquarters, tested him, and found him fit for duty as a soul reaper, then he would be inducted into the squad’s ranks. But if he found him unfit for duty, he would have to kill him…something that had no intention of doing.

“Alright…once you have finished with filing your reports, go back to the sector and speak with him. And have Tetsuzaemon go with you.” Sajin ordered.

Hetoku took the scroll, rolled it up, and bowed. “Yes sir.”

He stood up and started walking towards the door, until Sajin turned to him.

“Hetoku…” The man stopped and faced the Captain.

“Be courteous about it.” The man bowed again.

“Yes sir.” He straightened himself, then left the office.

Once the door closed, Sajin turned back to the window to see the sun now a little way above the horizon. ‘Well…this is something I never would have expected.’


	3. Introductions and Induction

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 3

**(Introductions and Induction.)**

** 67th District, South Rukongai, Fallen Tree, Present **

Timothy slowly awoke to the sounds of birds chirping and the low voices of the residents outside. His eyes were still adjusting to the light, so he kept them partially closed.

He turned his head to the window to see it was light out, then slightly moaned as he realized that he had overslept. Timothy always tried to get up and leave town before the sun rose, that way no one would see him leave.

_‘I guess I was more tired than I thought.’_ He mentally stated.

He turned onto his back and started rubbing his eyes. After a few seconds, he briefly sat up and looked around to see that Albert had already gotten up and was not in the shack.

“Well…that’s a first.” Timothy mumbled.

He couldn’t recall the last time that Albert had managed to wake up before him. But then again, he was the one who slept in, so he woke up ‘after’ Albert. Timothy turned back and rubbed his eyes once more and let out a yawn.

_‘Damn…guess I’m still a little tired. Yesterday must have ready done a number on me.’_ He mentally concluded.

He tossed his cover aside and slowly got to his knees before standing. Once he did, he started stretching out his limbs and noticed that they were a tad sore. Once he finished, he let out a second yawn before he grabbed his sword and walked to the door.

He pushed the rag aside and stepped out to see that the town was a little more…bustling than normal. He turned to his left to see two soul reapers talking to one of the women.

“Well…that’s quite an improvement since yesterday.” Timothy stated, but flinched when he saw the woman point towards him and the soul reapers look his way. “Oh great…what now?” Timothy moaned.

Whatever it was about, he didn’t want to be around to find out. Plus, he was already far behind in his daily training. Timothy turned around and started walking towards the edge of town. He managed to make it a few feet, before the two soul reapers flash stepped to him, one in front, one behind.

“Excuse me, are you by chance Timothy?” the man in front asked, and Timothy rose a brow.

He looked the man over a second, then turned back to see that the one behind him was the Squad 7 officer from yesterday. He then turned back to the one in front.

“Who wants to know?” Timothy retorted.

It was then that he noticed that the man had a Lieutenant’s badge on his left arm.

“I’m the Lieutenant of Squad 7, Tetsuzaemon Iba. And I’m sure you already know our 5th seat behind you.” He announced.

Timothy turned back to Hetoku and the man slightly bowed.

“Nice to see you again.” he greeted, getting a nod from Timothy.

Timothy turned back to the Lieutenant. “Well…that answers the ‘who’, now tell me the ‘why’.”

Timothy couldn’t see the man’s eyes because he was wearing sun shades, but he could see the skin above his right eye scrunch up, showing that he had a raised brow.

“Are you trying to be funny?” Tetsuzaemon asked, but Timothy made no change in expression.

“And if I am?” Timothy shot back.

Tetsuzaemon’s brow dropped. The 5th seat walked up and put his hand on Timothy’s shoulder.

“Easy there, we just want to talk. We’re not here to fight, promise.” he stated in a calm tone.

Timothy side glanced him. “About?”

Hetoku held his hand out to the side and smiled. “About yesterday. Don’t worry, you’re not in trouble for it. In fact, our Captain was quite impressed. He didn’t even believe me at first.” He cleared.

Timothy turned back forward and crossed his arms.

“If I’m not in trouble, then why are you bothering me? Is it because of my sword?” Timothy inquired.

The Lieutenant then looked down at it, then back to him.

“Although you’re not supposed to have it, that’s not why we are here.” he stated, and Timothy rose a brow.

“Look, I’ll tell you the same thing I told your 5th seat yesterday. I don’t like my time wasted on small talk. So just cut to the chase here.” Timothy stated in an annoyed tone.

Iba turned to Hetoku and the 5th seat shook his head.

“I see…” he started, then turned back to Timothy and crossed his arms as well. “Very well...our Captain wishes to speak with you. I’m to take you back to the headquarters.” Tetsuzaemon stated in a clear and stern tone.

Timothy’s eyes widened. “Back with you?…To the Seireitei?” he dumbly asked, getting a nod.

“I see…and if I refuse?” Tetsuzaemon simply scoffed.

“Then you can stay here…and we’ll take your sword.” Tetsuzaemon threatened.

At that moment, 20 members flash stepped in front of Timothy. He gave a quick glance at them and saw that they were in a ready stance, but none drew their zanpakutōs. He turned back to Tetsuzaemon with an annoyed glare.

“Lieutenant Iba…I can’t tell you how many times I have stated this…I don’t want to fight, but I will if need be.” Timothy threatened, but the man’s composure didn’t change.

“I see…then come with us and we won’t have to.” Tetsuzaemon stated.

He gestured to the men behind him with his thumb. “They’re only here if we have to take your sword, but myself and 5th seat Watashu are here to escort you. It’s your choice.”

Timothy took a slow look around to each of the men, then to Hetoku.

“Timothy…the Captain just wants to talk. If we wanted to take your sword, we would have done so by now. I promise.” Hetoku said with sincerity, causing Timothy to rose a brow.

“After everything that the last squad did, you really expect me to trust you?” Timothy pointed out.

Hetoku sighed and turned to Tetsuzaemon. “He does have a point sir.”

Timothy turned to Tetsuzaemon as well. “So, let me ask you this…how do I know you’ll keep your word? What’s to say you won’t try to lock me away?”

Tetsuzaemon’s face never changed. “You don’t.” he plainly stated.

Timothy took a breath and closed his eyes.

_“What do you think?”_ he mentally asked his sword.

A moment of silence passed. **_“I can’t say for sure Tim…but considering the situation…it doesn’t look like we have much of a choice.”_** the sword cautioned.

Timothy inwardly sighed. “ _The problem is…we can fight them here…but if we go to the Seireitei, our chances drop to zero.”_

His sword sighed as well. **_“I know…but if we attack them here…we’ll constantly be hunted until they finally kill you…I’d say…take the chance and go with them.”_**

Timothy thought for a moment. _“There’s no turning back from this…you know that.”_ he inquired.

**_“I’m aware…let’s just go and see what this guy wants.”_** The sword suggested.

Timothy took a deep breath and opened his eyes.

“Fine…I’ll go. But…my sword stays with me at all times. I don’t care what your Captain wants. Anyone tries to take it, I will fight back.” he stated and Tetsuzaemon nodded.

“Very well. Let’s go.” he returned.

Timothy turned back to Hetoku and the man smiled. “Don’t worry, I’ll stay here and let your friend know where you are.”

Timothy rolled his eyes and turned back. “He’s not my friend…I have no friends.” He stated in a flat tone.

Tetsuzaemon raised his brow a second, then dropped it and set his hand on Timothy’s shoulder.

“Ready?” he asked, and Timothy shrugged his shoulders.

“Yeah…whatever.” Timothy answered in a careless voice.

In an instant, Tetsuzaemon flash stepped away, taking Timothy with him.

** Squad 7 Headquarters, Seireitei, 20 minutes later **

After a brief stop at the Shuwaimon gate so Tetsuzaemon could grant Timothy passage with the gatekeeper, they finally came to a stop in front of the building. Timothy would be telling a lie if he had said that he wasn’t impressed.

The building looked similar to the rest of the buildings in the Seireitei, with white walls and tan colored tiles for a roof. But what had him impressed was the size of it. It was only about two or three stories tall, but the dimensions were enormous.

He looked over to the right to see a two-story building next to it, but it was a little slender and long.

“Those are the squad barracks. That’s where the rest of the members stay.” Tetsuzaemon clarified.

“Big…” Timothy stated, then turned back to him. “Well…” Timothy started, waiting.

The Lieutenant gestured with his hand for him to proceed, so Timothy started walking to the front doors.

“So, tell me…now that I’m here, what does your Captain want?” Timothy asked.

Tetsuzaemon turned to him. “That’s not for me to say. You’ll find out from the Captain.”

Timothy moaned, and the man turned back to open the door for him. The men stepped inside, and Tetsuzaemon closed the door behind them.

“Follow me.” he ordered, but in a polite tone.

Timothy nodded and followed him as they walked to the hallway and took a left.

Timothy started looking around to see multiple soul reapers walking around, some with paperwork, some with books, and some walking and talking with each other. Most of them would glance at him, clearly wondering who he was and what he was doing there.

While the two of them walked through the hallway, Timothy kept a mental count of every soul reaper he saw. He didn’t want to fight, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t be prepared for the worst.

Tetsuzaemon then turned left to stairwell and they started walking up the steps.

“One thing I should warn you about.” Tetsuzaemon started, getting Timothy’s attention. “The Captain is…not the same as you and I.” he warned, causing Timothy to raise a brow.

“And that means…?” Timothy started in a question.

The Lieutenant then stopped and turned to him. “You’ll see when you meet him. Just don’t make any comments about it.”

They both stared at each other for a second.

“Whatever.” Timothy retorted.

Tetsuzaemon turned back, and they continued walking. They got to the third floor, then took a right at the hallway. There wasn’t as many soul reapers on this floor, but Timothy still kept count.

“Here we are.” Tetsuzaemon announced.

They stopped in front a large set of white double doors with the Japanese numeral for ‘7’ painted in black in the center.

“You ready?” he asked.

Timothy stared at the doors for a second more, then turned to him. “Yeah…I guess.”

The Lieutenant nodded, then turned to the door and knocked twice. The knocking caused an echo in the halls that almost drowned out the voice from inside.

“You may enter.” a voice responded.

The voice was low, but calm. Tetsuzaemon pulled the left door open and gestured for Timothy to enter.

He walked through the doorway and was immediately impressed with the size of the room. As he walked forward, he saw two sets of couches on each side of the office with a small table in front of each.

“So, I see you’ve arrived.” Timothy heard the man’s voice say.

“Yeah yeah…so what did y…”

Timothy stopped talking when his eyes fell upon the…being…in front of him.

He brought his hand up to his eyes and rubbed them to make sure he wasn’t crazy. He lowered his hand and turned back to the being.

He wasn’t crazy.

Sitting behind the desk in front of him was a large, furry…human/animal. The only word that Timothy could even try to come up with was ‘werewolf’. They both stared at each other for a moment, looking each other up and down.

“You don’t seem afraid of my appearance.” the man stated.

“No…not really…just…surprised.” Timothy calmly replied, causing the being to raise a brow.

“I see…My name is Sajin Komamura, Captain of Squad 7. Am I correct to assume you are Timothy?” Sajin asked.

Timothy looked at him up and down again. “Maybe.”

Tetsuzaemon then flinched and quickly turned to Timothy. “You’ll address the Captain properly. Is that…”

“Tetsuzaemon, that’s enough. He’s free to speak as he wishes.” Sajin stated.

The Lieutenant quickly turned and bowed.

“Yes Captain.” he answered, causing Timothy to look at him with a raised brow.

“Are you always this uptight?” Timothy asked.

He heard the Captain slightly snort, trying to keep from laughing. The Lieutenant turned to Timothy with an annoyed look, that he returned.

“That will be all, Tetsuzaemon. You are dismissed.” Sajin calmly stated.

Tetsuzaemon turned back and bowed again. “Yes Captain.”

He raised himself, turned around, and gave Timothy one last glance before leaving the room.

Timothy turned back to the Captain and stared at him. “Well…I’m here…so what do you want?”

Sajin gestured towards the pillow seat in front of his desk. “Please…have a seat.”

At first, Timothy didn’t move, evaluating the situation. After a minute he started walking towards the desk and sat himself down on the pillow.

“Tea?” Sajin offered.

Timothy waited a second before replying, but held his hand up to decline. “How about we skip the formalities and get to why you wanted to see me.”

Sajin nodded in understanding. “Very well. First, what is your name? Your full name?”

Timothy thought about if he should answer that, but didn’t see what it could harm. “Timothy Durn.”

The Captain gave a slight bow, then returned. “Pleasure to meet you. So, tell me, why did you attack those soul reapers? Surely you should have known that doing so is a serious crime.”

Timothy crossed his arms.

“I think you misunderstand Captain. I didn’t attack them…they attacked me. Therefor, by your ‘laws’ that falls under self-defense.” Timothy pointed out.

Sajin held up a finger. “Not when they are trying to detain you for questioning. That then falls under resisting arrest, another serious crime.” he warned.

Timothy scoffed. “Look, I don’t care what their excuse was, the point is that they tried to take my sword from me, and no one touches it.”

Sajin lowered his hand and leaned forward. “I see. And what if I try to take it right now? Are you going to try and fight a Captain of the 13 Court Guard Squads?” he asked in a dangerous tone.

Timothy simply nodded. “As I said, I don’t fear you, regardless of your appearance. I may, or may not win against you, but I surely promise you that I ‘will’ fight to the death. I’ll die before you put your hands on this blade.” Timothy stated in a stern tone, his voice never wavering.

“I see.” Sajin leaned back and crossed his arms. “That works out well for us then.”

Timothy rose a brow. “What do you mean?”

Sajin lowered his head. “My 5th seat told me about you and your fight yesterday. He suggested to me that I test you and see if you are worthy to join our ranks.”

Timothy tilted my head, confused. “…huh?”

The Captain looked back at him. “I shall test you…and see if you are worthy enough to join the 13 Court Guard Squads as a member of Squad 7.”

Timothy brought his head back level. “And how do you plan to do that?”

Sajin reached beside him, then placed his zanpakutō on the desk. “We will fight.”

Timothy’s eyes went wide. “…Fight?”

Sajin nodded with a serious look. “Yes, fight. If you fight good enough to suit me, we will induct you into the ranks. However…”

Timothy’s look turned to a glare.

“…If you do not meet my expectations, you will be killed.” Sajin warned.

“I see…and if I refuse?” Timothy asked in a dull tone.

The Captain then stood up. Timothy went wide eyed at the Captain’s incredible height.

“Then I will kill you right here.” Sajin threatened.

Both men stared at each other for a moment before Timothy lowered my head.

**_“Tim…he’s not joking…I can see it in his eyes…”_** Timothy’s sword cautioned.

_“I’m aware…but I don’t want to fight him either…”_ he mentally stated.

**_“Think about this Tim…this could actually work for you.”_** The sword advised.

Timothy opened his left eye slightly and glanced at his sword. _“How?”_

****

**_“They are all after Aizen, right? Why not join them? They may be useful to get us to Aizen.”_** his sword cleared.

_“That’s risky.”_

****

**_“It’s much better than where we were before…”_** the sword pointed.

_“Good point…alright…we’ll play puppet for a while.”_ Timothy concluded.

Timothy sighed, then grabbed his sword and stood up to stare at the Captain.

“I accept.”

Sajin nodded, then sat back down, gesturing for him to do the same.

“No…now.” Timothy demanded.

The Captain raised a brow. “Why so eager?” he asked, and Timothy shook his head.

“I don’t like playing the waiting games. Let’s get this over with.” he stated nonchalantly.

Sajin continued to stare at him for a while, then stood back up and tucked his zanpakutō into his sash.

“Very well. I will meet you on the training grounds. Tetsuzaemon with escort you there.”

Sajin gave a low bow that Timothy returned.

“Until then.” Timothy stated, and Sajin nodded.

“Tetsuzaemon!” he bellowed, then the door burst open with the Lieutenant running in.

He stopped next to Timothy and quickly bowed. “Yes Captain?!” he yelled, causing Timothy to give him a dumb look.

“Please escort Mr. Durn here to the training grounds. I will be along momentarily.” Sajin politely ordered and Tetsuzaemon bowed again.

“Sir!”

Timothy turned to the Captain. “How much coffee does he drink?”

Tetsuzaemon glared at him while the Captain chuckled.

“Enough.” he joked back, then walked out of his office.

Tetsuzaemon quickly turned to him. “You best watch how you talk about others, you might upset the wrong person.” he cautioned.

Timothy simply turned to him with a careless look. “I do that all the time…yet I’m still here…aren’t I?”

The man scoffed. “Keep it up and you won’t be for long. Follow me.” he ordered.

Timothy nodded, and the Lieutenant led him out of the office. He closed the office door, then took him to the staircase from before.

“You know that he’s not going to go easy on you, right?” Tetsuzaemon warned.

Timothy shrugged his shoulders as they started going down the stairs.

“Fights are not supposed to be easy. If the fight is easy, it’s not a fight…it’s a squabble.” Timothy pointed out.

The Lieutenant huffed at that.

“So where are the training grounds anyway?” Timothy asked.

They got to the first floor and turned to the right.

“They’re behind the squad barracks in the field. Most of the squad will be there as well. It’s not every day you get to see the Captain fight.” Tetsuzaemon answered.

Once they got to the main walkway, they took a right towards the back of the building.

“I see...So I guess once I beat him I’ll have to go to your academy?” Timothy inquired.

Tetsuzaemon glanced back. “Not in your case. The Captain is giving you a test through combat. Normally it’s not allowed, but since we’re in a state of emergency, the rule is lifted. Although, this method is rarely ever used. If he determines you’re fit to join the ranks, you’ll be inducted straight in. We’ll have to teach you the rules and regs, but after a few months you’ll be where you need to be.” he cleared.

Timothy nodded, and Tetsuzaemon turned back as they came to the back doors of the building.

He opened the door and Timothy walked through to be impressed with the view. It looked like the squad had a miniature forest in their back yard. Just to the right of the woods he could see the grounds with some running tracks around it.

“Let’s go, the Captain’s already there waiting.” Tetsuzaemon stated. Then he put his hand on Timothy’s shoulder, and flash stepped away with him.

** Squad 7 Training Grounds, Seireitei, Present **

Timothy and Tetsuzaemon suddenly appeared at the field. Timothy now found myself now standing a few feet from the Captain.

“Good luck.” Tetsuzaemon stated.

Timothy nodded, and he flash stepped away. Timothy then turned back to the Captain.

“The rules are simple. You may release your sword, and kidō is permitted, but you may not use any kidō above the 40s level. Do you understand?” Sajin instructed, and Timothy gave him a solid nod.

“Very well. Fight with your all, and good luck.” He finished in a bow, and Timothy followed suit.

They both straightened, then Sajin flash stepped to the far end of the field. Timothy turned and walked to his end. Once he got there, he turned around. Sajin drew his zanpakutō, and Timothy drew his sword. Tetsuzaemon walked up to the edge of the field in the center.

“Fighters, are you ready?!” he yelled and turned to the Captain.

“Ready.” Sajin announced, then Tetsuzaemon turned to Timothy.

Timothy continued to stare at the Captain for a moment. “Let me ask you something…Captain.”

Sajin rose a brow. “Go ahead.”

Timothy held his sword in front of him. “If I win…you will avoid any future inquiries regarding my sword…are you willing to accept that?”

The Captain stood there thinking about it, but finally nodded. “Very well. If you pass…I will refrain from any questions about your sword.”

Timothy lowered his sword and nodded, turning to Tetsuzaemon.

“Ready.” Timothy stated, and the man nodded.

“Begin!” he yelled.

“Tease…Moeru Kitsune.” Timothy commanded.

The blade of his sword burst into flames and began its transformation, earning a surprised look from the Captain and the observers.

“You’re releasing your sword right away, are you? Very commendable.” Sajin stated in surprise.

His surprise became more evident when the numerous flames started appearing around them. He took a look around at some of them to see that there were around 20 flames surrounding the two duelists. He then turned to Timothy to see that he had not moved from his spot.

“Are you not going to attack?” he inquired, and Timothy scoffed.

“A fighter who rushes into combat without first gauging his opponent is a fool, one that will quickly lose.” Timothy state in a nonchalant tone.

Sajin chuckled. “That is true. Very well…then I shall attack first.”

He disappeared in a flash step, then re-appeared in front of Timothy with his sword high. Timothy then disappeared right in front of him as he swung at empty air.

Sajin quickly recovered and stood in a ready stance, waiting for his opponent.

Timothy appeared behind Sajin and swung to the right, but Sajin quickly turned and blocked it, raising his large foot to give Timothy a kick. Timothy backed away and disappeared again. Sajin lowered his foot and returned to his stance.

“I see the reports are accurate. Being able to disappear, and re-appear at will.” Sajin observed.

Timothy appeared behind him again and Sajin turned to swing, but found that his opponent was no longer there. he then appeared behind him again, and yet again Sajin turned to him, again seeing his opponent was gone.

He predicted the next move, and quickly turned to attempt to catch Timothy as he reappeared.

However, Timothy had planned for this, and instead reappeared right in front of Sajin as he was turning. Sajin quickly looked at Timothy shocked, but it was too late. Timothy swung at Sajin, and caught him in the side, producing a shallow cut. Sajin recovered and swung out with his free hand.

Timothy raised his sword and blocked Sajin’s arm, but he was not expecting the sheer amount of force behind it and it tossed him back a few feet.

_‘Damn…he’s a hell of a lot stronger than I pegged him.’_ Timothy mentally complemented.

Sajin held out his palm to Timothy.

“Hadō #33, Sōkatsui!” Sajin bellowed, and multiple blue flames shot from his palm hurling towards Timothy, who held his sword in a block.

“Bakudō #39, Enkōsen!” he yelled, and a yellow disk appeared in front of him.

Sajin’s attack hit the barrier and exploded, kicking up a large cloud of dust and obscuring Timothy’s vision. Timothy eyes went wide as he felt Sajin behind him and he glanced back. He saw Sajin with his sword held back, ready to slash across his back.

“Impressive reaction…but not enough to stop me.” Sajin stated, then swung.

_‘Crap! Got no choice…’_

A split second before Sajin’s blade made contact, the Captain suddenly disappeared, shocking the entire group of observers. Sajin then quickly re-appeared a few feet over to Timothy’s right, facing the way he was before.

Sajin finished his swing, then quickly looked around, completely confused. Timothy turned to him in a ready stance as Sajin glanced at him.

“So…you can also do the same thing with your opponent…I will admit I never expected that.” Sajin commented.

After he stated that, the flame next to him, as well as the flame behind Timothy disappeared. This caught his attention.

“I see now…these flames are how you vanish, then reappear. It seems that they act as catalyst for your ability, allowing you to move quickly from one location to another.” Sajin observed.

Timothy raised his brow, surprised the Captain caught it so quickly.

_“He’s very observant.”_ He said to his sword.

**_“Yeah, but I ask that you please not make it a habit of using that move. You know what it does to me.”_** It warned.

_“Well sorry, but I didn’t have a flame near me; he did.”_ He shot back.

“Now it’s my turn to admit my impression. I expected you to eventually catch on, but not so soon. And you should feel honored.”

Sajin turned to him. “And why is that?”

Timothy scoffed. “You’re the first one that I’ve ever had to use that technique on. I didn’t want to do it…but you left me with no choice. I made a mistake and underestimated you speed. No offense, but I really didn’t expect someone of your size to be able to move so quickly.” Timothy complimented.

Sajin lowered his head slightly. “I see…then I suggest you put more effort into this fight, or you won’t last for much longer.”

“I agree…” Timothy stated.

After Timothy said this, more flames started appearing around them. Sajin looked around, surprised to see that there were now over 40 flames littering the field.

“Now that you’ve figured out how my ability works, I’m sure you’ve also figured out that you could use that to predict my movements. It’s true that that is the ability’s downfall…but in an area this small…and with this many flames…it makes it impossible to predict where I’ll be.” Timothy taunted, then disappeared.

Sajin returned to his ready stance and kept his eyes looking at each of the flames. Timothy remained hidden for a few minutes, but Sajin was holding his composure, and Timothy could see that the Captain was starting to get a little anxious.

“So…you’re going to remain hidden until I make my move?” Sajin asked.

Timothy was slightly pleased to see that his tactic was starting to take effect, so he decided to push Sajin further.

“What are you talking about? I’m right here.” Timothy stated, showing up a few feet to Sajin’s left.

Sajin turned to him, getting ready to attack.

“But I’m also here…” Timothy added, and Sajin quickly turned to see another ‘Timothy’ to his right.

“And here…” Sajin turned to see that Timothy was also behind him.

Sajin’s eyes widened a bit, now confused.

“I’m everywhere!” Timothy stated from every direction and suddenly showed up at each and every flame, with now more than 40 ‘copies’ of him surrounding the Captain.

“What is this?” Sajin growled, and Timothy chuckled.

“My sword’s ability allows me to transition to any one of these flames instantly, much faster that you flash steps. In fact, it’s so fast, that I can create copies of myself by going from one flame to the next and over again nonstop. So…tell me…which one of me is the ‘real’ me?” Timothy taunted.

Sajin quickly turned from one clone to the next, observing each one trying to discern his real opponent. Sajin turned and struck the closest one, causing it to vanish.

“Nope…try again.” Timothy taunted, and Sajin flash stepped to the next, swinging at that one, the copy vanishing. “Wrong again.”

Sajin was starting to lose patience, much to Timothy’s expectations. Sajin jumped to the one on his right, swung at it, then flash stepped to the next, swung, flash stepped again, and swung. In all, he hit a total of 14 copies, never finding the real Timothy.

“Give up?” he taunted, and Sajin looked around growling. “I’ve discovered that I can’t fight you with my normal method of fighting…we would be here all day exchanging cuts and scratches, and I would eventually become exhausted and lose. So, I decided to resort to an alternate method…psychological warfare…the combat of the mind. If I can’t take you down physically, I’ll do it mentally.” Timothy taunted.

The taunt had the desired outcome, Sajin growled in annoyance. “Very well…if I can’t find you this way…I’ll try another way.” Sajin stated in a low and annoyed tone.

Sajin held his sword high above his head.

“Tenken!” he roared.

Timothy eyes went wide as a large, ghostly arm holding a sword as large as the squad barracks appeared above Sajin. The Captain swung down with his sword, as he did this, the ghost arm swung down and struck the ground.

The sheer power of the impact was astounding! The whole ground shook and the impact produced a shockwave that blasted out in all directions.

Timothy held up his guard, causing the clones to do the same. But the force of the impact was too much and struck all of the clones almost simultaneously, causing them all to vanish.

The whole field was now covered in think dust, and neither of them moved while they waited for it to clear. Timothy reached out with his mind to try and detect the Captain’s spiritual pressure. He suddenly picked Sajin up to find him twenty feet over to his front right.

He could sense that the impact from Sajin’s attack had taken out most of the flames, leaving only a little over a dozen left. Thankfully, one of them was near him, so Timothy used it to get closer. Once he got there, he was now only a few feet away, and he could see the Captain’s silhouette through the dust.

_‘Got you.’_ Timothy thought and raised his hand.

“Hadō #31, Shakkahō!” Timothy yelled.

A red ball of fire grew in the palm of his hand, then shot out towards his target. The dust around the kidō split apart as it flew through the air, before the spell impacted the Captain and blew away the dust around him.

Timothy watched as the dust began to blow away, and froze with wide eyes when he saw what it hit. Instead of the large Captain, he saw a large boulder with his white coat draped over top of it.

“…What…?!” he started, but froze again when he suddenly felt something.

Timothy gulped, then slowly looked down to see Sajin’s blade against his throat. He stared at it for a second, then glanced back to see Sajin standing behind him with an emotionless stare, not wearing his coat.

They continued to stare at each other for a moment, then Timothy smiled.

“Gotchya!”

Sajin went wide eyed and glanced back as he noticed that there was a flame now behind him. Not only that, Timothy was there with his sword to Sajin’s back. He turned back to the person he thought was his opponent to see it was now gone.

“How did…” Sajin choked.

“Simple…that ‘was’ me that sent that kidō after your decoy…but once I realized what it was, I knew you would come up behind me during my shock, and I immediately created a flame where it would be behind you when you showed up. At the instant that you did, I used my cloning technique to keep you distracted just long enough for me to get into position.” Timothy stated with a grin.

“Although…I will admit that was a bright idea, using your zanpakutō’s ability to take out all of my clones at once. The only downside was that it clouded our views, causing us both to fall for each other’s tricks.” Timothy added.

The dust began to clear, and the observers were all wide eyed with jaws dropped at the sight. Sajin stared at his opponent for a moment more, then stood straight and turned to him.

“Well done, Timothy. You are a worthy opponent.” Sajin complemented as he returned his zanpakutō to its scabbard, then he gave a low bow.

Timothy let his sword return to it’s original form, then placed it back as well. He returned the Captain’s bow.

“And you.” Timothy returned.

They both raised and Tetsuzaemon raised his hand.

“Match! The winner is, Timothy Durn!” he announced, and the audience cheered.

“Go with Tetsuzaemon, he’ll let you get yourself cleaned up. Then meet me back in my office.” Sajin directed, then Timothy nodded and held out his hand.

“Good fight.” he stated.

Sajin nodded and took the young man’s hand in a shake.

“Yes, it was.” Sajin agreed.

They released hands, then Sajin turned, and flash stepped away.

Tetsuzaemon then walked up to Timothy. “Impressive display, young man. I never expected you to force the Captain to use his shikai.”

“Thanks…but it wasn’t my strength that caused him to do it…he lost his patience.” Timothy remarked.

Tetsuzaemon scoffed and gestured towards the barracks.

“This way.” he stated, and both men started walking back.

“So…what is your impression of our Captain?” Tetsuzaemon asked.

Timothy turned to him puzzled. “What do you mean?”

Tetsuzaemon turned to him. “What do you think about the Captain?” he rephrased.

Timothy turned back and thought about it. “He’s a good leader, from what I have seen so far. He’s respectful…yet stern.”

Tetsuzaemon nodded and turned back as well. “He is, but he is also fair. I’ve been his Lieutenant for a long time, and have no intention of serving with anyone else.”

Timothy nodded in understanding.

** Squad 7 Barracks, Seireitei, Present **

Both men entered the through the rear doors of the barracks and Tetsuzaemon took Timothy to the baths.

“Go ahead and get cleaned up. I’ll be waiting out here.” Tetsuzaemon ordered.

Timothy nodded to him and walked inside.

The bath was a standard one, but it was by far better than anything Timothy had back in Fallen Tree. And that was because they didn’t have anything in Fallen Tree. The closet thing you could get to a bath was a jump into the stream.

Timothy pulled his sword out from his sash and set it next to the tub. He turned on the water to the right temperature, then began taking off his cloths. He then heard a knock on the door.

“By the way, you’ll find a change of clothes next to the door. Go ahead and use them.” Tetsuzaemon stated through the door.

Timothy turned to the said clothes to see that it was a standard shihakushō.

“You want me to wear one of your uniforms?” he dumbly asked.

“Yeah, you’ll be fine.” Tetsuzaemon cleared.

Timothy rolled his eyes, then walked over to the mirror. He could see some of the scars that he had acquired over the years. His body never did heal well to injuries, so most of them were minor. Some of them from fighting, some self-inflicted from training accidents.

Timothy let out a sigh and sat down on the stool to begin cleaning himself off.

After a few minutes, he finished, then stepped into the tub to rinse off and relax a moment. The water felt amazing, and he closed his eyes as his body relaxed in the water.

**_“Nice job today Tim…you really gave it to him.”_** His sword complemented.

Timothy opened his eyes a little and stared at the wall.

_“Yeah…but it showed me one thing though…”_ he answered lowly.

**_“What’s that?”_** the sword asked.

Timothy closed his eyes again. _“I’m nowhere as strong as I thought I was. I got lucky today.”_ he cleared.

****

**_“How so?”_** the sword asked, now confused.

_“I fell for his trap…and almost payed for it…”_ Timothy moaned.

**_“But...you still got him…”_** his sword pointed out.

_“Only because he let his assumed victory blind him…if he had kept his guard up, he would have noticed right away what I was doing.”_ Timothy clarified.

**_“…Are you telling me you didn’t plan for that?”_** His sword was now in shock.

He took a deep breath. _“Yes…He caught me off guard…I came up with that at the last second.”_

**_“I’m impressed, and I’m also surprised that you didn’t release me…”_** his sword stated, hinting towards a question.

Timothy opened his eyes in a death glare. _“You really think I’m that stupid? You know full well what could happen if I did that. There is only one instance where you will be released.”_ Timothy plainly stated.

He then heard snickering. **_“Oh…I can’t wait for that! Nevertheless…I had fun in that fight today. I can’t wait for the next one.”_**

Timothy sighed and closed his eyes. _“You’re hopeless.”_ he moaned.

The sword growled. **_“You’re one to talk! You said it yourself, you fell for that Captain’s trap!”_** it retorted.

He growled back. _“You shut your mouth!”_ Timothy demanded.

**_“Or what? You gonna ‘slap me’~”_** the sword teased in a suggestive tone, causing Timothy to blush.

_“Don’t start that again…”_ Timothy moaned.

**_“Why? Am I getting to you…”_** the sword taunted.

_“I said…shut up!”_ Timothy demanded.

The sword kept on with its taunts. **_“Awww…am I making the big, bad boy angry?”_**

“SHUT UP!” Timothy yelled out loud.

He then heard a knock on the door.

“Hey! You alright in there?!” Tetsuzaemon yelled and Timothy blushed more with anger.

“Yeah…I’m fine…just blowing off some steam.” Timothy cleared.

The man didn’t respond, and Timothy turned back and growled. “I can’t believe I fell for that again.” he whispered.

**_“Serves you right for yelling at me.”_** the sword continued to taunt.

_“God, I wish you were standing in front of me, so I could choke you.”_ He moaned.

The sword snickered. **_“Mmm…so do I, that way I could see your body~”_** the sword said suggestively.

Timothy blushed and growled. _“Just be quiet…”_

The sword started laughing. **_“Oh, chill out, you don’t have to make a fuss about everything you know.”_**

_“Just go to sleep or something…”_ Timothy moaned.

**_“Uh, duh…I’m a spirit, I can’t sleep…dummy.”_** The sword teased.

Timothy had heard enough. he sat up and got out of the tub to start drying himself off.

**_“By the way…if they do take us in, what’s the plan?”_** the sword asked, now in a serious tone.

Timothy started drying his hair as he thought about it.

_“Not sure, we just gotta see how it plays out.”_ he answered.

He set the towel to the side and grabbed the uniform.

‘Let’s see if I can figure this out.’ he thought.

Timothy noticed that there were multiple parts to the uniform, so he had to go by visual memory, recalling what the uniform looked like while worn, to determine how it goes together.

The first thing was a white under robe, called a ‘shitagi’. After that was a black, loose leg trouser, called a ‘hakama’. Next was the black top robe, a ‘kosode’.

Once he those on, he tied the white sash around his waist, then slipped on the white socks called ‘tabi’, and rope sandals known as ‘waraji’.

Once he finished, he slipped his sword in the sash on his left side and grabbed his old clothes.

He took a look in the mirror and straightened out his messy hair. He took a last look to see the uniform on himself, and was quite impressed.

Timothy then heard a knock and turned to the door.

“You about finished?” Tetsuzaemon asked and Timothy took a last glance in the mirror to make sure he looked alright.

“Yeah, one second.” he answered, then walked to the door.

He opened it to find Tetsuzaemon sitting on the floor with his legs crossed. He turned to him and rose a brow.

“Well that’s quite an improvement.” he stated, and Timothy rubbed the back of his head.

“Yeah yeah…whatever. What do I do with these?” referring to his old clothes.

“Just leave them inside, they’ll be tossed out. I doubt you’ll need them anymore.” Tetsuzaemon cleared.

He then got up and gestured with his head for Timothy to follow him. ‘Well…here goes.’ he thought as they started heading back to the headquarters.

** 62nd District, South Rukongai, Dancing Bear, Present **

It was close to midday, and by this time most of the residents in town were getting ready to retire to the shade for the day.

But this was not the case for two individuals walking down the road. Both were of average height, with one being a couple inches taller, but much older. They were enjoying their morning walk and discussing latest news and rumors. Just another typical day for them.

Or so they thought.

The younger one suddenly stopped and took a closer look down the road.

“Hmm? What’s wrong?” the elder person asked.

“Uh…I’m not sure. I think I see something up ahead.” He remarked.

The elder turned around to where the man was looking, by his eyes were starting to fail him and he saw nothing.

“What is it?” the elder asked, but got no answer.

The younger one kept staring down the road. He then started to see what looked like dust being kicked up.

“I don’t know. It looks like a dust cloud.” He commented.

“A dust cloud?” the elder asked and the younger man nodded.

“I think…something’s coming this way.” The younger man added.

The elder turned to him with a raised brow. “Well…can you see what it is?”

The younger man continued to stare for a moment longer and he could now make out the silhouette of a person.

“Yeah, someone’s coming this way…and in a hurry too.” The younger man stated with a hint of worry.

The elder turned back to the road and could now see the dust cloud himself, but not the silhouette.

“In a ‘really’ big hurry!” the younger man quickly added.

In the distance, a tall man was running at flank speed down the road with a serious frown on his face.

The man was none other than Captain Kenpachi Zaraki.

He barreled down the road right at the two men and was damn near about to run them over before he suddenly stopped. Zaraki took a second to look at both of the men. The younger one was terrified, but the elder one stood his ground and looked back at Zaraki with kind eyes.

“Hello to you soul reaper. Can we help you?” he asked and Zaraki turned to him.

“Yeah…where is this place?” Zaraki asked in a flat tone.

“Well…you’re in Dancing Bear…the 62nd District sir.”

Zaraki rose a brow. “Is that right?” he asked passively and the elder nodded. The man then turned to his left shoulder with anger. “I thought you said it was this way, Yachiru!” he yelled.

His Lieutenant then popped up and hung on his shoulder. “Don’t get mad at me, Kenny! You took a left when I said take a right! It’s not my fault you have no sense of direction!” she yelled back.

“No…you said go left, and I did!” he retorted.

The two residents stared at the show with confusion on their faces. “Uh…sir?” the young one started and Zaraki turned to him.

“Which way to the 67th District?” Zaraki demanded.

The elder was about to answer, but Yachiru butted in.

“It’s that way, Kenny!” she stated, pointing her finger.

“Uh…young miss, that’s the…” the elder started, but stopped when Yachiru gave him a death glare. “Uh…never mind…”

Zaraki turned to her. “That’s what you said the last time, and the time before that!”

“I know it for sure this time! It’s that way!” she insisted, again pointing.

Zaraki gave in, as he usually did. He let out a sigh and continued his run in the direction that his Lieutenant pointed to him. The two men watched as the pair took off and considered stopping them.

“Uh…shouldn’t we tell them that’s the wrong way?” the younger one asked.

The elder turned to him with worry. “Not unless you want to dance with the devil he has on his shoulder.” he solemnly stated, and the younger man quickly shook his head.

“No, I’d prefer not.” He answered.

The two men watched as the pair disappeared into the distance.

Back with Zaraki, his Lieutenant hung on tight as Zaraki ran at a fast pace.

“Why are we out here, Kenny? Are we looking for the guy ‘Red Man’ told you about?” Yachiru asked.

Zaraki turned to her. “Yeah…I’m gonna find that guy.”

Yachiru turned to him. “And then Kenny is gonna have some fun?” she asked in a cheerful voice.

Zaraki grinned. “Yeah…I wanna see for myself how good he is. Who knows…maybe I might be able to get serious.” he stated in a chuckle.

Yachiru giggled. “Yay! I can’t wait!” she yelled.

“Neither can I.” Zaraki finished in a low and happy tone.

The pair continued running down the road in search of the Captain’s prey.

** Squad 7 Headquarters, Seireitei, Present **

Tetsuzaemon and Timothy let the staircase and turn down the hall on the headquarters third floor. They came back to the large doors that led to the Captain’s office and Tetsuzaemon turned to him.

“Regardless of what the Captain may tell you, that was a good battle, and I think I believe he thinks so as well. So, it should go well for you.” He stated.

Timothy nodded. “Thanks. Well…let’s get this over with.”

Tetsuzaemon nodded back, turned, and knocked on the door.

“You may enter.” Sajin answered.

“Sir!” Tetsuzaemon yelled, then opened the door and let Timothy enter first.

Both men entered the office and Tetsuzaemon closed the door behind him. Timothy noticed the Captain sitting behind his desk with paperwork in his hand.

“Tetsuzaemon, will you kindly give us a moment?” Sajin asked, not turning from his paperwork.

“Sir!” he announced, then turned back and left the office.

Timothy stood there for a moment in silence, waiting for the Captain to say something.

“Mr. Durn, please come and have a seat.” Sajin stated, again not turning from his paperwork.

Timothy nodded and began walking towards the pillow seat.

As he got closer, he noticed the spot where he had struck the Captain earlier. The hole in his uniform was still there, but he could see a white bandage underneath.

Timothy walked up to the seat and slowly sat down. The Captain continued to look as his papers, not saying a word. A moment passed before Sajin put the papers down and set his hands in his lap.

“Before we begin…” he started, then bowed. “I would like to apologize for my actions earlier.”

Timothy rose a brow. “What actions?”

Sajin raised himself. “At our last meeting, I threatened you with death should you choose to decline our battle. That is not in my nature, however curiosity had gotten the better of me and I wanted to see your powers for myself and gauge your abilities. For that, I apologize.”

Timothy simply waved him off. “The past is in the past. I don’t think you can go back in time and change it, so it’s already over with. You did what you did. Now with that over…what happens now?”

Sajin nodded. He grabbed the papers he had before and handed them to Timothy.

“What’s this?” he asked as he took a brief look at them.

“The reports for the 67th District in South Rukongai. I think you’ll be interested in a particular report from the 5th seat.” Sajin stated, and Timothy flipped to the mentioned paper.

Timothy took a few moments to read it over. After a short time, he looked at Sajin and rose a brow.

“Ok…am I supposed to be looking for something?” he asked puzzled.

“No…instead you’re supposed to notice something is missing.” Sajin cleared, and Timothy turned back to the paper to read it once more.

After another few moments, Timothy turned back to Sajin with a puzzled look.

“The report about me isn’t here…” he stated, and Sajin nodded.

“That’s correct. That is the finalized report for me to turn in to the Head Captain. I have omitted some of the minor reports as I deemed them unnecessary.” Sajin confirmed.

Timothy rose a brow. “I see…but that doesn’t answer the question as to ‘why’ the report about me isn’t in here.”

Sajin folded his arms. “As I said, I deemed that report unnecessary.”

Timothy set the papers down on the desk. “Why? According to what you said, I broke the ‘laws’ by having a zanpakutō, and by ‘resisting arrest’. I don’t quite understand.”

Sajin uncrossed his arms and set them on the table with hands joined, him now leaning closer.

“Under normal circumstances, I would file those reports, and have you arrested to await trial. However, it is ‘because’ of those reports that they have been omitted.” Sajin calmly stated.

Timothy shook his head. “I still don’t understand.”

Sajin leaned back again. “Alright, I’ll break it down. From the testimonies of some of the residents, the crime rates in District 67 have fallen over the past couple of years. It’s plainly obvious that the previous assigned members were not doing their job, so that leaves you as the only cause for the rate drop. Do you follow me so far?” Sajin asked, getting a nod from Timothy.

“In short, you have helped the residents with the crime rate in the district. Regardless of whether you intended to help or not, you still helped the district. My reasoning, is that you also inadvertently helped Squad 7 by ‘keeping things in order’ until the squad arrived to take over. Therefore, you should be commended. Are you still with me?” Timothy again nodded.

“Because of your actions, I have made the administrative decision to expunge any crimes you have committed in the past, and by what reports we have, there are only two offenses that we know of. Therefore, both have been erased. As it stands at this moment, you are free to go. And I have also granted permission for you to possess your zanpakutō.”

Timothy raised a brow. “What’s the catch?”

Sajin shook his head. “There isn’t one. As I said, you are free to go.”

Timothy slowly nodded, but knew that there was something else he was about to say. “Go on…”

Sajin chuckled. “You catch on quick I see. There is something else I wish to discuss with you.”

“Let me guess…you want to discuss me joining your squad, right?” Timothy asked, and Sajin nodded.

Sajin reached behind him, then turned back and set a sword down on the desk in front of Timothy. Timothy looked at it, then raised a brow at Sajin.

“In case you hadn’t noticed…I already have one.” Timothy stated in a nonchalant tone and set his hand on his sword to emphasize his point.

“I’m aware, however the laws still state that you must be presented with a zanpakutō upon entering the academy. But since you won’t be going to the academy, it’s up to me to present it to you.” Sajin put his hands back in his lap.

“Isn’t it wrong to possess two zanpakutōs?” Timothy asked, actually curious of the answer.

“Although it is very rare, there have been cases where soul reapers possess two zanpakutōs. And most of them from your situation, possessing one before entering the academy.” Sajin clarified.

Timothy lowered his head and both men sat in silence for a moment.

“Although, you do not have to join if you do not wish to. This is not a demand, only an offer.” Sajin calmly alerted.

Timothy kept his head down as he thought about it. After a minute, he sighed.

“I’ll need a little time to think about it. Would it be alright if I went down to the training grounds to walk and think?” Timothy asked, getting a nod back.

“You may. Tetsuzaemon should be right outside, ask him to escort you to the grounds. You are not a member, so I cannot allow you to go anywhere unobserved. Do you understand?” Sajin stated, and Timothy nodded.

Timothy then stood up and turned to the Captain. “Just give me a couple hours…I’ll have your answer by then.” Sajin nodded.

Timothy then bowed to him, and he returned it. “I await your answer, Mr. Durn.”

Timothy scoffed. “Just call me Tim if anything, just don’t call me ‘Mr.’. Makes me sound old.”

Sajin lightly laughed. “Very well…then I await your answer, ‘Tim’.”

Timothy rolled his eyes and nodded. “Be back soon.” He stated then turned to the door.

He walked up to the door and pulled it open before turning back to Sajin.

“Oh, and by the way…” he started, and Sajin raised a brow.

“You lost that fight the moment you lost your temper. If you had kept your cool, you would have won without a doubt.” This caused Sajin to chuckle.

He was surprised at the man’s open words, but knew what he said was true. If Sajin had indeed remained calm and not let Timothy get the better of him, he would have quickly won. In fact, Sajin wanted to berate himself for it.

“Your combat observations are duly noted and appreciated.” Sajin stated with a slight bow.

Timothy returned the gesture, then left the office. Sajin sat there thinking about what the man might say. In truth, he was really hoping that he will say yes.

Although Timothy had a slight issue with respect, something that Sajin held in high regards, he actually liked the man. Afterall, for the exception of a few individuals, he hasn’t met anyone with enough courage to stand up to Tetsuzaemon.

His thought turned back to Timothy’s earlier comment about his Lieutenant and he chuckled.

“He is a bit uptight…” Sajin admitted and returned to his paperwork.

** Squad 7 Training Grounds, Seireitei, 1 and a Half Hours Later **

Timothy continued walking along the unused running track while Tetsuzaemon sat in the shade of a nearby tree. Thoughts were weighing heavy on Timothy’s mind, as this was not a decision to take lightly. This decision would determine the rest of his life in the soul society.

Timothy cleared some of the thoughts as he opened his mind and reached out to his sword.

_“Well…what do you think?”_

**_“…I don’t know what to think…I mean…we had decided to go with it, but now that everything has been cleared for you to go back peacefully, I’m not sure.”_** the sword stated.

Timothy nodded. _I agree, this is not going to be easy. Whatever we decide, we’ll be stuck with it forever.”_

**_“I agree…but…my opinion is to go with it. When you think about it…what else is there for us in Fallen Tree?”_** the sword asked, and Timothy nodded.

_“Well then…so be it.”_ Timothy finished, then turned to Tetsuzaemon.

Timothy began walking towards the man and he turned to him.

“Are you ready?” he asked.

Timothy came up to him and rubbed the back of his head. “I guess so…”

Tetsuzaemon nodded, then quickly stood up. “We’ve got some time, so come with me. I want to show you something.”

Timothy nodded, then followed the man as they began walking towards the barracks.

Once they arrived at the barracks, they walked inside and took an immediate right turn towards what appeared to be a common area. The men both stopped and Tetsuzaemon started looking around.

“Gōrō, here boy!” he yelled.

After a second, they heard the faint sound of barking. A moment afterwards, a small dog ran up to Tetsuzaemon.

“Ah, there you are boy.” He turned to Timothy. “This is Gōrō. He really belongs to the Captain, but the whole squad pretty much adopted him.”

Timothy knelt down and ruffled the dog’s ears. “Cute…So why did you want to show him to me?”

Tetsuzaemon leaned against the wall with arms crossed. “You don’t need to hide it Timothy, I can see you’ve made up your mind to stay and join.”

Timothy turned to him. “Wow, uptight ‘and’ observant.”

“Tsk…you best watch your mouth once you’ve become a member. It may not hurt you right now, but that won’t be the case once you’re assigned.”

Timothy sighed, then stood and turned to him. “Look Tetsuzaemon, needless to say, I’ve had a rouge life over the past twelve years. I’ve learned to keep to myself to survive. I’ve spent my whole life in the soul society pushing others away, and I’m suddenly thrown into having to keep others close to me. So, you’ll have to forgive me if I’m a little touchy around others.”

“You think you’re the only one who had it rough? What about the rest of your district? You had a way to keep the criminals away, they didn’t. So, don’t give me that ‘I had it the worst.’ story. Quit your whining and man up. You’re about to be a member of the 13 Court Guard Squads, and we have no room for saps like that. If you are unable to see that, then decline while you have the chance and save us the trouble.”

Tetsuzaemon then stood straight and started walking towards the door. Meanwhile, Timothy continued to stand there dumbstruck at the Lieutenant’s words.

It was true, he had been pushing people away for years because he thought he had had it worse because of the circumstances leading to him being in the soul society.

His thoughts then turned to Albert, and he suddenly felt bad. He had always been rude to him and tried to push him away. But Albert never gave up and always stuck with him. Albert considered him a friend, but Timothy had considered him an annoyance.

He sat down against the wall and lowered his head in shame as all those thoughts went through his mind and he hated himself for it all. A tear started to form in his eye, but then his brought out of his thoughts by his hand being moved.

He looked up to see Gōrō nudging his hand with his nose, trying to be petted. Timothy lightly scoffed with amusement as he started to rub the dog’s ears.

“Yeah…you probably think I’m pathetic too after hearing that, huh?” he indirectly asked the dog.

The dog rolled over onto his back exposing his belly, that Timothy began to scratch, causing the dog to kick his lower paw repeatedly.

Timothy gave a slight chuckle before he stopped, causing the dog to slightly whine. “Yeah yeah...I’ll pet you again later boy…but right now…I’ve got something to do.”

He scratched the dog once more, then stood back up and went to join Tetsuzaemon.

“You ready?” Tetsuzaemon asked in an annoyed tone.

Timothy nodded and gestured for him to lead the way. Tetsuzaemon nodded and they began their walk back to the headquarters.

** Squad 7 Headquarters, Seireitei, 10 minutes later. **

Captain Komamura sat behind his desk with his hands in his lap, head lowered, and eyes closed. He wasn’t sleeping, but he was resting. The majority of his paperwork was finished, and he was simply waiting for Timothy to come back with his decision, so he took this time to rest his mind.

He suddenly heard a solid knock on his door and it brought him back to his senses. “You may enter.”

The door opened, and both Tetsuzaemon and Timothy walked in. “Welcome…Tim. Please have a seat.”

Timothy held up his hand to decline and both men stopped in front of him.

“So, have you made your decision?” Sajin asked.

Timothy lowered his head a moment, then nodded. “I have.”

A moment passed, then Sajin rose a brow. “And that is?”

Timothy looked back at him. “I’ll join you…” He then held up to fingers. “On two conditions.”

Sajin sat there a moment thinking about it. “Go ahead.”

Timothy put his fingers down. “First, I want to be able to train as much as I want, when I want. Of course, I’m aware any assignments take precedence, but when I’m ‘not’ on assignment, I want to train at my leisure.”

Sajin thought about it a moment. He didn’t see any problem with that, if someone wanted to train, by all means let them train.

“Agreed. And the second?” Sajin inquired, then Timothy smiled.

Timothy quickly turned and punched Tetsuzaemon as hard as he could in the jaw, causing the man to fall over. Sajin’s eyes went wide in shock as he did this.

Timothy began shaking his hand side to side as his hand was now throbbing in pain. Tetsuzaemon quickly got up and turned to attack Timothy, but Sajin held his hand up, causing the man to stop.

Timothy turned to him. “That’s in case you piss me off later as I won’t be able to do that once I join.”

Tetsuzaemon growled and Sajin stood. “And what about me? I may ‘piss you off’ in the future as well. Are you going to strike me?”

Timothy looked him up and down a second. “Nah, my hand will shatter if I hit you, and I need my hand. So, I’ll just stick with calling you ‘asshole’.”

Tetsuzaemon balled his fists, ready to attack, but Sajin burst out laughing, surprising the Lieutenant. Sajin laughed for a moment, then calmed down.

“Very well, I accept both terms. How is your hand?” Sajin asked.

Timothy started rubbing and massaging it. “Sore as hell.” He turned to Tetsuzaemon. “You’ve got one tough jaw.”

Sajin chuckled, then grabbed the sword off the desk and walked over to Timothy. He held out the zanpakutō to him, and Timothy took it.

“Timothy Durn, I, Sajin Komamura, Captain of Squad 7, hereby accept your induction into the ranks as a member of Squad 7.”

Timothy turned and gave the Captain a low bow, that he returned.

“Tetsuzaemon, please show our new member to his new quarters.” Sajin ordered, then walked over to his desk. He then stopped and turned back. “And no fighting.” he added in a serious tone.

Tetsuzaemon bowed. “Sir!”

He then turned to Timothy, still maintaining his death glare. “Come with me.”

Timothy nodded, then they both left the room. Sajin returned to his desk to begin filling out the induction paperwork. He let out another chuckle remembering Timothy’s second ‘condition.’

_‘I think he’ll work out just fine.’_ Sajin thought and began writing.

Meanwhile, Timothy and Tetsuzaemon continued their walk towards the barracks, but stopped at a large office near the rear doors. Tetsuzaemon turned to a woman sitting at one of the desks.

“Mizuki.” He addressed and the woman turned to him.

“Yes Lieutenant?” she answered.

“This is a new member to the squad.” He stated gesturing to Timothy with his thumb. “I need you to add him to the barracks roster and assign him a room.”

The woman nodded. “Yes sir, it will only take a moment. I’ll assign him to the second floor, east side. Once you find him a room, please let me know what number.”

Tetsuzaemon nodded, then gestured to Timothy to follow. Both men left the headquarters and turned towards the barracks.

“Tetsuzaemon.” Timothy stated, and he turned to him.

“That’s Lieutenant now.” he instructed with a scowl and Timothy sighed.

“Lieutenant, may I ask you something?” Timothy rephrased.

Tetsuzaemon nodded. “Go ahead.”

Timothy began scratching his head. “Well…what exactly is the Captain?”

The lieutenant raised a brow. “What do you mean?”

“I mean…is he human, or…something else?” Timothy cleared.

Tetsuzaemon turned back forward. “I don’t know, he’s never said anything about where he comes from, and I’ve never asked. Why? Does it matter?” he asked in a side glance.

“No, I guess not.”

“Now let me ask ‘you’ something.” Tetsuzaemon stated, keeping his side glance.

“Sure.” Timothy replied, not liking where this might go.

“Why did you set the condition to let you train as you wish? You should know that there is no limit to training, right?” Tetsuzaemon inquired.

Timothy took a breath. “I was sure of that; however, I have my own training schedule and would like to keep to it.”

Tetsuzaemon nodded, then turned back. “I see. Well, as long as you don’t kill yourself, or anyone else, train as much as you want.”

Both men then entered the barracks and took a left turn to the stairs.

“Now let me ask you something else.” Tetsuzaemon started.

“Shoot.” Timothy replied.

“Where exactly are you from?”

Timothy rose a brow. “What do you mean?”

“I mean originally…before you came to the soul society.” Tetsuzaemon cleared.

“Oh…well…when I was alive I lived in the United States, in Texas.” Timothy answered shyly.

“I see, that explains your name and accent. To be honest, we don’t have anyone in the squad from there.” Tetsuzaemon stated plainly.

“I see. So anyway, what happens now?” Timothy inquired.

“Once we find your room, you have the rest of the day to get situated and rested from earlier. I recommend walking around the barracks and get yourself familiar with the layouts and meet some of the other squad members. But, it’s your choice.”

They turned down a hallway and stopped a few doors down.

“This is your room.” He stated and slid the door open.

Timothy walked in and noticed that it wasn’t that large, just a little over twice the size of the shack he used to stay in. The bed was against the left wall, no window, a small dresser that contained spare uniforms, and a low table with pillow seats on each side.

A simple, yet quaint room.

“If you have any questions, get with one of the members and they’ll help you out. Tomorrow you’ll be assigned to one of the seated officers so that he can give you the run down on the squad rules as well as the laws. Any questions?” Tetsuzaemon instructed.

Timothy looked around for moment, then turned to him. “No…thank you sir.” he finished in a bow, that the Lieutenant returned.

“Welcome to the squad…and before I forget…” he started, and Timothy rose a brow. “That right swing was pitiful.” he mocked and walked away.

Timothy groaned, but then chuckled.

“Whatever you say, ‘Lieutenant’.” he returned, and Tetsuzaemon left the room, sliding the door shut.

**_“I think he likes you.”_** his sword stated in a giggle.

_“I strongly recommend that you do not start your nonsense right now.”_ he retorted.

**_Oh, come on, lighten up Tim. So how does it feel to be a soul reaper?”_** the sword lightly teased.

_“Different.”_ Timothy flatly stated.

**_“Well, that’s to be expected. So, I guess now that you have a zanpakutō, you won’t need me anymore, huh?”_** the sword inquired jokingly.

_“What are you talking about?”_ Timothy asked as he walked over to the bed and sat down.

**_“I mean it looks like you have a new favorite.”_** The sword teased, getting a moan from him.

_“Knock it off…does it really look I am in the mood to argue?”_

**_“No…but that’s why I do it.”_** his sword finished in a laugh.

Timothy moaned and set his face in his hand. “What did I do to deserve this?” he whispered in an annoyed tone.

**_“I tease you because you make it too easy and irresistible. Good grief, live a little Tim. You’re gonna give yourself a heart attack.”_** His sword was now a little annoyed.

_“Uh, news flash…I’m already dead, stupid.”_ he retorted.

**_“Tsk…whatever, dummy. So, what are you gonna do now?”_** his sword asked.

As if in response, Timothy laid back on the bed and closed his eyes. _“This.”_

His sword chuckled. **_“What makes you think I’ll let you?”_**

_“The fact that you can’t do anything about it.”_ he retorted.

**_“Oh really? How about if I start singing?”_** it asked, and Timothy’s eyes shot open.

“Don’t you dare!” he scowled, and the sword laughed.

**_“Or what? What are you gonna do about it?”_** the sword mocked.

Timothy then got up, took the sword from his sash, and held it to his face. “This.”

He lifted up the mattress and stuffed his sword under it.

**_“Tim! umphh…”_ **

The sword was cut off as he let the mattress drop back into place. “There…peace at last…”

He turned and laid right back down on the bed and turned onto his side facing the wall. He closed his eyes to try and sleep, but he then heard a knock on the door.

“You have got to be kidding me…” he moaned and got right back up. “Who is it?” he asked.

“It’s Issei, Hinata, and Kenta. We’re squad members.” an answer came.

Timothy let out a sigh. “Come in.” he announced.

The door slid open and two men and a woman entered. One of the men held up a hand.

“Good afternoon sir. I’m Issei.” he greeted, then gestured to his companions. “And this is Kenta and Hinata.” The last two bowed to him.

“Pleased to meet you.” the woman greeted, and Kenta nodded.

“As to you. May I ask why you are here?” Timothy asked.

“Oh, we simply wanted to meet and welcome our newest member. And you are?” Issei answered.

“Timothy Durn. And look, I don’t mean to be rude, but I’m tired, and would like to get some rest.” Timothy stated, trying to be polite.

Hinata raised a hand. “Oh, we’re sorry. But after your duel with the Captain earlier, we wanted to meet you for ourselves.” She finished in a bow.

“We’ll leave you now, and if you have any questions, feel free to ask us. We’d be happy to help you.” Kenta added.

Timothy nodded and returned the bow. “I’ll be sure to do that.”

Issei nodded. “Please excuse us.”

The three then turned, left the room, and slid the door shut.

Timothy walked back to the bed and laid back down, this time facing the other way.

_‘Well…let’s try this again.’_ he mentally stated and closed his eyes, letting sleep take him.

** Squad 7 Headquarters, Seireitei, Present **

Tetsuzaemon walked through the second-floor offices searching for the 5th seat. He came around the corner and saw the man sitting at a table with the 7th and 8th seats.

“Hetoku.” he called, and the man turned to him.

“Oh, afternoon Lieutenant. Can I help you?” he asked politely.

Tetsuzaemon walked up next to him. “It’s about the new guy, Durn.”

Hetoku rose a brow. “Oh, so he did join us then?”

Tetsuzaemon nodded. “He did. I left him in his quarters and told him to take the rest of the day to rest and get oriented with the barracks.” Hetoku nodded.

“I see, that’s good.” he stated.

“Since you are already somewhat acquainted with him, I’d like to ask you to take care of him tomorrow, show him the ropes and get him started on the squad rules and regs, as well as some of the laws.” the Lieutenant instructed.

Hetoku slightly bowed. “I will sir. Will that be all?” he asked and Tetsuzaemon nodded.

“Yeah, that’s all. Just keep an eye on him, make sure he don’t do anything stupid. He seems like that kind of individual.”

Hetoku chuckled. “I will keep him out of trouble sir.”

Tetsuzaemon nodded. “Carry on.”

The Lieutenant turned and walked away. Hetoku turned back to his fellow officers. “Is he referring to the guy from earlier?” the 8th seat asked.

Hetoku nodded. “Yes, his name is Timothy Durn, from the 67th District of South Rukongai.”

The 7th seat whistled. “That’s a bad neighborhood.” he stated and Hetoku nodded.

“Indeed, especially after how 11th squad handled it.” Hetoku commented.

“Yeah, I briefly read over some of the reports, not a single one good.” the 8th seat remarked.

“By the way, how was the fight? I was out running an errand and missed it.” the 7th seat asked.

Hetoku turned to him. “The only word I can come up with is unbelievable.”

The 7th seat rose a brow. “Really?”

Hetoku nodded. “Everyone was impressed, he really kept the Captain busy, to put it simply.” He then looked around to see if anyone was near.

He saw no one close, then leaned in, causing the two men to do the same. “He even made the Captain lose it.” he whispered.

The 7th seat’s eye went wide. “Nuh uh, you’re lying!” he stated with shock.

Hetoku and the 8th seat both shook their heads. “Nope, the guy managed to cause the Captain to lose his temper and forced him to use Tenken.” the 8th seat stated with a serious tone.

The 7th seat was frozen in shock. “How in the hell did he manage to do that?” he quickly asked.

Hetoku looked around again, still seeing no one around. He turned back to the officer.

“It’s a little difficult to explain, but his abilities allow him to quickly move from one spot to another. I guess it’s fast enough that he managed to make several copies of himself. He then taunted the hell out of the Captain. The Captain tried to find the real guy, but eventually gave up.”

The 7th seat leaned back in his chair and shook his head.

“Unbelievable. And here I thought it was impossible.”

“And what would that be?” a gruff voice asked.

The three men turned to see Sajin now standing behind the 7th seat. The men froze for a second before Hetoku could try to cover it up.

“Uh…nothing Captain…we were just…talking about that ryoka! Yeah!” he quickly lied.

Sajin rose a brow. “I see. Indeed, that was unbelievable. Well, carry on.” he instructed and turned back towards the doorway.

He then stopped and glanced back. “And the fight was indeed great. Thank you for the complements.” he stated with a smirk and left the room.

The three officers turned back to each other with wide eyes. “How did…” the 8th seat started, but Hetoku stopped him.

“I think it’s best if we stop while we’re ahead.” he stated and the 7th seat quickly nodded.

“Agreed.” the 7th and 8th seat both stated in unison.

Meanwhile, Sajin continued his walk towards the stairs. He was on his way to the 8th Squad Headquarters to speak with the Captain when he happened to overhear the officer’s conversation.

He was now mentally starting to scorn Timothy for causing him to lose his temper, because he knew that it would be a long time before that story died, and it wouldn’t be long before it got out to the rest of the squads.

He was starting to fret that he would never be able to live it down. He lowered his head and started rubbing the top of it.

_‘That boy is going to be the death of me.’_ he mentally concluded.

As he walked up to the front doors, he heard a voice stop him.

“Hey, Captain Komamura!”

Sajin looked up to see the Captains of Squads 8 and 13 walking up to him.

“Ah, Captain Kyōraku, good afternoon.” He turned to the white-haired Captain. “And good morning to you as well, Captain Ukitake.”

“Good morning Sajin. I trust things are going well for you?” Ukitake asked.

“Indeed, they are. In fact, I was just on my way to see you, Captain Kyōraku.” Sajin stated, now looking at Shunsui.

“Were you now? Well it looks like I managed to save you a trip.” he replied with a tilt of his straw hat.

“Well, now that you are here, would you care to join me inside for some tea?” Sajin offered.

“Nah, I’ve got something a little better.” Shunsui retorted, holding up a bottle of sake.

Sajin was not a drinker, but he would occasionally enjoy a drink with his fellow Captains when they discussed business.

He gestured both men inside and then both nodded. The three of them entered the building and walked up to Sajin’s office.

“Please make yourselves comfortable.” Sajin offered as the three men entered the room.

The guests walked up and sat on one of the couches along the left wall while Sajin grabbed the pillow seat from in front of his desk.

Sajin walked up to the table in front of the two men and sat down on the opposing side. Shunsui poured all three of them a saucer, then the men each grabbed one.

They all held their saucers up for a moment, then each took a sip.

“So, Captain Komamura, what was it you wanted to talk about?” Shunsui asked.

Sajin set his saucer down. “I was hoping if you knew what sectors of Rukongai Squad 11 has been assigned to.”

Shunsui put his chin in his hand and thought a moment. “If I’m not mistaken, I believe that they were assigned sectors thirty, through fifty-nine in East Rukongai. Might I ask why?”

Sajin took another sip, then set the saucer back down. “The sectors from Squad 4…Well, as I’m sure you’re aware, my squad took our sectors over from them.” Shunsui and Jūshirō both nodded.

“We heard.” Jūshirō confirmed.

Sajin nodded back. “Well, we ran into a…problem when we took over, though.”

Shunsui narrowed his gaze. “What sort of problems?”

“The ‘picking on others’ kind.” Sajin clarified.

“I see.” Shunsui paused.

“I intend to secretly dispatch a few dozen men to keep an eye on things and report any misgivings.” Sajin stated.

The two men nodded. “I think that would be a good idea. Not all of squad 11 are bad eggs, but it’s still bad nonetheless.” Shunsui remarked, and Sajin nodded.

“Agreed.” Jūshirō added.

The three men sat in silence for a bit.

“But, with that out of the way, we also had something we wanted to discuss with you.” Shunsui stated.

Sajin turned to him. “Go on.”

The two men turned to each other a moment, then turned back with smirks on their faces.

‘Oh no…’ Sajin mentally fretted, thinking he knew what was coming.

“So, tell us…what is this rumor about that you lost it in a fight against a soul?”


	4. Law and Skill

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTORS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 4

**(Law and Skill.)**

** World of the Living, Manassas Texas, August 1989 (12 Years Ago) **

It was a calm and quite night in the back streets of the city. The majority of the citizens were sound asleep in their cozy beds.

But this was not the case for a single, lonely, ghostly couple.

The two spirits currently found themselves running for dear life down the street, trying to hide.

“Quickly Susan! We need to get away from them!” the man yelled.

“I’m trying!” the woman returned.

The couple quickly turned left down the next street and the man glanced behind them to see if their pursuers were still there. When he did not see them come around the corner, he quickly grabbed the woman’s arm and pulled her into an alley.

The couple stopped and stood there while trying to catch their breath. The woman leaned her back against the wall while the man was hunched over.

“I think…that we…lost them…” he stated in-between breaths.

The woman simply nodded as they continued to stand there as their breaths returned.

“Tim…who…who was that?! And how did they see us?!” she quickly asked.

Timothy shook his head. “I don’t know…but whoever it was, they did not seem friendly.”

Susan turned to him. “Tim…it’s been five days now since we died. Shouldn’t we have like…passed on by now?” she asked in a worried tone.

Timothy shrugged his shoulders. “Beats me Susan, but we can’t stay here. I have a feeling that those guys are still looking for us.”

Susan nodded and got off the wall. “Alright.”

The couple turned back to the street and Timothy took a peek around the corner.

“I don’t see them, let’s go.” he stated.

“And just where do you intend to go?” a low and calm voiced stated.

The couple’s eyes went wide, and they quickly turned to look behind them. They then saw the three beings from earlier standing nonchalantly at the end of the alley.

“How did…how did you find us?!” the woman choked, and the middle being chuckled.

“Did you honestly believe that you would be able to hide from me?” he asked, keeping his calm tone.

Timothy quickly turned to Susan.

“Susan, run!” he yelled.

They both quickly turned, but froze when they saw that one on the beings was now blocking the way.

“I’m afraid I can’t allow that.” the man stated, and the couple turned back to him.

“You have been chosen to become a little test subject of mine.” he added and began walking towards them.

Timothy quickly pushed Susan behind him against the wall with him in front of her.

“Get away from us you bastards, or I’ll kill you!” he warned, but the man simply chuckled.

“An empty threat. What could you possibly do in your current state?” the man asked as he walked up now be in front of them.

“Now…let’s begin.” He stated and reached out to them.

A flash of light suddenly erupted from his hand.

** Squad 7 Barracks, Seireitei, Present **

Timothy quickly sat up in bed with eyes wide in shock and fear. Sweat was pouring from his face and he was breathing erratically. He started feeling himself all over trying to confirm if he was still dreaming. Finally, he realized that he wasn’t, and that he was actually awake.

He pulled his knees in and set his face in his hands, massaging the sleep away. He sat there thinking as he tried to slow down his breathing. Tears started forming in his eyes as he thought more and more about the dream.

After a while, his heart rate returned to normal and his breathing slowed. He slowly tossed the covers off of him and sat on the edge of the bed. He ran his fingers through his hair and took a deep breath before letting it back out in a depressed sigh.

“That damn dream again.” he whispered.

He lowered his head with his arms resting on his knees. He took another deep breath, but stopped when he heard a voice.

**“Tumuty…Tumuty!”** he heard someone mumble.

He listened for a moment, then it dawned on him where it came from. He got off the bed, turned around, and pulled his sword out from under the mattress.

**“You’re gonna pay for that!”** the sword warned and Timothy let out an annoyed sigh.

“Not right now…please…” he pleaded.

He set the sword down on the bed and returned to sitting on the bed as he was before.

**_“Tim? Are you alright?”_** the sword asked with worry in his mind.

Timothy didn’t answer.

**_“…You had the dream again…didn’t you?”_** the sword asked.

Timothy slowly nodded. “Yeah…” he whispered.

**_“…Are you gonna be ok?”_** it asked with sincerity.

Timothy ran his fingers through his hair again and started rubbing the back of his neck.

“Yeah…just…let me sit for a moment.” he pleaded, and the sword sighed.

**_“Tim…it wasn’t your fault…there was nothing you could have done.”_** the sword offered.

Timothy didn’t answer.

**_“Tim…talk to me.”_** the sword pleaded.

“I’ll be fine…just let me be.”

As if on que, he then heard a knock on the door.

“Yeah…who is it?” he moaned.

“It’s 5th seat Hetoku. May I come in?” he asked in a calm tone.

Timothy sighed, then rubbed his face. “Yeah…go ahead.”

The door slid open and Hetoku stepped inside the room, closing the door behind him.

“Good morning, Timothy.” he greeted.

Timothy turned to him with a raised brow.

“Morning? You mean to tell me that it’s morning?” he asked in surprise.

Hetoku nodded, confused. “Yes, although it is a little early. I thought it would be best to get started sooner than later. Like you said, you don’t like time wasted.” he remarked.

Timothy scoffed and nodded. “True, I just didn’t expect to end up sleeping this long. I guess I was really tired.”

Hetoku chuckled. “That, or the nice, comfy bed caused you to relax too much.” he teased.

Timothy snorted and shook his head. “Whatever, Hetoku. Just give me a few minutes to get changed and I’ll be right out.” Timothy stated.

Hetoku nodded and left the room.

Timothy began stripping the clothes from yesterday and pulled clean ones out of the dresser. It took him a few minutes longer to change than it should have, considering he was still not familiar with the clothes.

But after a while he finished tying the sash around his waist and slipped his two swords into it on his right side, with new one on the bottom.

He took a quick glance in the small mirror sitting on the dresser and straighten out his hair, then turned to the door. He slid it open and stepped out of the room to find Hetoku standing by the window looking out.

“Hey, you ready?” Timothy asked, and the man turned to him.

“I am if you are. We’ll head down to the library to grab a couple books first.” he instructed.

Timothy nodded and followed the man left down the hallway.

“So, how was your first night here?” he asked.

Timothy shrugged his shoulders. “Alright, I guess. A bed is a bed.” He remarked and Hetoku nodded.

“I see. Well, today we’ll go over the squad’s rules and regulations. We’ll also cover most of the important laws for the soul society. And I think that I have a method of learning them that you will enjoy.” he finished in a smile.

“Alright. So, let me ask you something.” Timothy started.

Hetoku glanced back. “Go ahead.”

“How long have you been here, in the squad?” Timothy asked while looking around.

“I’ve been with the squad for seventeen years now, but before I was in squad nine. I transferred here to take a position as a seated officer.” he answered.

Timothy nodded, then turned back to him. “So, you can transfer to different squads if you wanted to?” Timothy asked.

“You can request it, but it must be approved by both the current Captain, and the receiving Captain. If they both agree, then you’re transferred. Why? Thinking of leaving us already?” he teased.

Timothy chuckled. “Well…I was ever since I met Tetsuzaemon.”

Hetoku chuckled as well. “He is a little rough around the edges, but he always means well. Just give him time and you’ll get used to him. He’s a really good Lieutenant, and he’s always helping others, he’s just gruff is all.” Hetoku cleared.

Timothy snorted. “I think ‘gruff’ is a little bit of an understatement.” he mused.

Hetoku glanced back to him. “Reminds me of you.” he taunted, gaining a mean look from Timothy.

“You want a fist in the face too?” he threatened.

Hetoku chuckled. “I heard about that, and no, I don’t. Ah, here we are.” he stated as they entered a large room with multiple bookshelves.

Timothy could see a large number of squad members walking around, or sitting at the many desks around the room.

“Quite the collection you got.” he commented.

Hetoku nodded. “Yes, we have just about anything you could need. Combat styles, kidō, history, you name it. We even have some books from the world of the living, but they are in their own section in the back. Mainly stories and cultural books.” Hetoku turned back to him. “I hope you can read Japanese, as most of the books here are in Japanese.”

Timothy shrugged his shoulders. “For the most part. There wasn’t much to read or write back in Fallen Tree, but Albert gave me some lessons. Anything here in English?” he asked.

Hetoku nodded. “A few, but all of them books from the world of the living. We have books that are in most languages.”

Hetoku gestured Timothy towards the stairs, and they began walking to the first floor. Once there, Hetoku led Timothy down an aisle and began looking at the book numbers.

“Lets see…53…54…ah, here it is.” he stated.

He pulled out and exceedingly thick book and wiped off the front.

“Here you go.” he stated, handing the book to Timothy.

Timothy stated wide eyed at the size of it, then read the cover.

“Laws of the Seireitei and Soul Society.” he read then turned to Hetoku. “Kinda thick, isn’t it?” he asked.

Hetoku nodded. “Yes, that book contains every law of the soul society. As I said, today we’ll go over the more important ones. There’s one more book we need to find, then we can begin. Please wait here.”

Timothy nodded and Hetoku walked away. He opened the large book in the middle and began reading some of the words to himself.

“Lets see… ‘It is against the law for any citizen of the Soul Society to create weapons of a dangerous nature that have not been sanctioned by the feudal government. To do so is treason.”

“It is against the law for any citizen of the Soul Society to possess weapons of a dangerous nature that have not been sanctioned by the feudal government. To do so is reckless endangerment.”

“Any knowledge of creation, or possession of weapons of a dangerous nature that have not been sanctioned by the feudal government by another citizen, must be reported. Refusal to do so is treason.”

Timothy continued to read, but was stopped by Hetoku’s voice.

“Hey, Timothy.”

Timothy looked up from the book to see the man walking towards him carrying another book.

“What’s that?” Timothy asked, pointing at the book.

“The rules and regulations for the squad. Nowhere near as much as that one, but just as important. Are you ready to go?” he asked.

Timothy closed his book and nodded.

“Then follow me please.” Hetoku instructed.

He led Timothy back down the halls to the rear doors of the barracks. They continued their walk down towards the training grounds and Timothy turned to the officer.

“So, what’s this method of yours?” he asked.

Hetoku turned to him. “Simple, we’ll study for a bit, then we’ll practice your fighting skills.”

Timothy rose a brow. “What do you mean?”

Hetoku chuckled. “We’ll study for a little while, then I’ll ask you some questions regarding what we went over. If you get something wrong, we’ll spar for a bit, then try again.”

Timothy actually liked the idea and grinned.

“Oh really, and what makes you think I won’t get them wrong on purpose just so we can spar?” he asked in a joking tone.

Hetoku turned back to him. “I don’t think you’d like that idea. Afterall, it won’t be only sparring we’ll do. I’ll be sure to include some regular exercises as well.”

Timothy chuckled. “Fair enough.”

They arrived at the field and walked over to the few trees nearby. Timothy could see a few other members practicing and sparring as well. Some of them were off in the distance practicing kidō.

“Alright, have a seat and we’ll get started.” Hetoku instructed.

Both men sat down and Hetoku grabbed the large book.

“We’ll start with the basic ones first. Ready?” he asked, getting a nod from Timothy. “Alright. First, and by far the most important one; ‘The ultimate law is to maintain balance.’” He read off.

“This law is pretty straightforward. The job of a soul reaper is to maintain the balance of life between here, being the Soul Society, and the world of the living.” he stated.

“What exactly does that mean?” Timothy asked.

“It means that it’s up to us to make sure that the balance of souls in the Soul Society and the living world is correct. Have you ever heard of hollows before?” he asked.

Timothy shook his head.

“Alright. Well, to put it simple, hollows are souls that have not been saved and sent to the Soul Society by a soul reaper. Once a person dies, their soul remains in the living world for a time. Still with me?”

Timothy nodded.

“Ok. Well, after some time, the chain of fate will break off of the soul’s…” Timothy held up a hand stopping him.

“What’s the ‘chain of fate’?” he asked.

“Do you still remember back when you passed away?” Hetoku asked, getting a nod from him. “Do you remember the chain attached to your chest?” Timothy nodded again. “That’s the chain of fate. It has always been attached to your soul. The chain was attached to your physical body and it’s what kept you in your physical body; in other words, kept you alive. Got me so far?”

Timothy again nodded.

“Well, when you died, that chain was severed. The part that was attached to your chest was the other end of it. Now, after a certain amount of time, the chain will begin to corrode away from your chest, taking away any emotions, thoughts, just your overall mind in general. When that happens, a mask will form on your face and you’ll transform into a mindless beast, called a hollow. Follow?”

Timothy scratched his head a second, but nodded.

“Alright. Well, a hollow feeds on the souls of the departed, before a soul reaper has had a chance to send them to the Soul Society. Those souls in turn become hollows themselves, disturbing the balance. That’s our job, to rescue to the lost souls and send them here before hollows can devour them.” Hetoku finished.

“So…what happens if the balance isn’t kept?” Timothy asked.

“The boundaries between the Soul Society and the living world would fall apart, most likely destroying both worlds.” he instructed.

Timothy thought about it for a moment, but later nodded. “Alright, I think I got it.” he stated.

Hetoku nodded then turned back to the book.

“Alright, ‘A soul reaper must never refuse to perform the duties bestowed upon him or her. To do so is treason.’ Another straightforward one. Simply put, you have your duties and you must adhere to them. We’ll go over those more in detail later.”

Timothy stopped him.

“Probably a dumb question here, but what if performing those duties would lead to someone getting hurt or killed?” he asked.

“Well, it goes back to the first one, to maintain balance. Something you should know is that our lives are always in danger. The moment we step into the living world, there is always the chance we won’t come back. Being a soul reaper, you are already technically dead. So, if you ‘die’ as a soul or soul reaper, your soul is destroyed.” Hetoku cleared.

Timothy rubbed head neck and nodded. “Go on.”

“Next, ‘A soul reaper must obey any orders given to him or her by any person of higher rank or standing. The only exceptions to this law is if the stated order would cause harm to an innocent soul, or to another soul reaper, or if the said order would result in disobeying another law. To refuse an order without due cause is considered treason.’ I’m sure you understand that one, right?” Hetoku asked.

Timothy nodded. “Yeah, sounds simple.”

Both men continued their studies with Timothy occasionally stopping Hetoku to ask for clarification. After a while, Hetoku closed the book.

“Alright, time for some questions.”

Both men stood up and Hetoku pointed to the grounds.

“For this first set, you must run a lap on the track for each one you get wrong.” he ordered

Timothy moaned, then nodded.

“Alright, shoot.” he stated.

“What is the ultimate law of the Soul Society?” Hetoku asked.

Timothy thought for a second. “To maintain balance.” he answered.

“Good. What is it considered if a soul reaper refuses to do his duty?” Hetoku continued.

Timothy thought back again, but the word slipped his mind.

“I think it was desertion…” he guessed.

Hetoku shook his head. “Close, but it’s treason. That’s one lap.” he stated.

Timothy moaned and shook his, trying to figure out how that slipped his mind.

“Alright, next.” he asked.

Hetoku thought about the next one for a second.

“Alright, can you ignore an order?” he asked, trying to trick Timothy.

Timothy caught it though. “Unless it will cause harm to another, or make you break another law, no.”

Hetoku chuckled. “Good catch. Alright, get running.” he ordered, and Timothy stood up.

“Be right back.” he stated and started his run.

Meanwhile, Hetoku began sifting through the book to find his next questions. A short time later, Timothy came back, breathing a little heavier.

“Enjoy your run?” Hetoku asked and Timothy waved him off.

“Time’s wasting, let’s move on.” he retorted.

Hetoku nodded and turned back to the book.

“Very well… ‘It is against the law to commit murder.’ I don’t think that one needs explaining.” he commented, and Timothy shook his head. “Next, ‘It is against the law to kill a human that a soul reaper has NOT been ordered to kill.’”

Timothy rose a brow. “And why would you kill a human? Aren’t you supposed to protect them?” he asked.

Hetoku took off his glasses. “In theory, no. We are responsible for the ‘souls’ of the deceased, not the living. And it has to be under extreme circumstances that we would be ordered to kill a human. The best scenario that I can give you would be mass murderers. They could potentially cause too many souls to be in the living world at one time, and that could cause unbalance. It’s been many years since that has happened though.”

Hetoku rose a finger. “Keep this in mind…we are not the judge and jury. Even if we were to witness a murder, or something along those lines, we cannot interfere; nor can we stop such things from happening. However, hollow attacks that could cause a human to die is an exception.”

Timothy started rubbing his temples. “That’s sounds immoral.” he stated.

Hetoku sighed. “It does, but it’s the law. All you can do is hope that you never have to witness it.” he offered.

Timothy sighed again and nodded. “Fine…so what’s next?” he asked.

Hetoku closed the book and set it down. “Now, we clear our heads. Let’s head over to the field.”

Both men stood up and began walking to the training grounds. They walked to the center of the field and faced each other.

“Alright, time for a little spar. I’ll ask you questions during the fight, that way it will force you to not only concentrate on the fight, but have to use your thinking skills as well. This will help you to not only remember what you just learned, but also improve your mental multitasking.” Hetoku instructed.

Timothy nodded and was about to draw his primary sword, but Hetoku stopped him.

“No, use your assigned zanpakutō. That way you’ll also build a bond with it.” he added.

“Build a bond?” Timothy asked confused.

“Yes, you’ll need to build up your bond with your zanpakutō. Meditating and communicating with it is the best way, but combat improves the trust between you the fastest.” Hetoku cleared.

Timothy was still confused. “I don’t understand what you mean by ‘bond’.”

Hetoku raised a brow. “What do you mean? You’ve already developed a bond with your other zanpakutō, haven’t you?” he asked, confused himself.

Timothy thought about it for a minute but decided to play dumb.

“Oh, I see now. I just didn’t understand what you meant by it. I’ve got ya now.” he returned.

Hetoku nodded and drew his zanpakutō, Timothy followed suit, holding it to his side.

“Simple rules, no kidō, no releases, just a simple fight of skill.” he instructed, and Timothy nodded.

“Alright.” he answered.

Both men got into a ready stance. “Ready?” Hetoku asked and Timothy nodded.

“Ready.”

“Begin.” Hetoku announced.

Timothy stood his ground as Hetoku brought his sword low, ready for an uppercut. Timothy then turned slightly and blocked with the backside of his sword. Hetoku’s blade caught Timothy’s, and both men pushed against each other.

“What was the fourth law I stated?” Hetoku said with a grunt as he pushed harder.

“It’s against the law to commit murder.” Timothy growled as he kicked at Hetoku.

Hetoku leaped back and came at him again in a side swing. Timothy ducked and turned his blade to cut the man’s leg. Hetoku caught it, and quickly backflipped, kicking Timothy in the head as he did. Timothy fell back a few feet and rubbed his head.

“Nice one.” he complimented.

Hetoku didn’t respond, he simply came back at Timothy, ready with another uppercut.

“What’s the result of disobeying a direct order?” Hetoku growled, trying to trick Timothy as he swung up.

Timothy jumped to the side and turned to charge the man’s exposed side. As he did, he thought about the question. Hetoku never mentioned what the result would be, so that meant that he was trying to make him think the question over and come to a conclusion.

Timothy swung to the side, but the man slipped just out of reach.

“I’m waiting!” he demanded and disappeared in a flash step, now behind Timothy with his sword high.

Timothy quickly held his sword over his head, catching the blade with his and held it at bay.

“Treason.” he hissed in a questing tone.

“Correct!” Hetoku announced as he spun and gave Timothy a roundhouse kick to his shoulder.

Timothy flopped over, but quickly righted himself as he came to a stop.

“If you don’t focus, you’re going to lose quicker than you think.” he instructed as he watched Timothy return to his stance.

Timothy glared at him as the man got ready to charge again. An idea came to Timothy’s head, and he instead went after Hetoku. Hetoku raised his sword, ready to block as Timothy went at him in a low stance sprint. Hetoku saw an opening, and quickly readied his sword to attack.

He brought his sword to his right shoulder, then swung as Timothy came in range. But Timothy planned this and quickly shot to the left, against the man’s swing and dove forward into a roll, the man’s blade missing him by a few inches.

Timothy quickly recovered from the roll as Hetoku turned to face him. At once, Timothy flung his hand to the side, throwing the dirt he had picked up mid roll into the man’s face.

Hetoku started coughing and spitting and he tried to get the dirt out of his eyes. He then stopped as he felt Timothy’s blade touch his side.

He opened one eye slightly and turned to his opponent.

“Cheater.” he stated.

Timothy shook his head. “There is no such thing as fair in combat, sir. One thing I’ve learned over the years is you fight with your life. Either he dies, or you die. Simple as that.”

Hetoku rubbed the rest of the dirt away and smiled. “That is true. Very well, you got me.”

Timothy pulled back and held his sword to the side. “Also, it sounds a bit odd for you to talk about fair when you used flash step.” he pointed out.

Hetoku rose a brow. “You can’t use Shunpo?” he asked, causing Timothy to raise a brow.

“Shunpo?” he asked in return.

“It’s the official name for the move. ‘Flash step’ is just a common term that most use. It looks like that’s something else I’ll have to teach you. But, that’s for another time.” Hetoku cleared.

“Is it hard to learn?” Timothy inquired.

“Hmm…not really. It’s fairly easy to learn, it just takes a lot of practice to master it.” Hetoku stated.

“I see. Well, shall we continue?” Timothy asked.

Hetoku nodded and sheathed his zanpakutō, which Timothy followed suit. “After you.” he stated, gesturing towards the tree.

Both men walked back and sat back down to continue the lessons.

For most of the day, Hetoku instructed and Timothy listened. After every few readings, Hetoku would have Timothy run laps, or conduct other exercises. They even had a few more sparring sessions, most of which Hetoku won, in response to Timothy’s earlier comment about fairness in fights.

Hetoku was actually impressed with Timothy’s willingness to learn. He made a few recalling errors occasionally, but for the most part he was retaining the information at a decent pace.

It was now half past midday, so Hetoku decided that they had done enough and should call it for the day. Hetoku was about to return to the barracks when Timothy stopped him.

“Hetoku, do you have time help me with my sword techniques?” Timothy asked.

Hetoku was about to answer, but a voice cut him off.

“No need, I’m give you a hand.”

Both men turned to see Tetsuzaemon walking up. “Oh, good afternoon Lieutenant.” Hetoku greeted and bowed, Timothy did as well.

“Afternoon. The Captain has some paperwork he needs for you to look over, so I’ll take over here.” he stated.

“Actually, we had just finished for the day, sir.” Hetoku cleared.

“I see.” he returned, then turned to Timothy. “I assume you still want to practice though, right?”

Timothy nodded. “As long as you don’t try to kill me.” he mocked.

The Lieutenant huffed and crossed his arms. “Don’t give me a reason to then.” he returned.

Timothy chuckled, then turned to Hetoku. “Thank you for the lessons Hetoku.” he stated and slightly bowed, that Hetoku returned.

“Not at all, Timothy. We’ll pick this up again tomorrow. Lieutenant.” he addressed in a bow and began walking away.

Timothy and Tetsuzaemon stared at each other a moment.

“Well, are you ready for a beating?” the Lieutenant asked.

Timothy chuckled. “I am if you are.” he retorted.

Tetsuzaemon gestured with his head and they began walking to the grounds. They walked into the center and faced each other.

“So, how do you want to fight?” he asked.

Timothy waved him off. “Simple rules I guess. No kidō, or releases…and no flash step.” Tetsuzaemon raised a brow. “Before you ask, no, I don’t know how to do it yet. I just want to improve my fighting skill.” Timothy stated.

“Very well. Though I should warn you that I’m not as easy going as 5th seat Hetoku. If you want to fight, it’s going to be a fight. So, you better expect to get bruised a bit.” he warned.

Timothy shrugged his shoulders. “Wouldn’t expect any less from you.” he returned.

Both men drew their zanpakutōs and got into their ready stances. “You ready?” the Lieutenant asked.

“Ready.” Timothy answered in a nod.

“Then begin.” Tetsuzaemon ordered.

He came at Timothy much like Hetoku did in their first fight, sword low, ready for an uppercut. Like before, Timothy blocked it, but Tetsuzaemon immediately gave him a swift kick to his side. Timothy fell back and rolled to his feet.

“Good recovery, but you shouldn’t have blocked. Only block if you have no other choice. Instead, try to move out of the way and go back at your opponent as they recover from their attack. Blocking only stops both of you and gives your opponent time to plan his next attack.” Tetsuzaemon instructed.

Timothy nodded and got ready for the next attack. The Lieutenant came at him again, sword level with his shoulder. He swung down and across, and Timothy quickly hopped to the side, only to be met with Tetsuzaemon’s fist to his face.

Timothy fell onto his back, dazed, then quickly rolled as Tetsuzaemon swung down. He got back to his feet and shook his head to clear it.

“Don’t always go for the easy way out of an attack, your opponent could be trying play you into his hands, like I did. Go where the enemy would least expect.” he added.

Timothy again shook his head, then nodded in understanding.

“Now attack me.” he ordered, and Timothy went at him in a controlled pace. He swung at the man, but he stepped to the side.

Before Timothy could react, Tetsuzaemon rammed the hilt of his zanpakutō into Timothy’s gut, causing him to fall back.

Timothy was now hunched over in pain and froze again when the Lieutenant’s blade touched his neck.

“Never stop a battle because you’re in pain, otherwise you’ll quickly die. Fight through the pain and keep your guard. Also, keep in mind that the blade is not the only part of the zanpakutō that you can use. If you find yourself unable to use your blade because of your position, give the guy thrust with the hilt.”

Timothy slightly nodded, the man’s blade still on his neck. Tetsuzaemon lifted the blade and walked back to the center before turning back to him.

“Again.’ he demanded.

Timothy took a breath and pushed the pain aside to stand back straight. He took another breath, then got back into his stance.

“Let me ask you something.” Timothy started.

“No, no talking. Now shut up and come at me.” he demanded.

Timothy growled, then went at then man. He kept a low stance as he ran and got ready to swing to the side. Tetsuzaemon quickly turned slightly and swung to the side, but Timothy jumped at the last second and thrust his leg out for a kick to his chest.

But the Lieutenant quickly pushed his leg aside as he turned and thrust his elbow into Timothy’s side, forcing him to the ground.

Tetsuzaemon held his blade out to Timothy’s neck and he froze.

“Never put yourself in a position where the enemy can predict where you will be. I swung low to make you jump, you ending up exactly where I could have swung up and cut you in two. You not only have to predict your opponent, but you must also predict yourself. Know where you are going to end up with every move you make. That way, you can plan your next move from there.”

Timothy growled at him, but nodded. Tetsuzaemon let him up and returned to the center of the field.

“Again.” he demanded once more.

Timothy yet again returned to his stance. But before he could act, he was immediately assaulted by Tetsuzaemon, swinging at him endlessly.

“You need to be able to think fast, even when under barrage like this! Follow your opponent’s moves, look for any patterns, weaknesses, missteps, anything to give you an edge!” he yelled as he continued his barrage of strikes,

Timothy was steadily being pushed along the field to the far end. He tried to find a pattern, but with Tetsuzaemon flailing on him so much, he couldn’t concentrate. He was pushed to the end of the field and suddenly tripped when his foot hit the edge of the grass, him falling on his back.

Tetsuzaemon was now standing over him with his blade to his neck again.

“You need to be aware of your surroundings. If possible, use it to your advantage.”

He pulled his sword back began walking back to the center.

“Again.” he stated as he walked.

Timothy got back up and dusted himself off. He began walking back and stopped in his position, holding a stance.

Meanwhile, Sajin stood by the stands and watched the entire ordeal. He heard footsteps approaching and turned to see his 9th seat.

“Afternoon, Captain. I’ve finished the reports and set them on your desk.” the 9th seat stated.

Sajin nodded and turned back to the pair. “Thank you, I’ll look at them later.” he responded.

“What is going on here, Captain?” the man asked.

“Skills training. Tetsuzaemon is teaching our new member just how outmatched he is.” Sajin commented.

The 9th seat walked up next to Sajin and watched as Tetsuzaemon began putting Timothy on the defensive again.

“Isn’t the Lieutenant being a little harsh Captain? I mean, he can’t learn any skills if he isn’t given the chance to try them.” the man asked.

“Tetsuzaemon’s not trying to teach him skills, he’s trying to push him to the limit. He’s trying to break him down and force him to push himself beyond his limits.” Sajin clarified.

“I see.” the man responded.

“By pushing Timothy’s mind and body to its limits, he’ll learn that he can fight, even if his body is tired and his mind strained. By learning this, he’ll be able concentrate more and react faster.” Sajin added.

“So, he’s trying to improve Durn’s endurance?” he asked.

“In a sense. As you know, when your body becomes tired and your mind stressed, you act slower and your thinking and concentration slow down. By keeping him in such a state, he’s forcing Timothy to think and move faster. After a while, his body and mind will become used to it, improving his critical skills.”

Sajin then turned to the officer. “I am returning to my office. Would you care to join me?”

The officer bowed and both men walked away.

A couple hours later, Timothy was breathing heavily and was getting ready to pass out. Tetsuzaemon stood in the center of the field.

“Again.” he demanded.

Timothy growled and straightened himself.

“Enough of this Lieutenant, I’m done for now.” he stated.

“Nonsense! You are done when I say you are done! Now get ready!” he yelled.

Timothy scoffed. “In case you missed it, I’m beat. I can’t go on anymore.”

“What a load of crap.” he remarked. He then stood straight himself.

“You think the enemy will stop because you’re tired? Huh? You think that because you call it a day that he’s going to stop? You need to learn what it means to be pushed to the edge, to have to fight beyond your capabilities. These is no rest in battle, no breaks. A battle continues until one of you dies. And you need to learn that.” the Lieutenant said as he set his sword on his shoulder.

“You need to experience firsthand how it feels to pushed beyond your limit, to force yourself to keep going. You need to learn how to tell yourself that you can’t stop, that you will not stop. But more importantly, you need to learn how to fight harder when pushed to that state.” he finished in a calm tone.

Timothy simply chuckled. “You also just want payback for that punch.”

Tetsuzaemon slightly grinned. “Maybe a little bit of that too. Now, quit your bellyaching and get into your stance.” he finished by entering his stance.

Timothy took a breath and got into his stance as well.

“Now come at me with everything you got.” he demanded.

Both men continued their fight, always ending with the same results. Timothy with the Lieutenant’s blade to his neck or chest. Time after time the Lieutenant pushed Timothy harder and harder to where Timothy finally collapsed on the ground.

“Get up and come at me again, Durn.” he demanded.

Timothy laid on the ground close to hyperventilating and slowly struggled to get to his knees.

“Lets go Durn! Get up!” he yelled again.

Timothy struggled more and more, but finally managed to make it to his feet.

“Good, now attack.” the Lieutenant instructed.

Timothy managed to get into a stance with his sword held low.

“Attack Durn!” he continued to yell.

Timothy growled and went after him yet again. He came in with a low guard, ready for an uppercut, but as he swung, Tetsuzaemon simply stepped to the side and Timothy ran passed, tripping and falling on the ground.

Tetsuzaemon turned to him.

“Get up Durn.” he ordered.

Timothy got to his knees, breathing erratically, then slowly got back to his feet.

“Again, Durn.” he repeated.

Timothy slowly turned towards him and stumbled, nearly falling over, but caught himself by propping himself with his zanpakutō. Once he got his balance back, he continued to turn and face him. He got back into a stance and got ready to attack. He then began thinking about his attack.

_‘Should I come at him low and draw him down, then attack high…no…he’d expect that.’_

“Let’s go Durn, attack.” Tetsuzaemon ordered.

Timothy continued his thought.

_‘What if I go wide to his left and jump back right at the last second?...no, he’d also expect that.’_

“Fine then.” the Lieutenant stated, then came at him.

Timothy waited, then jumped to the side as he swung.

_‘I’ve gotta think of something…’_

Tetsuzaemon turned and swung again, causing Timothy to dodge right and turn back around. Because of how he moved, his sword point dug into the ground and he almost tripped on the blade.

He quickly got his footing back and returned to his stance.

_‘That’s it!’_ he thought as an idea came to mind. A risky one, but the only one he could think of.

Tetsuzaemon turned to him and came at him again.

_‘It’s now or never.’_ Timothy concluded.

He charged at the man and got ready to swing. Tetsuzaemon swung first, but Timothy quickly abandoned his charge, stopping just short of the Lieutenant’s swing.

He then charged again, but instead of preparing to swing, he quickly reversed his grip and threw his zanpakutō at the man’s feet.

Tetsuzaemon lifted his foot, letting the blade pass by, then set it back down. Timothy quickly pushed the man back a few inches, and the man’s foot caught the blade, now sticking out of the ground.

The Lieutenant lost his balance and fell back as Timothy quickly ran up, pulling his zanpakutō from the ground as he passed, and ended up over top of Tetsuzaemon with his blade to the man’s throat.

Everything stopped as both men froze.

Timothy then felt something, and looked down to see the Lieutenant’s blade to his throat as well. He looked back at the man who had an emotionless face.

“Well done, but you just got yourself killed as well.” Tetsuzaemon remarked.

Timothy lowered his head and slowly backed off. The Lieutenant slowly got back to his feet and dusted himself off.

“In the end…” Timothy started, but had to take a second to breath.

“...it doesn’t…matter if…I fall. As long…as I complete…my mission.” he continued between breaths.

“You’re wrong.” Tetsuzaemon stated, causing Timothy to turn to him.

“There’s more to your mission than removing an opponent. You should never sacrifice yourself just to take out an enemy. Such an act is nonsense. If you can defeat an opponent, do so, but not at the expense of your own life.”

The Lieutenant then walked up to him.

“Although your tactic did catch me off guard, you had bet everything on that fact that it might work. But what if it didn’t? You just tossed your life away on a gamble.”

Timothy glared at him.

“Oh yeah? Well it’s like Hetoku said, the moment you step out onto the field you take a gamble with your life. Is that not true?” he demanded.

Tetsuzaemon stared at him a moment.

“You really are naïve, aren’t you? We may be risking our lives when we step onto the field, but we never gamble with them. You should always fight to accomplish your mission and return home, not give up and stake it all out on one last attempt. There is always a way to come out on top, you just have to find it. And that is half the battle on its own.”

Tetsuzaemon then sheathed his sword and set a hand on Timothy’s shoulder.

“Regardless, you did very well. Even if the plan was foolish, you still managed to come up with something while under heavy duress. Good job. Now head back and go get some rest.” he stated.

Timothy grinned, but shook his head. “I think I’ll stay out here for a while longer.”

Tetsuzaemon looked at him for a moment.

“If you want to work out for a while longer, be my guest. But don’t overdo it. You can’t rush things like this. Your body ain’t gonna stronger all at once.” he advised.

Timothy nodded. “Yeah, I know. I’ll be careful.”

The Lieutenant nodded back and began walking to the barracks. He glanced behind him to see Timothy to start running on the track.

_‘That fool is going to end up killing himself.’_ he mentally concluded.

He turned back and continued his walk.

****

** Squad 7 Barracks, Seireitei, 2 days later **

Timothy’s training and education were coming at decent pace. His schedule over the past couple of days were basically the same.

He would wake up early in the morning and walk down to the training grounds to start his day with some laps and general exercises. Nothing excessive, just enough to get his body going.

Afterwards, he would return to the barracks to have some breakfast before 5th seat Hetoku came to find him and they would return to their studies.

The method of incorporating learning with fighting practice and exercising had proven to be quite effective.

Timothy would occasionally ask some of the fellow members some questions regarding the squad rules or about any of the laws that he didn’t quite understand.

Now he had gone through the entire book of squad rules and was about halfway through the book of laws. By now he had to admit that they left very little out for question.

His fighting skills have improved, but it still left much to be desired. Hetoku would constantly give him pointers during their spars and Timothy took them to heart.

He was very grateful towards the officer and expressed it every day. He even had another fight with Tetsuzaemon the day before, with him again beating Timothy down and forcing him past his limits.

But today Hetoku had a couple tasks to complete that would take him the entire day, so he told Timothy to rest up and study in the barracks.

But unfortunately, Timothy became bored very quickly. He had quickly gotten used to studying and training that sitting in the barracks reading caused him to get very antsy.

He then recalled back to what Hetoku had told him on his first day about meditating to communicate with his zanpakutō. So, he thought it would be a good idea to give it a try. The problem was…he had no idea how to do that. He decided to find someone and ask for help with the matter.

He was currently in the library reading the book on the laws, so he looked up to see if anyone was around. It turned out that the room was empty, besides him. So, he closed the book and walked back to his room to put it away.

As he came to the top of the stairs, he saw another member that looked familiar. He then realized that it was the woman from his first day, but he couldn’t remember her name.

Feeling a little embarrassed, he waved at her and stopped her.

“Excuse me, I’m sorry but I can’t remember your name, miss…” he started.

The woman smiled and waved him off.

“It’s fine. My name’s Hinata. It’s Timothy, right?” she asked back.

Timothy nodded and returned the smile. “Yeah, that’s right. Listen, I was hoping you could help me with something.” She smiled again and nodded.

“Of course. What is it you need?” she replied.

Timothy rubbed the back of his neck. “Well, I was hoping you could teach me how to meditate so I could try to communicate with my zanpakutō.”

Her smile slightly disappeared in confusion. “You don’t know how? Didn’t they teach you in the academy?” she asked.

Timothy shook his head. “Well…the thing is…I didn’t go to your academy.”

She rose a brow. “You didn’t?” She was now puzzled.

“No, I was inducted straight in from South Rukongai. The Captain gave me a test through combat.” Timothy corrected.

“Oh, so that’s what the fight was about. To be honest, I thought…” She stopped her statement.

Timothy looked at her, interested in the rest. “Go on…”

“Well…I thought that you had challenged the Captain. Or, that’s what I heard anyway.” she finished.

Timothy chuckled. “No, I’m not that dumb to challenge a guy as big as him. I’m surprised it ended how it did. I’ll admit, I got really lucky. The truth is, Tetsu…I mean the Lieutenant has been beating the crap outta me every time we spar.”

She then giggled. “I imagine. Anyway, I’d be glad to help you. Where did you want to go?”

Timothy thought about it, but came up with nothing. “Anywhere is good I’d imagine, so let me put this in my room and I’ll meet you somewhere.” Timothy suggested.

She then held out her hand to the side. “Why don’t we just go to your room? It’s as good a place as any.” she offered.

Timothy thought it over, then nodded. “Alright.” he agreed.

The two of them began walking down the hallway towards Timothy’s room. Once there, he slid the door open and let her enter first. He then walked in, but left the door open.

“I see you have yet to decorate.” she commented.

“What’s there to decorate? Besides, I’m really only ever in here to sleep and that’s about it.” he remarked.

She shrugged her shoulder. “Well, I guess for your case that’s true. So, shall we begin?” she asked.

Timothy nodded and set the book on his dresser while she sat down on one of the pillow seats. Timothy pulled out both of his swords from his sash and sat down opposing her.

“You have two zanpakutōs?” she asked, surprised.

“Uh…long story.” Timothy stated, and she nodded.

“Alright. Now, take your zanpakutō and rest it on your lap. It’s not necessary, but it does you to communicate better, especially since you are a beginner.” she instructed.

Timothy turned to her. “How is it that I’m somehow offended by that title?” he lightly joked, getting a chuckle from her.

“Sorry.” she replied, and he waved her off.

He did as she instructed and sat with his legs crossed and his zanpakutō resting on his lap.

“Now, take a deep breath.” she started.

Timothy did so.

“Now clear your mind as you let it out.”

He slowly let the breath out and tried to clear his thoughts. He then suddenly felt a little lighter all over.

“And again.” she instructed, and he did so.

“Now, try to reach out with your mind. Try to reach and call upon the spirit of your zanpakutō.” she followed.

Timothy did as instructed. He tried to reach into the darkness and call upon his zanpakutō’s spirit.

But he found nothing.

He took another deep breath, and slowly let it out to try again.

But again, he got nothing.

“I don’t feel that it’s working, Hinata.” he stated in a low voice.

“It may take a while on the first try. It took me a while before mine responded to me. It just takes patience.” she guided.

Timothy nodded, then tried again, trying not to become agitated. Patience was never a strong suit of his, but he figured that this was not something that you could rush.

He took his time, and every few moments, he would take another deep breath.

After a short while, he heard her stand up. “Just keep practicing and reaching out. Your zanpakutō will respond when it is ready to speak to you. I must leave you now.”

She finished in a bow, that he returned from his position.

“Thank you for your help, Hinata.” he stated, and she smiled.

“Of course. Don’t be afraid to ask if you have anything else. See you later, Timothy.” she returned.

She walked over to the doorway, turned and waved before sliding the door shut.

Meanwhile, Timothy took another breath and returned to calling to his zanpakutō.

Minutes passed, then hours. Finally, after a long time his stomach began to growl. Timothy opened his eyes and sighed.

“I guess it must be time for lunch.” he stated.

He slowly stood up and tucked both swords back into his sash before walking out of the room.

A while later, he found himself in the squad common area, along with many other members who were sitting down eating and talking.

He walked up to a cart and grabbed one of the box lunches and turned around to see Hinata sitting down with the two men from the other day.

She happened to look up and notice him, so she waved and gestured for him to join them. He decided it wouldn’t hurt, so he walked over to them and sat down.

“Hi Timothy.” she greeted.

“Hello.” he returned, then turned to the two men. “I hope you’ll forgive me, but I’ve forgotten your names.” he admitted.

The taller one smiled. “It’s fine, it took me a while to learn everyone’s name too. I’m Issei.” He started.

“And I’m Kenta. Timothy, right?” the other man asked, and Timothy nodded.

“Yeah, that’s me. So, you mind if I join you?” Timothy asked.

“Not at all.” Kenta answered.

Timothy nodded, then began opening his lunch.

“So, Timothy, how’s your meditation going? Did your zanpakutō answer you?” Hinata asked.

Issei and Kenta both turned to her. “He hasn’t spoken with his zanpakutō yet?” Issei asked.

Hinata turned to him. “Bit of a story, I’ll explain later, Issei.” she offered.

The man nodded, then turned to Timothy.

“No…no answer.” Timothy answered.

Hinata gave a surprised look. “Your zanpakutō must be a stubborn one.” she remarked.

“Like someone else I know.” Timothy mumbled under his breath towards a particular sword of his.

**_“I am not stubborn!”_ **the sword yelled.

_“Oh, yes you are! And this conversation is over!”_ Timothy retorted.

“Well, just give it time, it’ll come around.” Kenta offered.

“How long does it normally take?” Timothy asked the group.

“Hard to say, really. It’s all about trust, there are some people who have graduated from the academy and still haven’t spoken with their zanpakutō. But from what Hinata tells me, you didn’t go to the academy, so it could possibly be a few years before he or she answers.” Issei answered.

“That long? Well, looks like I’ve got my work cut out for me then. But I’ve got to get back to reading.” Timothy flatly stated.

“Oh yeah, your reading up on the laws, aren’t you?” Hinata asked with a curious stare.

“Yeah, it’s a lot to take in. I’m about halfway through it.” Timothy replied, taking a bite.

“Halfway already? That’s a good amount for starting a few days ago.” Kenta commented.

“Thanks.” Timothy replied and took another bite.

“So how do you like the squad so far Timothy?” Issei asked.

Timothy held up a hand. “First, just call me Tim. As weird as it sounds, it’s does get tiring hearing the entire name over and over. And second, I guess it’s ok. Haven’t really been here long enough to say for sure.” He then continued eating.

“I guess that’s true. Anyway, us and a few other members are gonna go out tonight and catch a few drinks. Care to join?” Kenta offered.

Timothy slowly turned to him with a glare.

“Boy…you’re picking the wrong person to drink with; just a little fore-warning.” Timothy taunted.

Issei started laughing. “I don’t know Tim, Kenta can hold his liquor pretty well. But not as well as Hinata.” he stated, returning the taunt.

Timothy turned to her. “I will let a hollow eat me before I let a woman outdrink me.” Timothy retorted.

She simply rose a brow. “Oh really? Care to test that?” she challenged.

Timothy thought about it for a minute.

**_“Oh…this I gotta see.”_** his sword butted in.

_And what is that supposed to mean? Aren’t you supposed to root ‘for’ me?”_ he asked.

His sword started laughing. **_“Nothing would make me happier than to see a woman outdrink you.”_**

Timothy turned to his sword. “Shut up!” he whispered, but a little too loud.

“Who are you talking to?” Kenta asked.

Timothy facepalmed and moaned. “I have got to stop falling for that.” he stated. He then turned to the group. “I was talking to my swo…other zanpakutō.” he admitted.

“You talk to your sword openly?” Hinata asked.

“Why, don’t you?” Timothy asked back.

She shook her head. “No, it takes a whole lot of skill and trust to be able to communicate freely like that. So, tell me, what did you zanpakutō say?” she asked.

“I want to kill her for it, but she’s rooting for you.” Timothy admitted in a depressed manner.

Hinata then laughed. “I like her then. What’s your zanpakutō’s name, if I may ask?”

Timothy thought it over of whether or not to tell her, but saw no harm in it.

“Moeru Kitsune. It means ‘Blazing Fox’. And if she doesn’t keep her mouth shut, her name won’t be the only thing that’s blazing.” Timothy stated in a nonchalant tone.

The whole group then started laughing, much to Timothy’s dismay.

“I’m starting to hate you all.” Timothy moaned.

Kenta put his hand on Timothy’s shoulder.

“Calm down man, we don’t mean anything by it, it’s was just funny is all.” he stated.

Timothy turned to him. “Ha ha ha.” he returned in a sarcastic voice.

They continued to laugh, but after a while calmed down.

“So, you coming tonight?” Issei asked.

Timothy started rubbing his temples. “Sure…why not.” he answered.

They all smiled and nodded.

“Good. We’re drinking at one the other member’s room, so we’ll come get you.” Kenta offered.

“Sounds good I guess. Well, I’m gonna head back up and get back to my reading. I guess I’ll see you later.”

Timothy stood up and nodded to the group as they waved. He put the box in a small bin and began walking back to his room.

Once he returned, he grabbed the book off his bed and sat down at the table to begin reading.

However, like earlier that morning, he started to get restless and he found it hard to concentrate. After close to twenty minutes of reading, he lost his patience and closed the book.

“God, I can’t think straight…” Timothy mumbled.

He sat there with his head to the ceiling, and began thinking about his time back in Fallen Tree. His thoughts went back to Albert and he sighed.

Although in the past he wouldn’t have admitted it, he was actually missing his friend. He was probably worried about him.

Timothy sighed again and got himself into position to try meditating again. He placed his zanpakutō on his lap and began taking deep breaths.

He took one more breath, then began to clear his mind, reaching out to his zanpakutō’s spirit.

He sat there, motionless, every few moments taking a deep breath to clear his head again. But time after time his zanpakutō refused to answer.

Hours had passed, but he still had no success in calling out to his zanpakutō.

He was suddenly brought back to his senses with a light knock on his door. He let out a breath and set his zanpakutō to the side.

“Come in.” he announced.

The door slid open and Hinata and Kenta both walked in. They both waved and he returned the gesture.

“Hey Tim, you ready?” Kenta asked.

Timothy raised a brow confused.

“It’s that late already?” he asked surprised.

“Yeah, Issei’s over there now. You’re still coming, right?” Hinata returned, her smile never wavering.

“Yeah, I guess so.” Timothy slightly moaned.

He stood up and moved the book from the table to the dresser. He then walked over to them and they looked at him with skeptical faces.

“You don’t need to bring your zanpakutō, Tim. We’re only going down the hall a ways.” Kenta advised.

Timothy was about to protest, but he instead thought about it. In the event that he got a little too drunk, he could accidentally do something and ruin everything.

“Yeah, I guess you’ve got a point.” he stated.

He pulled both of his swords from his sash and set them both on his bed.

**_“Behave.”_** his sword teased.

Timothy rolled his eyes slightly. _“I should say the same to you.”_

He turned and walked over to the others.

“Well, I guess I’m ready now.” Timothy stated.

The two members both nodded and the three of them let the room, Timothy closing his door behind him.

“So how many are going to be there?” Timothy asked.

“Including you, seven. But two of them won’t be drinking because they have duties tomorrow.” Hinata answered.

Timothy nodded and continued to follow the pair as they walked down the hallway. After a few minutes, the group stopped in front of a door and Kenta knocked.

“It’s open.” they heard a voice holler from inside.

Kenta slid the door open and the three walked inside.

Timothy first noticed Issei sitting at the table with a saucer in his hand. He then turned to see two more females and a man just slightly shorter than him. They looked towards him and waved, that he returned. Hinata set a hand on his shoulder and pointed out the three members he didn’t know.

“This is Yuka, Narumi, and the midget is Junya.” she stated, getting a mean look from Junya.

“I’m not a midget, I’m just height deprived.” he corrected.

“Meaning: midget.” Kenta retorted and the group, even Timothy, laughed while the man in question moaned.

“You guy are worse than hollows.” he remarked, causing the group to laugh more.

“Alright, enough. Time to enjoy ourselves.” Issei stated while holding up his saucer, cheeks a little red.

Timothy began to walk forward, but was stopped by Hinata’s hand, still on his shoulder. She then leaned in to his ear.

“Watch out for Narumi, she’s a bit of a…pervert when she’s drunk.” she warned.

Timothy turned to her and gave her a look of disbelief.

“What do you mean?” he whispered back.

“Let’s hope you don’t find out.” she warned further.

Timothy mentally face palmed, then slightly moaned.

“What have I gotten myself into?” he whispered.

The three of them joined the fun as Kenta handed Timothy a saucer and poured him a drink. He sloshed it around the sides for a second, then took a sip.

The alcoholic beverage bit his tongue and his face scrunched up in disgust. The rest of the group started laughing at the funny face he made.

“Bleh, this stuff has got a mean bite to it.” Timothy stated.

“I’m sure it’s better that the stuff that you’ve had before, right?” Yuka asked.

“It is, but I’m not much of a sake person. Whiskey is more to my taste.” Timothy stated then took another sip.

“I can fix that. Be right back.” Junya stated, then left the room.

Narumi walked up and patted Timothy on the back. “Don’t just stand there like you’re lost, come sit down.” she offered with smile that looked more like an evil grin.

She led him over to the table and sat him down next to Issei, then she took a seat opposite of him. He finished his saucer, and was about to refill when Junya walked back in.

“I’m back.” he stated and held up a bottle.

Timothy’s eye widened a bit as he saw it was a bottle of Glen Garioch English whiskey.

“Where did you get that?” Timothy asked as Junya walked up and set the bottle on the table.

“The world of the living. I try to bring something back every time I go. I got this about three years ago. I’ve tried it, but can’t stand it myself.” he answered.

“Too bad we don’t have shot glasses, but I guess the saucers will work.” Timothy remarked.

He unscrewed the lid and took a whiff from the bottle. The aroma almost sent him to heaven, as it had been years since he had a drink of his favorite type of liquor.

He tilted the bottle and poured a little into his saucer. He set the bottle down, leaving the lid off and drank the entire saucer in one gulp. He tilted his head back and sighed in relaxation as the liquid hit his throat.

“How can you drink that stuff?” Hinata asked.

She had tried it before, but spit it back out from the horrid taste. Timothy turned to her.

“Don’t get mad at me cause you lack taste.” he taunted.

Issei then started laughing as she walked up and slapped the back of his head. Timothy didn’t respond, he simply poured another drink and swung it back.

“Alright, how about we start the fun?” Yuka asked and the rest nodded.

She turned to the dresser and grabbed a tray with seven saucers face down on it.

“What’s this?” Timothy asked.

“It’s a game we play sometimes. It’s ‘Kiku No Hana.’” Narumi answered.

“How do you play?” Timothy returned.

“Simple. Five cups, one for each player, they are all turned face down. The person who starts puts a coin under one of the cups, then passes the tray to the person on the left.” she started and Timothy nodded to continue.

“That person then picks up on of the cups and turns it over. If the person didn’t pick the cup with the coin, he passes the tray to the next person. It goes on until someone picks up the cup with the coin.” Timothy nodded.

“If you pick up the cup with the coin, you lose. Any cups that have already been turned over, including the one with the coin, are filled up and the loser drinks all of them.” Timothy rose a brow.

“So, the objective to ‘not’ find the coin?” he asked.

Kenta nodded. “And if the tray makes it all the way around the table and back to the staring person, that person has to drink all of the cups.”

Timothy gave a disbelieving look. “Sounds like a fast way to get hammered.” he observed.

Hinata leaned down to his ear again. “That’s why we don’t like to let Narumi play.” she warned.

Timothy turned to her. “Do I have to worry about a…guest in my bed?” he teased.

She then blushed, but nodded shortly afterwards. He went wide eyed when a thought came to his head.

“…Don’t tell me…?” he started.

She quickly turned to him. “No! But it has led to…embarrassing moments though.” She whispered back.

“Hey, what are you two love birds talking about?” Narumi asked.

Timothy and Hinata turned to her. “Don’t start Narumi.” Hinata plainly stated.

“Alright, whatever. Let’s get this show going.” Narumi stated.

For the next few hours, they continued to play their game, one after one the players falling out. Eventually, only Timothy, Hinata, and Kenta remained.

Iseei was currently passed out and laying on his back at the table Narumi sat next to Timothy, her body waving back and forth in dizziness. Junya and Yuka stood by the back wall talking as they were the two who were not drinking.

Timothy was starting the next round and hid the coin under the right cup. He passed the tray to Kenta, who sat there for a moment.

It took him a while, half because he was drunk and was trying to sit straight, and half because he really didn’t want to lose again.

He picked up the middle cup and relaxed at seeing he passed. He then pushed the tray to Hinata.

Timothy looked at her, and saw that she was a bit wobbly, but holding her ground. She set her hand on the right cub an grabbed it, but didn’t lift it.

She glanced at him for a second, then smiled. “Nice try.” she stated, then moved her hand over to the left cup and lifted, no coin.

She passed the tray to Timothy, who filled the two turned ones, then flipped over the last one. But he stopped when he saw no coin.

“What the…” he started and Hinata looked at him with anger.

“Are you trying to cheat or something?” she asked.

“No, I put it right here, I swear.” he pleaded.

Then both of them turned to Kenta and saw that he had it and was trying, and failing, at rolling the coin along his fingers.

He suddenly dropped the coin and looked down at it.

“Oops.” he stated, then suddenly fell onto his back, out cold.

Timothy and Hinata turned to each other and shrugged their shoulders.

“Game over.” they stated in unison.

They both chuckled, but Timothy quickly stopped when Narumi fell over and her head landed on his shoulder, snoring.

Timothy looked at her with a rose brow, then turned back to Hinata.

“Awww.” she cooed and he glared at her.

“Don’t even think about such a thing Hinata.” he growled and she giggled.

“I think it’s time to call it a night.” she stated and Timothy nodded.

“Yeah, let’s get this cleaned up first.”

He slowly moved Narumi’s head and set her down on the seat he was in. He then got up and the group, or at least the ones that were awake, started cleaning up and set the saucers and bottles on the dresser while Hinata wiped off the table.

“Thank god a beer keg wasn’t involved.” Timothy stated.

“Beer keg?” Hinata asked.

“Yeah, it’s a large, metal cylinder that contains beer. Normally it’s used in bars and restaurants, but you can get them to have large parties at your place. A single keg can support about twenty to thirty people…depending on how crazy things get.” he answered.

She rose a brow. “In that case, I’ll have to agree with you.”

She finished cleaning the table and set all the saucers and bottles were on the dresser.

“You guys are good. I’ll get rid of these tomorrow.” Junya stated.

Timothy nodded and turned to the three sleeping beauties.

“Now the final problem, getting these fools to their rooms.” Timothy stated.

“Just leave Kenta and Issei there, they can stay the night. Just get Narumi back to her room.” Junya answered back.

“Ok. Timothy, can you give me a hand?” Hinata asked and he nodded.

“Sure.” he answered.

They both walked over to the hammered woman. Timothy grabbed her right arm while Hinata grabbed her left.

“Alright, one, two, three.” he counted, then they both pulled Narumi up and held her arms around their necks.

“Alright, see ya guys later.” Hinata stated, and the two sober ones waved. “We’re taking a left here, Tim.” Hinata stated as they walked to the door and he nodded.

They left the room and slowly walked down the halls, somewhat dragging the poor, waisted woman back towards her room.

“I’m a little surprise that she behaved herself tonight.” Hinata stated.

Timothy turned to her. “Why do you say that?”

She turned to him and smiled. “Knowing her, she normally would have started flirting with you.” she answered in a giggle.

His eyes slightly widened. “Why me?”

She turned back and giggled more. “Cause she thinks you’re handsome.” she flatly replied.

“Huh?” he deadpanned.

She turned back to him. “She whispered it to me earlier while you were busy drinking all those cups after you lost a game.” she finished.

And that’s when it had dawned on him and he started thinking back.

_‘Wait a minute…she only had a few drinks before playing…and I don’t recall her ever losing a game…so that means that either she’s a lightweight, or…’_

His eyes widened as he came to realize what was going on.

He suddenly stopped and turned to Hinata. “I’ve got her, you rest your shoulder a minute.” he stated with a smile.

She smiled back and let the woman’s arm slip off her shoulder with Timothy bearing all her weight.

“Ok, game’s up.” he stated, getting a raised brow from Hinata.

He then let Narumi’s arm slip off his shoulder and she fell to the ground. Hinata stared at him shocked as he turned to the woman on the ground.

“Alright, you can stop faking Narumi. I know you’re not drunk. You’re doing this just so you could have me carry you.” Timothy stated and crossed his arms.

Hinata turned to her as she slowly sat up and smiled.

“Darn, and I was so close too.” she finished in her ‘evil grin’ smile.

“Narumi, are you serious?” Hinata asked and she nodded. Hinata then face palmed and turned to the hallway. “I’m going to bed, how about we leave her here?” she asked, and Timothy nodded.

“Agreed.” he replied.

“Aw, you’re no fun.” she whined.

But it was too late as Timothy and Hinata had already started walking.

“I guess you weren’t exaggerating, she really is a flirt.” Timothy stated.

Hinata chuckled. “She is, but she’s a good person. You just have to ignore her sometimes.”

“From early estimates, that looks to be impossible.” he returned.

She giggled and shook her head. “Maybe.”

They continued walking until they got to Timothy’s room.

“Well, here’s my stop. Thanks for the invite.” Timothy stated with a smile.

She smiled back and nodded. “Of course, we should do it again sometime.”

He nodded, then frowned. “But next time, can we leave Narumi out? Or at least tie her up?”

She laughed and shook her head. “I think tying her up would only make it worse.” she stated.

Timothy thought on her remark for a second. “On second thought…let’s just not invite her.”

She laughed again, then held her hand out. He took her hand and shook it.

“See you around Tim. Good night.” she finished.

Timothy nodded. “Yup. Night.”

They both waved, and Timothy entered his room. He walked over and sat on his bed, his head slightly spinning.

**_“Have fun?”_** his sword asked.

_“I guess, except for the fact that I now have a pervert as a stalker.”_ he answered in a moan.

**_“…care to explain?”_** his sword returned in a slightly annoyed tone.

He glanced over to it. _“Why?”_

**_“Oh nothing…except I don’t like the idea of women hanging all over you.”_** it answered.

Timothy rose a brow. _“Jealous much?”_ he retorted, getting a growl.

**_“I’m not jealous. I’m just...”_ **it started.

Timothy rose a brow and grinned. “Jealous?” he finished and the sword growled more.

**_“I’m not going to argue with you! Good night!”_** it yelled, then went quiet.

Timothy chuckled. _‘If that’s all it took to shut her up, I’ll have to try it more often.’_

Timothy let out a yawn and got up to strip down to his under garments. But he stopped when he heard a slight noise.

_‘Was that…’_ he started in thought, then turned to his door to see it only very slightly ajar. _‘It was.’_

He pretended not to notice, then casually walked over to his bed, just out of sight. He then snuck against the wall and stopped next to the door to hear a slight ruffling noise and see the door be pushed open just a hair more.

_‘Why that little…’_

He stepped over to the door and rammed it open, to find the person he figured on her hands and knees .

“Can I help you, Narumi?” he asked through his teeth.

She sat up and rubbed to back of her head, smiling sheepishly.

“I uh…I dropped something is all.” she offered in a pathetic excuse, rubbing the back of her head in embarrassment.

“Yeah, try your brains.” he retorted then slammed the door in her face.

He let out a sigh and rubbed his temples. _‘Great…I really do have a stalker.’_ he mentally whined.

He walked back over to his bed and laid down, still in his shihakusho. He put his hands behind his head and closed his eyes.

**_“And who was that Tim? Your ‘stalker’?”_** his sword asked, keeping the same annoyed tone from before.

_“You heard the whole thing yourself, so don’t start. I’m gonna have a little chat with Hinata about it tomorrow. Maybe she can fix her friend’s stupidity.”_ Timothy moaned back.

**_“Why? She sounds like a nice woman...so why don’t you go stay with her instead?”_** the sword hissed.

_“I’m not listening to this, good night.”_ Timothy growled then turned to his side.

**_“Yeah, night.”_** the sword hissed back.

Timothy inwardly sighed and turned back around towards the dresser. He was indeed going to have to talk with Hinata, because Narumi just seems like one of those people talk have a hard time taking hints.

He took a deep breath, then slowly closed his eyes as sleep took him.

** The next morning **

Timothy was woken up by a knock on his door. He rolled over and yawned.

“Who is it?” he mumbled back.

“5th seat Hetoku. May I come in?” the man answered.

“One second.” Timothy moaned back and slowly sat up in his bed.

He began rubbing his eyes and looked to see he was still in his uniform.

_‘Oh, right.’_ he thought as he recalled the night’s events. He then remembered he needed to speak with Hinata about the…incident last night.

“Come in.” Timothy instructed his visitor.

The door slid open and Hetoku walked in, closing the door behind him.

“Good morning, Tim. Sleep well?” he asked.

Timothy let out another yawn then nodded. “I guess so. Why?”

Hetoku shrugged. “Well, normally you meet me downstairs in the common area. I waited there for a little bit, but you didn’t show up. Everything alright?” he asked with concern.

Timothy facepalmed and sighed. “Sorry about that, I had some drinks with some other members and I guess I overslept.”

Timothy started scratching his head in embarrassment, but Hetoku waved him off.

“It’s fine, we’re not late. In fact, we still have some time. You have fun?” he asked.

Timothy again thought about his encounter, then thought about his answer.

“Eh…for the most part. Found someone that can ‘maybe’ keep up with me in terms of drinking.” Timothy remarked.

“Really? Well I’m glad you’re getting to know your fellow squad members. Just don’t do anything stupid, alright.” he offered.

“I’m not the one you should be telling that to.” Timothy mumbled under his breath, then sighed. “Yes sir. I’ll be along in just a moment.” he replied in a normal voice.

Hetoku nodded, then turned to leave the room. Slid the door open, then stopped.

“By the way, we’ll be taking a break from the books. Today I’ll teach you shunpo, but I’ll still be asking you questions from the books.” Hetoku stated, then left the room, closing the door behind him.

Timothy yawned again, then stood up to get changed. Once he finished, he tucked his swords into his sash and left the room to find Hetoku waiting by the window.

“I’m ready.” Timothy stated.

The man nodded and gestured for Timothy to lead the way. They walked down the hallway and passed by the common area.

Timothy happened to turn and notice Hinata sitting alone at a table eating and reading a book. He turned back to Hetoku.

“Excuse me sir, but do you mind if I speak with someone for a moment?” Timothy asked.

Hetoku nodded. “Not at all. Meet me on the grounds when you are finished.”

Timothy nodded, and the men parted. He then walked over to the table Hinata sat at.

“Morning Hinata.” he greeted.

She looked up to him and smiled. “Morning Tim. How’s your head?” she asked in a cheerful manner.

“Fine, not as wobbly as last night. You?” he returned.

“I’m fine. I didn’t drink all that much, so I’m not that bothered.” she insisted.

Timothy nodded, then sat down next to her. “We need to talk.” he stated in a serious tone.

She rose a brow, but closed her book and turned to him. “Ok, go ahead.”

Timothy looked around to see if anyone was close enough to overhear, but saw no one.

“It’s about your friend, Narumi.” he stated she tilted her head.

Her face then dropped. “What did she do?” she asked in a moan.

Timothy looked around again, then turned back to her.

“She was kind enough to pay me a…visit.” he fought to find the right word.

Hinata crossed her arms.

“What ‘kind’ of visit?” she asked in an annoyed tone.

“She decided to stop by and peek through my door while I was getting ready to go to bed.” Timothy stated and slightly blushed, ashamed to have to tell her.

She then growled and rubbed her temples. “I am going to kill her.” she mumbled. She then lowered her hands and slightly bowed. “I am so sorry about that. I will talk to her.”

Timothy waved her off. “It’s not your fault, it’s miss brainless’s fault. I just thought that I should warn you about her actions.” he cleared.

She lifted her head and nodded. “Thank you. I’ll speak with her. Please let me know if she does it again.” she insisted.

Timothy nodded then stood up. “Well, I’ve got to get to my training. Have a good one, Hinata.”

She nodded and waved. “You too Tim.”

He waved back and walked away. He took a glance back to see her with her head buried in her arms.

_‘Now I’m starting to feel like the bad guy.’_ he thought as he turned back and continued his walk towards the training grounds.

** 67th District, South Rukongai, Fallen Tree, Present **

It was a calm and peaceful morning for the residents of Fallen Tree. Their lives had certainly improved ever since 7th squad had taken over.

Crime was still an occasional problem, but nowhere near where it was. The residents were happy that they were finally getting help from the soul reapers.

Albert stepped out of his shack and stretched his limbs for a moment before yawning and looking around. He was amazed with the improvement over the past few days. But he still felt uneasy for his friend, Timothy.

The officer, Hetoku, had told him that he was taken to see the squad’s Captain. But that was now four days ago and he was starting to worry.

He closed his eyes and began thinking about the past years with him. Although Timothy likely would say the same, he considered him as his best friend.

He was brought out of his thoughts when he heard footsteps approaching. He turned to see a somewhat tall man walking by. He froze when he saw the squad number on the back of the man’s white Captain’s coat. The number 11.

The man looked around for a moment, then turned to see Albert staring at him.

“Hey, you!” he addressed in an annoyed tone.

Albert pointed a finger at himself. “Me, sir?” he asked.

“Yeah, you. Come here.” the man ordered.

Albert slowly walked up to him and bowed.

“H…how can I help you…Captain?” he asked.

“What district is this?” he asked in a demanding tone.

“D…district 67, sir. Fallen Tree.” Albert meekly answered.

The man then grinned, causing Albert to fret.

“Excellent. I’m looking for someone…someone who got into a fight with some of my guys and won.” he stated. Albert thought back, then froze when it hit him. The man caught it. “Oh, so you do know who I’m talking about. That’s good. Perhaps you could tell me where I can find him.” he asked, but more in the lines of a demand.

Albert thought hard about what to tell him. I was obvious that the Captain was here to punish Timothy for fighting the his men.

“I…I don’t know…who you’re talking about…sir.” Albert lied, trying to protect his friend.

“Don’t give me that crap. I know that you know who I’m talking about. Timothy Durn. Now, where is he?” Zaraki somewhat yelled.

There was nothing Albert could do, but he couldn’t sell out his friend. He started to think of anything he could say to the Captain.

“Captain Zaraki!”

Both men turned to see a soul reaper from the 7th squad run up and bow.

“What do you want? Can’t you see I’m busy here?” Zaraki flatly asked.

“Forgive me Captain, but may I ask why you are here? This is Squad 7’s sector.” The soul reaper asked back.

“Tsk…I’m looking for someone. The guy who fought my guys and won.” he answered.

“He was taken to our Captain for questioning, Captain. He is still there.” The man responded.

Albert froze as he realized that the man most likely just signed Timothy’s death warrant.

Zaraki grinned even more. “Is that right? Thank you for your assistance.” he stated.

Zaraki then turned and began walking down the street while Albert dropped to his knees.

Zaraki continued walking down the road as his pink haired Lieutenant hopped up and sat on his shoulder.

“So, you found him?” she asked happily.

“Yeah. The problem now is that he’s with that wolf faced bastard. I’ll have to find a way to get to him without having to deal with Komamura.” he observed.

Yachiru smiled even more. “Does that mean we get to see Bow-Wow?” she asked.

“No, I’d prefer not to deal with him directly. That would only make it harder to find this guy. He’s more than likely protecting him.” Zaraki stated, then turned to her. “We would have found the guy faster if you hadn’t gotten us lost.” he pointed out, and she turned to him as well.

“You’re the one who can’t follow directions, Kenny.” she retorted.

He turned back to the front and growled. “I did follow your directions, Yachiru!” he corrected.

“And we found it.” she returned, and he turned back to her.

“Four days later!” he yelled back.

“Well you kept making wrong turns.” she retorted.

“I did not!” he yelled again, then turned back. “Whatever. Now that I know where this guy is, I can find a way to fight him.” he stated with a grin.

“Yay!” she yelled as the pair continued their walk back to the Seireitei.


	5. Loss and Pain

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 5

**(Loss and Pain)**

** Squad 7 Training Grounds, Seireitei, Present. **

Timothy and Hetoku continued their walk to the training grounds, but they were soon stopped halfway by Tetsuzaemon calling to them. They both turned to see the Lieutenant walking to them, then they bowed once he was a few feet away.

“Good morning Lieutenant.” Hetoku greeted as he and Timothy both rose.

“Morning Hetoku, Durn.” he replied and stopped.

“How can we help you this morning, sir?” Hetoku asked while Tetsuzaemon looked at Timothy for a moment.

Then Lieutenant turned back to him. “The Captain is sending you on another assignment, starting tomorrow. Plan to be gone for about a week.” Tetsuzaemon instructed as he turned back to Timothy.

“As for you, you’ve had enough one-on-one tutoring. It’s time that you started training on your own.” he added.

Timothy nodded, and the man turned back to Hetoku. “You can go ahead and train him as planned for today, but be sure to set some time aside to get your paperwork straight.” he stated, getting a nod in return. “Also, you’ll need some assistance on the assignment, so pick out a few members to go with you. It should be cake walk, so I recommend taking those with little experience in things like this.” the man recommended, Hetoku again nodding.

“I’ll finish the training early this afternoon and get started Lieutenant. Will that be all, sir?” Hetoku asked and Tetsuzaemon shook his head.

“Yeah, that’ll cover it. What are you teaching the fool today?” he asked, followed by a glare from Timothy.

“Shunpo. I believe he’s ready for the basics.” Hetoku stated with a smile.

Tetsuzaemon looked at Timothy. “Just make sure he doesn’t kill himself by running into a tree.” he finished in a taunted.

“Of course, sir.” Hetoku answered.

“Carry on.” The Lieutenant ordered. He gave Timothy one last look, then turned and began walking away.

Timothy turned to the officer with a raised brow. “What did he mean by that?” asked Timothy, causing the officer to turn to him.

“I’ll explain in a bit. Let’s get down to the field.” Hetoku answered, getting a nod back.

A few minutes later, both men were now by the set of trees where they normally study. They both stopped and faced each other.

“Ok, the first thing you should know about Shunpo, or ‘flash step’, is that it is ‘not’ teleporting.” Hetoku began, then raised a finger. “Instead, it is a simple move that is enormously fast; too fast for the eye to catch. It basically breaks down to simple body science. If an object moves too fast for the eye to register, it basically does not ‘see’ it. Observe.” he finished, then flash stepped to Timothy’s far right side.

Timothy quickly turned to him, then a second later the man flash stepped right in front of him, causing Timothy to jump back a few inches.

“See?” Hetoku asked as he held his hands out to his sides.

“So, you’re saying that you’re not ‘teleporting’, but you are moving too fast for me to see, right?” Timothy asked, getting a nod from the officer.

“Correct. When you use shunpo, you are just simply moving like normal, but you are using your spirit energy to ‘propel’ you, causing your movements to become several times faster.” he added further, then held his finger up again.

“However, it does have its drawbacks.” he started as he dropped his finger. “Shunpo will quickly tire you out if you use it too much. Remember, nothing in regards to your actual movements are changed, you are simply using spirit energy to move ‘faster’.” Hetoku warned, getting a puzzled look.

“I’m a little confused.” Timothy admitted, where Hetoku nodded.

“Alright, you see that tree?” he asked as he pointed to a distant tree.

Timothy turned to it and nodded. “Alright. Let’s say you run to that tree and back ten times. What would happen if you did that?”

“I’d get tired.” Timothy answered, Hetoku nodded.

“Correct. Now, if you were to do the same thing, but do so using shunpo, your body wouldn’t be as tired, but your spirit energy would be a little weaker. That’s because by putting your spirit energy behind the movements, you would take far less steps to complete the journey, at the expense of your spirit energy. Understand?” he asked, getting a nod.

“So, it’s basically a trade-off? Less step at the cost of spirit energy?” Timothy asked, getting a nod back as well.

“And faster. If you ran there and back ten times, it would probably take you about ten, maybe nine minutes. But if you used shunpo, it would be about nine or ten seconds.” Hetoku clarified.

Timothy looked to the tree and back a few times. “That’s fast.” he remarked, but Hetoku held his finger back up.

“And there’s more downsides as well.” He put down his finger. “Changing directions during shunpo is difficult to do as you are moving too fast. Even those who have mastered shunpo don’t make drastic changes to their direction of travel. Doing so could cause you to trip, and when you are going that fast, it won’t feel too good when you do.” Hetoku cautioned, getting a nod.

“So, no sudden turns, got it.” Timothy remarked.

“And finally, but most important, you must ‘always’” Hetoku emphasized with his finger pointed at Timothy.

“…’always’ be aware of your surroundings. Know where you are going, and what your path is going to be like. Are there buildings or obstacles in your way? If you move somewhere, does the area have enough room for you to move in? Things like that have to be taken into consideration when you use shunpo.” Hetoku warned in a serious tone.

“I’m guessing this goes back to the Lieutenant’s warning?” he guessed, and the officer nodded.

“God forbid you shunpo, and something is in your path. When you shunpo, only your ‘speed’ is increased, nothing else. Here’s an example; if I was to gently toss a small rock at you, what would happen?” Hetoku asked.

“It’d bounce of me?” Timothy responded, getting a nod from the officer.

“Now, if I was to throw that same rock with force, what would happen?” Hetoku again asked.

“I would guess that it would hurt.” Timothy retorted; another nod.

“Yes. Now, let’s say I throw that same rock again, but at the speed of a bullet, what would happen?” he asked, and Timothy’s eyes went wide. “I see you realized what I’m getting at. Again, shunpo only increases your speed, but your body is unaffected. So, if you shunpo, and run into a solid object, I’m sure you can imagine the result.” Hetoku finished, getting a headshake back.

“Ok, running into a wall…bad idea.” he flatly remarked, getting a serious nod back.

“Yes, bad idea. Now, with that out of the way, let’s get you started.” The officer stated, then pointed out to the open field.

“Your target location is the center of the field. There’s plenty of space for you in case you overshoot, which can happen on occasion if the user loses focus. Now, stand and face the area.” Hetoku instructed and Timothy complied. “Now, reach inside yourself and feel your spirit energy, just like I taught you the other day.”

Timothy closed his eyes and tried to feel inside himself, to feel his energy flowing through his body. After a moment, he started to feel it’s flow, then he nodded.

“Good. Now, get yourself ready to take a ‘single’ step forward.” He was sure to emphasize the ‘single’ part.

Timothy moved his right foot back a few inches and got ready to take a step.

“Now, take the flow of spirit energy, and channel just a little bit directly into your left leg, and only a little.”

He could now start to feel Timothy’s energy start to fluctuate a little, telling him that he was having a difficult time transferring the flow.

“Take it easy, Tim…take your time and don’t force it. Just redirect a little bit at a time to start out.” Hetoku instructed, then felt Timothy’s energy started to calm down. “Once you can feel the energy begin the focus into your leg, gently push it out of your leg at the same time you take that step. But wait till I tell you. Are you ready?” he asked, getting a little worried.

After a few moments, Timothy took a breath, then nodded.

“Ready.” he whispered, then Hetoku took a breath.

“Ok, take the step.” he hesitantly instructed.

Timothy stood motionless for a moment more, then took his step.

But only a couple of inches before he stumbled and fell. Hetoku let out the breath he was holding, then chuckled.

“Alright, you took the step, but you didn’t let the energy flow out, you let it sink back in. Stand back up and we’ll try again. It just takes practice to get the feel of it down, and like I said before, that’s half the battle.” Hetoku encouraged.

Timothy stood up and dusted himself off, then returned to his stance, ready to try again.

“Alright, try again and reach deep inside. Find the flow of energy, then channel some of the energy to your leg.”

Timothy nodded, then took another breath. After a moment, he began to feel the flow again, then started to send some of it to his leg. He could slightly feel the energy building, then nodded.

“Alright…go.” Hetoku instructed.

Timothy took a breath, then stepped. But again, he stumbled and fell.

But this time, it felt different. He felt like he had stumbled much faster than before.

“You almost had it. You forced a little bit out, but not quite enough to get the speed needed. Try it again, but this time, try to let more out, and less back in.” Hetoku again encouraged.

Timothy stood back up again and got right back into his stance. He again reached inside and started sending energy to his leg.

“Go.”

Timothy breathed again, then stepped.

This time, he launched about ten feet forward and tripped, falling down yet again.

“Very close, you had some speed to it, but nowhere near where it should have been.” Hetoku stated as he walked over to pick Timothy up.

He stood him up and set his hand on his shoulder.

“You’ve figured out how to release the energy, now you just have to learn to control it. It feels like you are putting enough energy into your leg, but you’re not controlling the release. You’re letting most of it go back into its natural flow.” he stated, getting a nod back.

“Try this, when you get the right amount of energy into your leg, try to imagine a wall, or gate that now has it locked in place, and it has nowhere to go but where you tell it.” Hetoku advised, getting another nod.

“Alright.” Timothy responded, then got back into his stance.

He reached inside and began pooling energy into his leg. Once he had what he wanted, he pictured the energy being trapped with nowhere to go.

“Go.” Hetoku instructed yet again.

Timothy took his breath, then a second later took the step.

Timothy quickly disappeared, then reappeared just a little farther than where he was supposed to be. But as he appeared, he suddenly tripped and hit the ground hard.

Hetoku quickly flash stepped over to him and knelt down next to him. Timothy got to his knees wiped blood from his nose.

“Ouch.” he stated in a sarcastic manner.

“I bet. That was good, but you didn’t plan for the sudden drop in speed, so you tripped over yourself. It’s common for the first time, even for me. I ended up breaking my arm while I tried to stop the fall.” Hetoku comforted.

Timothy chuckled and sat down. “Well, the ‘wall’ trick worked. Thanks.” Timothy stated, getting a smile back.

“Not a problem. Now let’s get your nose checked out, it looks like it’s broken. We’ve got a few members trained with medical kidō, so we don’t need to go to Squad 4.” the officer concluded.

“Squad 4?” Timothy asked.

“Yes, Squad 4 is the medical squad. They can fight if they need to, but their sole purpose is to provide emergency care on the field. But like I said, it’s not bad enough to bother them. Let’s head inside.” Hetoku answered, then began pull Timothy up to his feet.

As he did so, they both heard footsteps approaching. They both turned to see another member, who walked up and bowed.

“Excuse me 5th seat Watashu, sorry for the interruption, but the Captain sent me to find you. He would like you to join him in his office.” the man stated as he rose.

Hetoku then turned to Timothy. “Duty calls. Hopefully I will be back soon. You can continue reading or stay out here and train your skills. But do not perform shunpo unless myself, or another officer is here. Understood?” he instructed, getting a nod from Timothy.

“Understood.” he answered and Hetoku nodded back.

“Good. If you don’t see me again today, just remember what the Lieutenant told you. Train on your own, and don’t be stupid.” Hetoku continued.

“Alright. Have fun.” Timothy retorted, causing the officer to chuckle.

“You too.”

Both men bowed, then Hetoku flash stepped away. Meanwhile, Timothy stood there and debated on what he should do. He wanted to continue practicing his endurance, but he knew Tetsuzaemon was busy. He also need to build up his spirit energy, but he was unsure on how to do that.

He began walking towards the training field while he continued to think on what to do. But when he had gotten there, he still hadn’t thought of anything. He looked over to the tree near him, then decided that he could meditate for a while. He strolled over to the tree, sat down, and placed his zanpakutō on his lap.

He took a deep breath, then closed his eyes and cleared his mind.

** Squad 7 Headquarters, Seireitei, 10 minutes later. **

Sajin sat at his desk gathering paperwork and sorting it while he waited for his 5th seat to arrive. There was a lot more paperwork than usual, due to the fact that there were a lot of assignment orders for the world of the living in response to Aizen’s treachery.

The new Rukongai assignments also added to the endless supply of paperwork.

He then heard a knock on the door and began setting the papers aside.

“You may enter.” he stated as he placed the last bundle of papers to the side.

The door opened and 5th seat Hetoku entered. He closed the door behind him, walked up to the desk, and bowed.

“You wished to see me, Captain?” Hetoku asked as he rose.

Sajin nodded, then gestured for the man to sit, which he did.

“I’ll need to send you to the world of the living a little earlier than before. I’ll need you to leave as soon as you are ready. Take two squad members with you.” the Captain ordered.

“I understand sir. May I ask why the sudden change?” Hetoku inquired.

“It appears that the report on the hollows in the sector was a little underestimated. The outbreak is worse than the assigned team had thought, so they have requested assistance. Nothing too difficult, just go there, give them a hand to get it back under control, then return.” Sajin answered, getting a nod.

“Understood sir. I’ll pick my team and leave right away.” the officer responded, getting ready to get back up.

“Who do you have in mind?” Sajin asked as then man stood up to his feet.

“If the situation is as bad as they say, I would prefer to take members with experience. I’m thinking Ryokō and Murakami.” he offered.

Sajin thought about it for a moment, but nodded shortly after.

“Very well. The request is approved. Go ahead and let them know, I’ll get the request for the senkaimon issued. Good luck.” Sajin offered, and the man bowed.

“I get the job done quickly sir.” Hetoku stated as he rose, then turned to walk towards the door.

Once he got to the door, he stopped and turned back.

“Want any souvenirs, sir?” he asked with a smile.

Sajin chuckled and shook his head.

“No, thank you Hetoku. Be safe.” Sajin returned.

The man bowed once more, then left the office while Sajin returned to his paperwork.

A moment later, he remembered that he had something else he wanted to discuss with the officer. He debated calling him back, but decided that it could wait until he returned. He turned to his left and retrieved a request form for a senkaimon opening and began filling it out.

After a few moments, he had the form filled out, he then rose from his desk, grabbed a few additional papers, then walked out of his office.

He continued across the hall to the next office and up to the member sitting at the desk. The man turned to him and bowed his head.

“Afternoon, Captain. How can I help?” he politely asked.

“I need you to run these papers and request form to the Squad 1 Headquarters. While you are there, please pick up any additional paperwork for the squad. You can set them on my desk if I am not in.” Sajin instructed as he handed the man the papers.

The man nodded in understanding. “I leave immediately, sir.” he responded as he stood up.

The man left the office while Sajin stood for a moment thinking. He was contemplating checking in on Timothy to see how he was progressing as a member.

Although Sajin had an attachment with all of his squad members, he felt a little more so with Timothy. The man had a certain atmosphere about him that Sajin liked, although Sajin couldn’t quite place it yet.

He stepped out of the office and began his walk towards the grounds. As he stepped out of the building, he noticed Timothy sitting next to a tree, but couldn’t quite see what it was that he was doing.

He started a slow walk as he continued to watch Timothy sitting motionless in the shade of the tree. As he got closer, he could now see that he had his zanpakutō sitting on his lap, telling Sajin that the man was most likely meditating.

A moment later, he was now a few yards from the man, but he did not notice him yet. It was when he was only a few feet away that Timothy opened his eyes and turned to the Captain.

“Afternoon sir.” he greeted with a slight head bow.

Sajin returned the gesture, then stopped in front of him. “Good afternoon. Meditating I see.” he stated.

Timothy nodded. “Yes sir. I thought I would relax for a bit and try to communicate with my zanpakutō.” Timothy responded.

“Have you had any success?” Sajin inquired, getting a head shake in return.

“No sir. I think my zanpakutō is being stubborn.” Timothy joked.

“I see. Just give it time. Your zanpakutō’s spirit will answer you when it is ready to. Besides that, how are you adjusting here?” the Captain asked as he sat down in front of Timothy.

“Well, to be honest, I’ve only really been training and studying for the most part. I’ve met and talked with a few of the members, but I’ve been focusing hard on getting myself up to par.” Timothy answered as he set his zanpakutō down next to him.

“I understand. And I’m aware you have heard this before, but don’t push too hard. Remember, you not only have to take care of the body, but also the mind as well.” Sajin advised, earning a nod.

“I’ll keep that in mind sir. So, was there something you wanted of me?” Timothy inquired.

“No, not really. I had a few moments to spare, so I came to check on you and make sure you were adjusting well, and to make sure that Tetsuzaemon has not killed you yet.” Sajin added with a chuckle.

“No, not yet. Although, I can’t say he isn’t trying. But I’m thankful for his help. I’ve noticed that my body has started to move faster, and I can think a little better when on edge. So, it is definitely working, it just hurts a lot.” Timothy returned.

“I see. Well, that is good. Tetsuzaemon may be a bit rough, but he is an excellent officer, and I trust him with my life. Just remember, many bad things can easily happen, but you can just as easily turn them into good things. You just need the mind and willpower to do so.” Sajin stated as he rose to his feet, Timothy following.

“I understand sir. Thank you for the advice.” Timothy responded, then bowed.

Sajin returned the gesture, then set his hand on the man’s shoulder.

“You’ll fit in nicely, and I look forward to want you can do for the squad.” Sajin encouraged, lowering his hand afterwards. “Now, I must return to my duties. You keep on with your training, and if you need help, don’t be afraid to ask the officers, or even myself. I’ll always try to make time to assist my squad.” Sajin stated.

Timothy nodded. “Thank you, sir, I’ll be sure to do that.” he finished, then bowed.

Sajin returned the gesture, then turned and started walking away.

Meanwhile, Timothy returned to sitting next to the tree, setting his zanpakutō on his lap. He sat there a moment as he watched the Captain walk back to the building and sighed. In the very short time that he had in there, he had developed a large amount of respect for the man. For someone with a beastly appearance, the man was exceedingly kind and caring.

Timothy took a deep breath, then closed his eyes and continued his meditation.

For next several hours, Timothy continued his training, rotating between skills training and meditating. He would practice for about a half hour, then return to the tree to meditate while his body recovered.

But even at the end of the day, he still couldn’t get a response from his zanpakutō. He was beginning to think that perhaps he may have been doing something wrong.

The sun was beginning to set, so Timothy decided that it was probably best to call it for the day. At the moment, he was meditating, so he grabbed his zanpakutō off his lap and stood up.

He held his arms out and began stretching his muscles, that were now getting very sore. For the exception of his short meditating sessions and his little talk with the Captain, he hadn’t rested.

Once he had finished his stretch, he slipped his zanpakutō into his sash and began walking to the barracks. As he walked, he then remembered that he still had the rest of the book on the laws to go through.

Studying never was one of his strong suits, plus studying by yourself was difficult enough on its own. He could go ask one of the members, like Hinata or Issei, but he still didn’t like bothering others if he could help it. But he needed help, so it left him with little choice.

As he walked into the barracks, he decided to swing by the common area and the library to see if any of his friends were there.

He first checked the common area since he had to walk by it to get to the library. He took a look around and saw a few other members, but the not people in question.

He continued on towards the library to find that, for the exception of a studying pair, it was empty. Timothy stood there to think a moment.

He didn’t know where their rooms were, and he didn’t want to bother anyone just to ask where they lived.

Timothy let out a sigh, then turned and saw towards the back a sign that stated, ‘World of the Living Literature’. He then remembered that Hetoku had said that the library kept books from the living world; some of them in English.

Timothy turned and started walking towards the shelf and once there, started browsing the collection. The library had a decent number of books, and even some magazines from many different eras, locations, and genres.

Religious books, a few sports materials, novels, and he stopped and deadpanned when he saw they even had a thick book from America on federal taxes.

“Yeah…it figures that somehow something like that would find its way to even here.” he sarcastically remarked.

He shook his head in disgust, then continued looking through the shelf. He stopped again when his eyes fell upon an old, slightly tattered book. He pulled it out and looked at the front.

“Moby-Dick, now there’s a classic.” he stated.

He had never read it before, but like everyone else, he did know it was about a man trying to kill a whale, or something along those lines.

But he was a bit shocked to see that it was a first edition from 1852. Although it was tattered a little on the edges, the book was in very good condition.

He started looking around him, then saw another member grabbing and replacing books. He then turned and started walking toward him.

“Excuse me.” he addressed the man, causing him to look towards him.

“Yes?” the man responded.

Timothy showed him the book. “I was just wondering, when was this book brought here?”

The man took the book and looked at the cover.

“Oh, this one has been here for a while. An old member brought that back from a trip to the world of the living. He thought it would be a nice addition. If I remember right, I believe he brought it back in 18…58, living world time.” he answered.

Timothy nodded. “It’s in pretty good condition.”

“We try to keep our books in good condition. But no one ever reads that one, so it’s basically sat on the shelf for most of its life.” the man answered.

“Would it be alright if I borrow it?” Timothy inquired, and the man nodded.

“Of course. Just please take care of it.” he instructed, getting a nod back.

“Promise. Thank you.”

The man nodded and continued his work while Timothy began his walk back to his room. Once he arrived, he walked over to his bed and laid down to begin reading.

An hour had passed and he managed a couple chapters, but now he was starting to get tired. He closed the book and walked over to set it down on his dresser.

He then began taking his over garments off to get ready for bed, when his sword spoke up.

**_“Hey Tim, I’ve got a question.”_** it started.

_“What is it?”_ he mentally asked as he walked back to the bed.

**_“Remember what the officer said earlier about increasing your spirit energy?”_** the sword asked.

_“Yeah, what about it?”_ Timothy yawned again.

**_“Well, I was thinking for a while about it…do you think that perhaps I might have spirit energy as well?”_** it inquired, getting an odd look back from Timothy.

_“That’s a good question…to be honest, I’m not sure.”_ Timothy admitted.

In truth, he had never thought about that. Afterall, his sword wasn’t like a regular zanpakutō, so it could be possible.

**_“If it is the case, I wonder if there is a way to improve mine as well.”_** the sword wondered out loud.

_“Even if there is, I don’t think that there is a way for us to increase it without our secret getting out. But, it is something that we should think about.”_ Timothy admitted again as he laid down and covered himself.

He grabbed both swords and placed them on the bed beside him and laid his head down.

**_“I wonder if constant use of my sealed powers would do it.”_** the sword offered.

_“It could, and I guess we could try it one day. But first I’ve gotta get my body and mind where they need to be.”_ he stated in a yawn.

**_“True, so I’m assuming what you did today is your plan for tomorrow?”_** it asked, get a nod.

Timothy yawned again and closed his eyes. _“Yup, and every day after that.”_

**_“Just don’t overdo it, Tim.”_** it warned.

_“Yes mother.”_ he retorted, getting a scoff.

**_“Whatever dummy. Goodnight.”_** it finished, then was silent.

“Night.” Timothy finished, then slowly let sleep take him.

** Senkaimon Courtyard, Seireitei, Present **

5th seat Hetoku, along with his two selected members and the 7th seat, walked along the courtyard where the seireitei’s primary senkaimon was located.

Hetoku had intended to leave earlier, but finding the two members took a little longer than he had anticipated.

The four men arrived at the senkaimon and waited while the Kidō Corps began the enchantments to open the gateway. While they waited, Hetoku turned to the other officer.

“While I’m gone, could I ask you a favor, Minato?” Hetoku asked his fellow officer.

“Of course. What is it?” he responded.

“You know the new guy, Timothy?” Hetoku followed, getting a nod. “Could you keep an eye on him? You don’t need to train him or anything, just make sure he doesn’t kill himself.” he followed in a joking tone, causing the officer to chuckle.

“Yeah, I’ll make sure he stays outta trouble.” he answered.

Hetoku smiled and nodded. “Thanks.”

As he said that. The gateway opened, and three black butterflies appeared next to the men.

“Well, time to go. See ya in a week or so.” Hetoku remarked.

The officer nodded and waved. “Take care.” he returned as the three men walked into the senkaimon and disappeared.

** Milan: Italy, World of the Living, 5 minutes later. **

The city of Milan was calm and quiet, with cloudy skies to indicate that it was about to rain. Up in the sky on the western edge of the city, a senkaimon opened and three soul reapers walked out.

Hetoku came to a stop as the senkaimon closed behind him, then disappeared. He started looking around at the slumbering city and smiled.

“Ah, Italy. Never been here before.” he stated, then turned to the two members behind him.

“Alright, we’ve got a job to do. So, let’s find the assigned soul reapers and learn more about the situation. Spread out and try to track down their spiritual pressures. Questions?” he asked, getting head shakes. “Alright. Let’s begin. You head north,” he started by pointing at the man on his left. “And you go south,” he stated now pointing at the right man. “I’ll head east. One of us should be able to detect them that way. If you find them, flash your spiritual pressure.”

They both nodded, then they all disappeared in a flash step.

A short while later, Hetoku was continuing his flash steps across the city until he felt an odd spiritual pressure coming from nearby.

_‘Could that be them?’_ he wondered, then picked up his speed towards the pressure.

A few seconds later, he appeared over a large stadium and turned to see a soul reaper in a combat stance facing a hollow. He drew his zanpakutō, then quickly flash stepped over to him. The man turned to him as he appeared.

“About damn time!” he growled and Hetoku turned to him.

Hetoku took a second to look the hollow over. It was smaller than normal, only slightly larger than himself in size. It had a gray body with four arms, and its mask had the appearance of a rodent.

“Where’s your partner?” Hetoku inquired, and the man hissed.

“Dead, that hollow got em.” the man answered and Hetoku slightly lowered his head.

“I’m sorry. Now let’s call in the cavalry.” Hetoku stated, then flashed his spiritual pressure.

The man quickly turned to him with shock.

“No! Don’t do that!” he warned and Hetoku turned to him.

“What? Why not?” he asked, but quickly turned when the hollow roared.

He suddenly started to feel something pulling on him from the inside. He then felt a little weaker and tired.

“What the…” he started, and the man turned to him.

“That hollow can somehow absorb any spiritual pressure you emit! The more you emit, the stronger it gets! That’s how it got Raichi; it took everything he had, then killed him!” he quickly answered and Hetoku turned to him.

“That’s impossible!” he responded, then turned back to the hollow.

The hollow roared again, then charge at the pair. Hetoku grabbed his sword in both hands and held it high.

“Flow…Kyūryū no Yari!” Hetoku announced.

His zanpakutō then began to glow blue as it elongated into a 6-foot pole. The ends began to split and harden. His zanpakutō had now become what looked like a double-edged trident.

He spun it around like a windmill over his head, then around his back and planted one side into the empty ground. It was at this time that it started to rain excessively as his zanpakutō pulled the water from the sky.

Meanwhile, the hollow continued it’s charge towards the men. Hetoku raised his weapon and held it to his right side. He then swung up and across, and as he did so, a large wave of water shot out and soared towards the hollow.

The wave struck true, and it threw the hollow from the air. The hollow landed on the street and fractured the pavement as it did so.

Hetoku pulled out a small device and held it to his head.

“This is Squad 7, 5th seat, Hetoku Watashu.” he spoke into the devise.

“Go ahead 5th seat Watashu.” a voice replied.

“I need an area freeze at my location.” Hetoku instructed.

“How many units sir?” the voice asked.

“100…actually, 150 units.” he responded.

“Yes sir, we’ll put it up right away.” the voice answered.

Hetoku put the device back in his shihakusho and got back into his stance.

“Ready?” he asked the man next to him.

“Yes sir.” he answered.

Just then, the two other members that came with him showed up and drew their zanpakutōs.

“Be careful with this one fellas. And avoid using you spirit energy, this hollow can somehow take it from you.” Hetoku instructed.

Both men looked at him with disbelief, but quickly turned back to the hollow.

“What’s the plan sir?” one asked.

“Attack it from all sides, try to either kill it outright, or weaken it until we can kill it.” Hetoku instructed, getting nods back.

“Let’s go.” he ordered and the four of them darted across the sky towards the hollow that had now made it back to its feet.

It looked up at the incoming soul reapers and roared. Hetoku and the man next to him landed on the ground and Hetoku jabbed at the hollow.

The hollow roared as the other man ran up and cut it across the chest. The hollow turned and swung at the man with one of its arms with the man jumping away.

Hetoku pulled his weapon from the hollow’s body and got ready to swing across. At that time, his two companions appeared behind the hollow and each stabbed the beast in the back.

It roared, then turned and quickly swung it’s two right arms at one of the members. The man tried to jump out of the way, but the hollow was faster and struck him in the chest and face.

The power of the hit threw the man across the street and into a building, knocking him out. Hetoku swung at the hollow, but it stepped to the side and his attack missed.

Hetoku held his hand up. “Hadō #33…Sōkatsui!” he announced.

Multiple blue energy bolts flew from his hand and sailed straight towards the hollow. The energy bolts hit the target, but quickly evaporated.

The hollow then roared and Hetoku watched with eyes wide in shock as the cuts on its body started to heal themselves.

_‘It can absorb kid_ _ō as well?!’_ he quickly thought as he returned to his stance.

His other companion came up behind the hollow and held out two fingers. Hetoku froze when he realized what he was doing.

“No, stop!” he yelled, and the man froze. “No kid!” he added, and the man dropped his hand.

_‘What the hell is this thing?!’_ Hetoku thought as the hollow turned to the man next to him.

“Move!” he yelled as the hollow began its charge.

Hetoku leaped away, but the other man wasn’t quick enough. The hollow swung, catching the man’s back, and forced him in the building next to them, the force of the impact killing him.

“No!” the other man yelled, and the hollow turned to him now.

Hetoku quickly charged at the creature as it turned and slashed across it’s back. The hollow roared and swung back at Hetoku.

Hetoku ducked under the swing and swung up with the backside blade, cutting the hollow’s lower left arm off.

It again roared in pain and anger as the other man came at it ready with a high swing. The hollow saw the movement, then quickly turned. Hetoku then gasped.

“No! Stop!” he yelled, but too late.

The hollow swung down on the man, forcing him into the pavement and killing him as well.

Anger took hold of Hetoku, and he swung his weapon, emitting a powerful wave that crashed into the hollow, pushing it back.

Hetoku was quick to assault the creature and found himself swinging down on the fallen creature.

The hollow held it’s arm up and blocked the weapon with the point only a few inches from its face. Hetoku was steadily winning the reverse tug-o-war as his blade inched closer and closer to the hollow’s face.

_‘I’ve got it…’_ he began to think, but his thought was interrupted by a crashing sound behind him.

He quickly side glanced to see an exact copy of the hollow in front of him, with a red body instead. His eyes went wide with shock and surprise.

_‘Another one?!’_ he quickly thought.

He then felt an excruciating pain in his chest as the hollow behind him ran its arm through him.

_‘No…it can’t…’_ he fretted.

His whole world soon began to cloud over as the hollow pulled its arm free of the man’s chest and his body collapsed, lifeless, to the ground.

** Squad 7 Headquarters, Seireitei, 3 hours later **

Sajin sat at his desk, finishing up the day’s paperwork before he would turn in for the night. He only had a few more things to go over that he predicted wouldn’t be but a few minutes more.

As he set a small handful of papers to the side, he began to hear the rapid sounds of footsteps approaching. He looked up as his office door quickly swung open and his Lieutenant barge in.

“Tetsuzaemon? What’s wrong?” he asked as the man ran up to his desk and bowed.

“My apologies for disturbing you Captain, but I just received word about Hetoku and his men!” he very quickly stated with a sad tone.

Sajin’s expression then turned serious.

“What is it?” he demanded in a low tone.

Tetsuzaemon raised himself and stared at the Captain.

“They were…all killed sir!” he answered with a solemn voice, causing Sajin’s eyes to widen.

“What happened?!” he demanded, his voice filled with anger.

Before the Lieutenant could answer, a hell butterfly flew in through the window and hovered by Sajin. He held out his finger to allow it to land.

The butterfly landed on his finger and Sajin could hear a voice coming through it.

“Attention, this is a message for all Captains of the 13 Court Guard Squads!” the voice started in a hurried tone.

“An emergency Captain’s meeting has been ordered by the order of Head Captain Yamamoto! All squad Captains are ordered to attend this meeting!” the voice finished, then repeated the message once more.

Once the message ended, the butterfly lifted off Sajin’s finger and flew back out the window.

“What was the message, Captain?” Tetsuzaemon asked as Sajin turned back to him.

“The Head Captain has called an emergency meeting.” he answered as he stood up.

“We will discuss this when I return.” Sajin instructed, then flash stepped away.

Tetsuzaemon stood there looking at the empty space where his Captain was and began reminiscing on the officer’s death.

He sat down on the pillow seat in front of Sajin’s desk and lowered his head in sadness.

** Squad 1 Headquarters, Captain’s meeting room, Seireitei, Present **

Many of the Captains had yet to arrive as the word was still in the process of being distributed. Sajin flash stepped into the waiting room and turned to see the Captains of Squads 2, and 4.

Sajin began walking up to them, and just as he stopped in front of them, Captains Kyōraku and Ukitake walked in through the doors, Shunsui in mid yawn.

“Evening everyone.” Jūshirō greeted, getting a slight bow from the Squad 4 Captain.

“Good evening, Captain Ukitake…although unfortunately it doesn’t seem to be good at all I’m afraid.” Captain Retsu Unohana unhappily replied.

As the Captain of Squad 4, Captain Unohana was the head of the medical department of the Seireitei.

She was an average height, slender woman, and one of the oldest Captains of the 13 Court Guard Squads, for the exception of the Head Captain himself. She had long, black hair the she wore in a thick braid down the front of her body.

She was a kind hearted individual, but had very little toleration of the nonsense of others, most especially within the confines of her medical center.

Shunsui placed a hand over his mouth and let out another long yawn.

“So, what is this emergency meeting about?” he asked and Unohana turned to him

“Four members and one officer of Squad 7 were killed by a hollow this evening.” she answered.

Both Jūshirō and Shunsui’s eyes widened, then they turned to Sajin.

“I’m sorry to hear that Captain Komamura. You have my condolences.” Shunsui solemnly offered.

“Yes, it’s such a tragedy, Sajin.” Jūshirō added and Sajin nodded to them both.

“Thank you.” he responded.

Shunsui lifted his straw hat slightly. “However, that can’t be all the meeting is about. I mean, the death of squad members is terrible, but it shouldn’t be enough to warrant an emergency meeting like this.” he pointed out.

As he finished, the Captains of Squads 6 and 10 walked into the room.

“Could someone tell me what this is about?” the short, white haired Captain of Squad 10 asked in an annoyed tone.

Shunsui was about to answer him, but he was cut off by a gruff voice.

“You will find out in just a moment, Captain Hitsugaya.”

Everyone turned to see the Head Captain of the 13 Court Guard Squads, Head Captain Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto, walking in.

An older man of average height, but with a muscular build for his age. Head Captain Yamamoto was currently the oldest living soul reaper in the entire soul society.

Many great things could be said about the man. He was very well respected by all, even the battle thirsty Captain of Squad 11, Kenpachi Zaraki. Even the enemies of the soul society knew of and respected the Head Captain because of his power and strength.

There was not one single soul reaper in the soul society that could even begin to hold a candle to the man in terms of power.

The man walked into the waiting room, and the Captains looked to see the Captain of Squad 12, Mayuri Kurotsuchi, walking behind him.

“Well, what are you waiting for? Get to your positions so we can begin.” Yamamoto ordered in his low and demanding voice.

The Captains began walking into the meeting room and continued until they reached their positions in the room. The Head Captain walked through the center of the room to the small platform that had a single, armless chair.

Once he was on the platform, Yamamoto turned around and sat down, now looking at all of his Captains who were on opposite sides of the room and facing each other.

Yamamoto looked over towards Sajin and rose a brow.

“Where is Captain Zaraki?” he asked, and Jūshirō turned to him.

“He hasn’t been at his headquarters for a few days now, Head Captain. Though I have heard a few reports of him being in South Rukongai.” Jūshirō answered, and this got Sajin’s attention.

“Very well, you will have to report this to him later.” Yamamoto instructed.

A brief moment later, Yamamoto lifted, then stamped his cane on the floor.

“I hereby call this Captain’s meeting to order.” he stated, then a moment later turned to Captain Kurotsuchi.

“Captain Kurotsuchi, deliver your report.” he instructed, keeping his demanding tone.

Captain Kurotsuchi took one step forward, then turned to Yamamoto.

Mayuri Kurotsuchi was an…odd individual to say the least. Although he naturally had short, blue hair, it was rarely ever seen, as well as his true face. This was because of the makeup that he always wore over his entire head.

As well as being the Captain of Squad 12, Mayuri was also the 2nd generation Head of the Department of Research and Development. The department was the seireitei’s source of new technology. The department was also responsible for monitoring the precipice world, the dimension between the soul society and the world of the living.

It was because of the department that the Captains were gathered that evening.

“As I’m sure some of you are aware by now, a few hours ago four members, and a seated officer of Squad 7 were killed in the process of dispatching hollows.” Mayuri started and the other Captains turned to him.

“Normally, that wouldn’t raise suspicion…however, the hollow that they were fighting was very interesting. Upon reviewing the data, we’ve concluded that this hollow can somehow absorb spirit energy.” he added, causing the other Captains to widen their eyes.

Shunsui turned to him and raised a hand. “Excuse me, but did you say that this hollow absorbs spirit energy?” he asked in disbelief.

Mayuri turned to him. “That is correct. According to the data, the 5th seat of Squad 7 had released a small amount of spiritual pressure just before the fight begun. A moment later, his released spiritual pressure was absorbed by the hollow, healing its wounds and making it stronger.” Mayuri clarified.

“How is that possible?” Jūshirō asked in shock, getting Mayuri’s attention.

“How this hollow does this, we do not currently know. We do not have enough data at this point to draw a conclusion. However, the situation is worse than that. It turns out that the 5th seat had used kidō against the hollow as well. But this attack was also absorbed by the hollow.” he added, making everyone’s shock even worse.

Yamamoto turned to the Squad 2 Captain.

“Captain Suí-F­ēng, what is your report?” he asked in a low tone.

The Captain, like Mayuri, took a step forward and turned to the Head Captain.

The Captain of Squad 2 was Suí-F­ēng, a short and petite woman with a serious demeanor and personality.

Suí-F­ēng was not only the Captain of Squad 2, but she was also the Commander of the well feared Stealth Force, as well as the current head of the Fēng Family. Although she was small in size, her speed with the flash step was legendary.

“Sir, my men arrived at the scene we estimated to be twenty minutes after the fight had ended. We found the bodies of the officer and four members, but found no sign of the hollow. My men are currently sweeping the area to find any traces of it. We took the bodies to Squad 4 for emergency medical care.” she answered in her serious tone.

Yamamoto then turned to Unohana. “And what was their status, Captain Unohana?”

The woman gave him a solemn look for a moment, then answered. “All five personnel were taken into critical care, but unfortunately it was already too late. The four members were all killed by excessive trauma, while the officer was killed by something that had gone through his body.” Unohana answered in a low and sad tone.

Sajin lowered his head and Jūshirō walked over and set his hand on his shoulder.

“Do you think this could be the work of Aizen?” the Captain of Squad 10 asked Mayuri.

The Captain of Squad 10 was Tōshirō Hitsugaya, a short, and young man. He had pure white hair that was moderately unkept, giving it a spiked look. Although he was still young, the youngest of the Captains, he was still considered by many to be somewhat of a child prodigy.

“At this point, there is no way of telling if Aizen was responsible or not. This is indeed an odd situation. A single hollow should not have been able to take down four members and an officer while fighting them all at once, even when if they were as inexperienced as them.” he answered.

Sajin flinched at the last part and slightly growled.

“Captain Kurotsuchi.” Sajin started, getting his attention.

“Hm?” Mayuri breathed as he turned to the furry Captain.

Sajin rose his head to him. “Considering the circumstances, I’ll overlook your previous observation. But I must warn you that I won’t do so again, should you decide to continue to insult the dead.” Sajin hissed through his teeth, getting a look of disrespect from Mayuri.

“See here, it’s not my problem that your training has become a bit lax.” Mayuri insulted, causing Sajin’s blood to boil.

“Shall I show you what it means to respect the dead, Captain Kurotsuchi?” Sajin growled back.

Mayuri simply turned and raised his head. “Tsk…and what could I possibly learn from such a mindless beast such as yourself?” he insulted even further.

Sajin was just about to walk over and put the man in his place, but a sharp and loud thump stopped everything.

“Enough!” Yamamoto yelled, immediately getting everyone’s full attention.

“I will not allow any pointless bickering amongst you! Now return to your positions!” he demanded, and everyone did so.

Yamamoto then slammed his cane on the ground again.

“Captain Kurotsuchi, Captain Suí-F­ēng, both of you will continue to investigate this matter and report any findings directly to me.” Yamamoto stated, then turned to Unohana.

“Captain Unohana, I want you to do a thorough examination of the bodies to determine any irregularities.” he added, getting a solemn bow from the Captain.

Yamamoto turned to Sajin. “Captain Komamura, you are to send replacements to the sector. If they encounter this hollow, they are not to engage. They are to call for reinforcements.” he ordered Sajin with a little bit calmer voice, showing that he felt for the man.

“This meeting is adjourned.” Yamamoto finished, and everyone began leaving the room.

Everyone…except Sajin. Jūshirō and Shunsui both stopped, then turned back to him. “Hey, they did their duty, Sajin.” Shunsui comforted.

“Yes, it’s sad they are no longer with us, but they died with their honor intact. That is the best death a soul reaper can ask for.” Jūshirō added.

Sajin nodded. “Thank you both for your words. I must return to my Squad, please excuse me.” Sajin stated in a low voice and walked away.

Jūshirō stood next to his friend. “Do you think he will alright?” he asked.

Shunsui slightly smiled, then lowered his head and tilted his hat. “Yeah, he’ll be fine. He just needs some time is all. Give him a few days and he’ll be back to his old self.” Shunsui confirmed.

Both men turned and watched Sajin as he walked down the hallway to return to his squad.

As Sajin continued his walk down the hallway, his mind filled with anger and sorrow. He knew that Mayuri had little respect for others, but to go and insult those who had given their lives doing their duty was completely unacceptable.

Sajin was also hating himself for letting his anger almost get the better of him. Had it not been for the Head Captain’s interjection, Sajin most likely would have attacked the insane scientist.

After a few moments of walking, Sajin found himself at the front doors of the Squad 1 Headquarters, where the meeting room was located. He pushed the door open and walked out, closing the door behind him.

He continued to take a few steps more, then stopped and sighed. He then side glanced over to a pillar to his right.

“I know you are there Tetsuzaemon.” he stated in a voice mixed with sadness and annoyance.

A second later, the man in question steeped out from behind the pillar with a sorrowful look. He got down on his knees and bowed.

“Please forgive me, sir. I shouldn’t have followed you.” he stated, but Sajin continued to look at him.

After a moment, Sajin turned back with closed eyes and sighed.

“It’s alright Tetsuzaemon. I know you are eagerly waiting to find out the details. Walk with me, I’ll explain on the way back.” Sajin instructed in a caring tone.

“Sir.” the Lieutenant responded in an unusually low tone.

The man returned to his feet and walked over to join his Captain at his side. Both men began walking slowly back towards their headquarters.

** Squad 7 Barracks, Seireitei, The next morning **

Timothy let out a yawn as he finished getting dressed to begin his day. As he was tying the sash around his waist, he heard a knock on his door.

“It’s open.” he replied in a low and sleepy tone.

The door slid open and Hinata and Kenta both walked in. They both waved to him, but he nodded back because his hands were both occupied with finishing the sash.

“Morning Tim. Were you about to head out?” Kenta asked, getting a nod in return as Timothy finished tying his sash.

“Yeah, I’m about to head down to the grounds and get started with my training.” he answered as he walked over to his bed.

“Well, you’ll have to hold off for a bit.” Hinata remarked as Timothy grabbed his first sword.

“Why is that?” he asked as he tucked the sword into the sash.

“The Captain has an announcement or something. Anyone who is available is ordered to be there.” Kenta followed as Timothy grabbed his second sword.

He tucked it in as well and straightened his garment. “Any idea what it’s about?” Timothy asked as he walked over to them, getting a head shake from Hinata.

“No idea, but if the Captain is ordering it, it’s gotta be very important.” she pointed out.

“Well, what are we waiting for?” Timothy remarked as he gestured to the door.

The three of then stepped out and Timothy slid the door shut as Issei walked up.

“Morning guys.” he greeted, causing them to turn.

“Morning Issei.” Hinata returned with a smile.

“So, can anyone tell me what this is about?” Issei asked and Timothy chuckled.

“Narumi probably peeked on him.” he remarked in a joking tone, causing the men to laugh and Hinata to moan.

“You’re never going to let that go, are you?” she asked, and Timothy snorted.

“You would feel the same way if a man did it to you, Hinata.” Timothy pointed out and she scoffed.

“I’d kill the man who did that to me.” she replied in annoyance, causing Timothy to chuckle.

“That, I don’t doubt. Anyway, let’s get going.” he stated and the rest nodded.

They all turned and began walking down the hallway towards the common area.

A few minutes later, they exited the hallway to find the common area packed with other members, both on the bottom floor and the second floor. Timothy looked to his right and saw an open space next to the wall. He turned back to the others.

“Hey, let’s go over there.” he stated as he gestured to the area with his thumb.

The men nodded and they all began walking over to the open area as more and more members filled the room.

“I had no idea that there were this many members.” Timothy stated, and Kenta placed a hand on his shoulder.

“This is only just shy of half of the squad. A lot of the members are either on duty in Rukongai, or on assignment.” he clarified, causing Timothy’s eyes to widen a bit.

“Wow.” Timothy remarked simply.

The group got to their spot and began waiting, like everyone else, for the Captain to arrive. The squad waited, but a few minutes later the Captain and Lieutenant both walked in.

“Quiet! The Captain wishes to speak!” Tetsuzaemon yelled, causing the entire room to become completely silent.

Members stepped back, creating an opening as the Captain walked towards the center of the room. Once he was there, he lowered his head slightly and thought about how to put his information out.

After a moment, he lifted his head and scanned the room briefly.

“I can see by the looks on all of your faces that you are not aware of what has happened. I am aware that most of you have tasks that must be completed, so I will try to keep this brief.” Sajin started, getting looks of confusion from almost every member.

Sajin lowered his head again, then raised it back a moment later.

“Last night, 5th seat Hetoku Watashu, and two fellow members were sent to the world of the living in response to a call for assistance from the two squad members assigned to the sector.” he started, then paused to let the information sink in.

Sajin took a deep breath as he prepared to tell the next part. “All five of them were killed.” he stated, then lowered his head.

The room was immediately filled with gasps and small chatter. Over near the far wall, Timothy’s mind stopped working as he tried to comprehend what he had just heard.

“Captain, sir…what do you mean…killed?” a member on the second-floor balcony asked in disbelief.

Sajin looked up to the member. “They were all killed…fighting a hollow.” he repeated.

Gasps turned to sobs and the chatting got louder. Sajin waited for a moment to let everything he said seep in, then held up his hand, causing the room to become silent again.

Sajin lowered his hand and sighed. “There will be a squad funeral held. The date will be determined at a later time, once we receive their bodies from Squad 4. As for now…” he paused and looked around the room again.

“…I will need four volunteers to resume the duties in the sector. If you wish to volunteer, please speak with one of the seated officers. Only those with plenty of experience will be accepted. No exceptions.” Sajin instructed.

“Captain…” a member started, and he turned to him.

“How could they have all been killed by a single hollow?” he asked, getting nods from the entire room.

“Those are details I cannot disclose at this time. But know this, if you are selected for the duty, this hollow is ‘not’ to be taken lightly. You may return to your duties now. That is all.” Sajin finished and quickly walked out of the room, Tetsuzaemon following right behind him.

The entire room was then filled with voices of multiple emotions. In the back, Timothy stood there leaning against the wall, head down in sorrow.

After a minute, he stood up straight, then turned and began walking out of the room. He entered the hallway and made it a few doors down before a voice called out to him.

“Timothy!” a feminine voice called.

Timothy stopped, but did not turn.

“Tim, hold up.” another voice called.

Timothy stood there motionless as his three friends ran up to him. Hinata placed a hand on his shoulder.

“Tim, are you gonna be alright?” she asked, getting no response.

The three of them knew that he and 5th seat Hetoku had become close friends over the past few days, and the man’s death must have hit him hard.

“Tim, come on, talk to us.” Kenta pleaded, and Timothy slightly turned to him.

“I’ll be fine…just let me be for now.” Timothy stated, then started walking again.

The three friends stood there with teary eyes as they watched him walk away. A moment later, Timothy arrived at his room and stood outside as thoughts flooded his mind. Hetoku was gone, and he was not coming back.

Timothy slid his door open and slowly walked inside, closing the door behind him. He walked over to his bed and plopped down on it.

Silence followed for a moment, until his sword spoke up.

**_“Tim…do you wanna talk?”_** it offered, but Timothy didn’t respond.

**_“Tim?”_** it tried again, still no response.

The sword wanted to press, but decided against it and kept quiet. Timothy continued to lay there, face down, as he thought back on the times he spent with the man.

He had known him for less than a week, but in that short span of time he had gotten close to him and quickly considered him a close friend.

Timothy sat up, removed both swords from his sash, and set them down next to him before laying back down on his side.

He continued to reminisce on the man and everything he had done for him. Timothy was sad and depressed, as expected, but there was something else that he felt that overwhelmed both of those emotions…anger.

Timothy was furious at the fact that yet another person was taken out of his life. He was mad that, once again, there was nothing he could do.

And that was when he mentally decided that he had had enough.

After a moment more, he sat back up, grabbed his swords, and tucked them back in his sash. He stood there and lowered his head in thought.

_‘This stops now…I’m done with sitting around while others die.’_ he mentally concluded.

He raised his head and now had a look of pure anger in his eyes. He took a deep breath, then walked over to his door and left the room.

As he walked down the hallway, he saw his three friends standing where he left them, talking amongst each other. They all turned to see Timothy, now with a very determined look on his face, and they are started to worry.

“Tim?” Issei started, getting no response.

Timothy walked up to them, then stopped.

“I’ll be out on the fields, in case someone wants me.” he stated, then continued his walk.

The three friends looked at each other with worry, then back towards him.

“Should we…” Hinata started, but Kenta placed a hand on her shoulder.

She turned to him and he slowly shook his head.

“Let him be.” he stated.

“Yeah, just let him go blow off some steam, then we’ll try to talk to him.” Issei added, getting an understanding nod from her.

“Alright, if you say so.” she responded as the three of them turned back to Timothy as he left the hallway.

** Squad 7 Training Grounds, Seireitei, 5 minutes later **

Timothy’s anger hadn’t subsided in the least by the time he arrived at the training grounds. In fact, his anger had only gotten worse.

The more he thought about his late friend, the more he hated himself. He was starting to view himself as weak, and he intended to fix that, by any means necessary. He drew his top sword and held it to his side as he lowered his head.

“Tease…” he started in a low voice. “Moeru Kitsune.” he finished in growl.

His sword began its transformation as its iconic floating flames began appearing in numerous locations. The sword finished its transformation, then spoke up.

**_“Tim…you need to calm down…”_** it warned.

_“Keep quiet. I am I tired of being weak…that ends now.”_ he snapped back, causing the sword to remain quiet.

He lowered his head as a tear fell from his eye. “No more being weak.” he hissed, then raised his head back level.

He then quickly disappeared, re-appearing at a flame on the opposite side of the field. As he appeared, he did two quick swings at an imaginary opponent, then quickly disappeared again.

He re-appeared a few feet away from the last and swung again, then again disappeared. He appeared next to the tree where him and Hetoku would study, swung, and held his stance.

“Faster…” he mumbled, then disappeared again.

He re-appeared a distance away, swung once, turned, and back stabbed before disappearing again. He again re-appeared, now next to a kidō practice target, and raised his hand towards it.

“Hadō #31…Shakkahō!” he announced.

A red ball of energy began to form in his palm, and once it reached a decent size it projected at the target. The energy ball struck the target and destroyed it.

Timothy quickly disappeared again and moved to the next target, raising his index and middle finger towards it.

“Hadō #33…Sōkatsui!” he growled.

Blue flames of energy began to emit from his palm, but to his surprise, the spell failed. The flames exploded just in front of him, the force of the explosion throwing him back.

He landed on his back and slid across the ground. He slid right by a flame of his, so he quickly disappeared and re-appeared right back where he was, scratched up and blood slowly seeping from a cut beside his right eye.

He held up his hand again.

“Hadō #33…Sōkatsui!” he yelled again.

This time, the spell worked, and the flames shot towards the target, hitting and destroying it. He then disappeared and re-appeared near the tree before swinging twice.

After his second swing, he transitioned back over to the targets and held both hands up.

Hadō #4…Byakurai!”

He felt pressure quickly build in his hands then project out in a blue bolt towards the target. But before it got there, he quickly re-appeared to the left and closer to the targets.

Hadō #4…Byakurai!” he repeated, projecting another bolt of spirit energy toward the next target.

Both bolts hit their targets almost simultaneously, destroying them. Timothy stood there holding his stance as he started to breath very heavily, now becoming exhausted.

He regained his senses and quickly disappeared to move over to the backside of the field. He swung twice as fast as he could, then moved over to the tree again.

Over and over, Timothy repeated the process, switching from attacking invisible targets, to kidō targets. Every now and then when he used a kidō spell, one of them would fail and explode.

But like the first time, he would keep getting back up with more cuts and scratches than before and continue the process.

After two hours of non-stop transitioning and attacking, Timothy was just barely keeping on his feet from exhaustion. Finally, he re-appeared at one of his flames and fell over onto the ground.

After a moment, he slowly got to his hands and knees, breathing erratically.

“I cannot…stop…” he stated and began to push himself up. “I will not…stop…” he demanded as he finally made it back to his feet.

He returned to his stance and got ready to continue. But before he could move, his sword interjected.

**_“Tim, stop…you’re going to kill yourself!”_** it warned.

“I said to keep quiet.” he hissed in a low tone.

Timothy was now covered in scratches and slightly bleeding in a few spots, all from the failed kidō spells. But he put it in the back of his head as he disappeared again, returning to his training.

Meanwhile, back the barracks, Hinata, Issei, and Kenta all watched in both shock and awe as Timothy continued his relentless assaults.

“He takes ‘blowing off steam’ to a whole new level.” Issei commented, getting Hinata’s attention.

“Shouldn’t we stop him? I mean…he’s had four kid spells explode on him so far, and it’s obvious that he’s pushing himself way too hard. He can barely stand.” she asked in a worried tone.

Issei scratched the back of his head. “Maybe, but with the mood he’s in, he’s more likely to kill us before himself.” he pointed out, getting a nod from Kenta.

“Agreed.” Kenta responded, as Hinata turned to him.

“Well, shouldn’t we tell someone?” she half insisted.

“Hinata, with how angry he is right now, I doubt anyone will be able to talk him down, not even Lieutenant Iba or the Captain.” Issei warned.

Kenta started rubbing his temples. “Yeah. He’ll calm down eventually. Come on, we have to get our ‘chores’ done.” he stated while flexing his two index fingers in a quote.

Issei nodded and the two men began walking away while Hinata watched for a moment more in worry.

“Hinata, come on.” Kenta called back, causing her to slowly nod.

“Coming.” she responded in a sad tone.

The three friends returned to the barracks to complete their tasks.

** 2 hours later **

At this point, Timothy was on the verge of passing out as he stood there, tilting back and forth trying to keep his balance. His whole world began to turn fuzzy as his body began to shut down.

He stood there for a moment more, then his legs gave out and he collapsed to his knees, supporting himself with his arms.

He was breathing so hard that it drowned out the sound of his heart pounding away in his chest. His sword suddenly began returning to its normal shape and he turned to it.

“What…are…you doing?” he demanded between breaths.

**_“Stopping you before you kill yourself.”_** it answered flatly. **_“Besides, you’ve used my power too much…I’m too exhausted to keep going. You should have known this would happen.”_** the sword pointed out.

Timothy turned back and growled.

“Fine…have it your way.” He seethed as he leaned back onto his legs, almost losing his balance. He then returned his sword to its sheath and dropped his hands.

He sat there for a few minutes more, then slowly got back up to his feet. He wobbled a bit as he stood straight, but didn’t fall over. He began to slowly walk over towards the tree and sat down next to it when he got there.

“If you won’t let me train my body…” he started as he drew his zanpakutō.

“I’ll train my mind.” he finished as he set the sword down on his lap.

He took a minute a get his breath to slow down a bit, then took a deep a breath as he could and closed his eyes, emptying his mind.

Time passed quickly as he tried to reach out to his zanpakutō’s spirit over and over, but it refused to answer. But he kept on, refusing to give up.

An hour passed, yet he still had no success in reaching his zanpakutō’s spirit. Finally, Timothy had decided that his body had rested enough. He opened his eyes and was a little surprised that the sun was getting low in the sky, showing that it was late afternoon. He mentally berated himself for letting time slip by like he did.

He slowly stood up and could feel his muscles burning as a result of his relentless training from earlier. Once he was on his feet, he sheathed his zanpakutō, and drew his other sword.

**_“Tim, you’ve had enough for today. No more.”_** his sword instructed.

“We are going to continue this, I will get stronger.” he demanded, getting a scoff in return.

**_“All I have to do is refuse to let you use my power.”_** it retorted.

Timothy turned to it and growled. “Are you sure you want to do that? I do have another option that I can use you know.” Timothy threatened.

Silence followed for a moment before the sword responded.

**_“Even I know you’re not stupid Tim. You remember what almost happened the last time you tried that.”_** the sword pointed out, but Timothy’s expression didn’t change.

“I am prepared to do what is necessary. Are you?” he threatened again.

Another moment of silence passed before the sword answered.

**_“Do what you want.”_** it responded in an angry tone.

“Now tease…Moeru Kitsune.” he commanded.

The sword transformed as the flames returned spread out on the grounds.

**_“You’re nothing but a fool, Tim. You’re going to kill yourself and fail the mission.”_** the sword warned, but Timothy scoffed.

“If I don’t get stronger, I’ll die anyway. Even you are aware of that.” he retorted.

He heard the sword sigh. **_“That may be true, but pushing yourself like this is not going to benefit anyone.”_**

“I’m done arguing, now quiet down.” he ordered, then got into his stance.

He took one long breath, then quickly disappeared as he began another relentless barrage of mock attacks and kidō strikes.

Unbeknownst to him, another person was watching him from a distance, both amazed and horrified at what he was witnessing. The man continued to watch as Timothy again and again used his transporting technique, slashing the air or using medium level kidōs every time he appeared.

What worried him the most was Timothy’s kidō would occasionally fail, hurting him. But even so, he still kept on, never stopping to rest.

Finally, after another kidō exploded in Timothy’s face, the man couldn’t watch anymore. He stepped out from where he was watching and began walking towards Timothy.

“Hey!” he called out, but Timothy didn’t respond.

The man continued to walk closer, but stopped when Timothy re-appeared and prepared to use another kidō.

“Hadō…#63…” Timothy started, breathing heavily trying to get his words out.

This caused the man to flinch and his eyes widen. “Oh no…” he fretted, then quickly flash stepped over to Timothy and grabbed his arm.

Timothy flinched in surprise, then slowly turned to the man in anger.

“What…do you…want?” Timothy demanded between breaths, but the man glared at him.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?!” he bellowed back.

“What...are you talking…about?” Timothy asked, his breath slowly returning.

“You were about to use a 60s level kidō! In your exhausted state, it would have backfired on you without a doubt! Do you have any idea what would have happened if it did in your state?!” he again bellowed.

“That’s…my business…not yours.” Timothy retorted.

The man continued to stare at him, but finally sighed and released Timothy’s arm.

“Look…I know why you’re upset. We’re all upset about Hetoku and the other’s deaths. If you want to train to get your mind off it, that’s fine. But you can’t go overboard like this, Timothy.” the man stated, causing Timothy to raise a brow.

“I don’t recall…meeting you, so how do…you know my name?” Timothy inquired.

“I’m the squad’s 7th seat, Minato Fujita. Hetoku asked me to keep an eye on you. But more importantly, he asked me to make sure you don’t kill yourself.” Minato replied, getting a snort from Timothy.

“Yeah, he would say…something like that. My apologies…for my disrespect sir.” Timothy said, getting a wave off.

“I’m an easy-going person. As long as you do what is required of you, I have no issues. Now, it’s time to call it a night. And that ‘is’ an order.” Minato instructed.

Timothy nodded, then let his sword return to normal. The officer watched as the numerous flames around them suddenly disappeared.

“I have to say, that ability of your is amazing. I’ve never seen a zanpakutō like that.” he admitted, getting a slight chuckle.

“Thanks. Let’s go then.” Timothy remarked.

Minato gestured for Timothy to lead the way, then both men began walking back towards the barracks. Minato noticed that Timothy was slightly limping, then he turned to him.

“You alright? You appear to be hurt.” Minato inquired, Timothy waved him off.

“Muscles are just sore.” he reassured.

“Still, we need to get you cleaned up. And get some bandages for those cuts.” Minato stated, but Timothy again waved him off.

“I’ll be fine, I’ll put something on them when I get back to my room.” he assured, Minato nodding in reply.

The men arrived at the barracks and Minato turned to him.

“I have a few things to do before I turn in, so this is where I leave you.” he informed.

Timothy nodded, then began walking to his room. As he entered the hallway on the second floor, he saw Hinata walking towards him.

_‘Great…now I have to listen to her berate me.’_ he thought as he continued to walk.

When they got a few feet from each other, Hinata huffed at him when she saw the cuts on him.

“You done tearing yourself up?” she asked in a displeased tone, crossing her arms.

“Yeah…for now.” Timothy responded, then she raised a brow.

“For now?” she inquired, getting a nod.

“I’ll be right back out there tomorrow. And look…I know you’re worried, but I can handle it.” he returned, making sure to leave out the part about almost killing himself with a 60s level kidō.

She lowered her arms, sighed, and shook her head.

“Look Tim, I’m worried about you, so are Issei and Kenta. Just promise me not to do something stupid., please?” she pleaded.

_‘Little late for that Hinata.’_ he thought.

“Alright, I promise. Now, I’m gonna head to my room and get cleaned up. See ya tomorrow.” he stated and continued walking.

“Yeah…see ya.” she whispered, then continued walking herself.

Timothy finally arrived at his room and walked in towards the mirror. He was a little surprised as he didn’t expect his injuries to be that bad.

He took a rag and started wiping off the dried blood from his face, the force of it causing some of the scratches to reopen and seep blood. He grabbed a few bandages from a small, wooden aid box next to the dresser and placed them over the cuts one at a time.

After about a half hour, all of the cuts had small bandages on them, so he then grabbed another set of undergarments and started to change. As he took his old pair off, he looked into the mirror to see numerous scratches all over his body.

He then scoffed and continued to get dressed. He set both of his swords on the bed and sat down. His thoughts then began to turn back to Hetoku and he lowered his head.

He was tired of losing those that he cared about. It seemed to him that every time that he got close to someone, they were taken away.

He then quickly slapped himself, knocking those feelings away, then laid back onto the bed. He pulled the covers over him and turned onto his side.

**_“Tim…”_** his sword began, and he sighed.

_“What?”_ he answered, annoyed.

**_“I’m sorry about earlier…but you know you could have killed yourself…right?”_** it asked in a worried tone.

_“I’m aware, but I can’t afford to worry about that right now.”_ Timothy pointed, getting another sigh from his sword.

**_“You’re gonna have to worry about it…or you won’t be around to worry at all.”_** the sword returned, earning a growl from Timothy.

_“I don’t want to argue, and I’m sorry for threatening you. Just let me do what I need to and don’t try to stop me.”_ he instructed.

**_“Fine…whatever.”_** it responded, then went quiet.

Timothy laid there and stared at the wall trying not to think about Hetoku. After a while, he lost all thought as sleep snuck up on him and took him away.


	6. Painful Emotions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 6

**(Painful Emotions)**

** Squad 7 Headquarters, Seireitei, 2 days later **

It was mid-morning, and Tetsuzaemon found himself in the lower offices of the headquarters speaking with a couple of the assigned clerks about getting some signatures for some of the morning forms.

He had finished his business and was about to leave when 7th seat Minato walked in. Tetsuzaemon turned to him as he came to stand in front of him.

“Good morning, Lieutenant.” he greeted, and the man nodded.

“Morning.” Tetsuzaemon replied.

“Lieutenant, do have a moment? I need to discuss something with you.” Minato asked, getting another nod in return.

Both men then left the office and Minato took the man out the rear doors of the headquarters. He then stopped and pointed out to the training grounds. Tetsuzaemon looked to where the man was pointing to see none other than Timothy on the grounds training.

He watched for a moment, then noticed that he was training a little too hard. Not only that, he could see, even from that far away, that the man was exhausted, and it was still mid-morning.

“He seems to be pushing himself quite hard.” Tetsuzaemon commented.

They both watched for a moment longer, then saw Timothy raise his hand. A second later, the kidō that he was using exploded, throwing him back a few feet. Tetsuzaemon was about to run forward, but Minato held his arm out, stopping him.

“Wait.” he instructed, and Tetsuzaemon continued to watch.

A brief moment later, Timothy got right back up, transported back to where he was and raised his arm again. A second later, he performed a Shakkahō at a kidō target and destroyed it. As soon as the target was destroyed, he continued his assaults.

“He’s been doing this for two days, Lieutenant…ever since the Captain told the squad about Hetoku.” Minato stated, and the man growled in annoyance.

“Has he stopped at all?” Tetsuzaemon asked as he turned to the 7th seat.

Minato shook his head. “Except to sleep and eat, no.” he responded, then both men turned back to the grounds.

A few minutes passed, then they saw Timothy perform another kidō, again having it explode in his face. But like before, he simply got back up and tried again.

“That fool is going to kill himself.” Tetsuzaemon stated, getting a nod from Minato.

“I agree sir. I managed to talk him into stopping the first night, but just barely. To be honest sir…” he paused, causing Tetsuzaemon to turn to him. Minato turned to him as well. “At this point, I don’t think anyone can stop him. At least, not without a fight.” he pointed out and Tetsuzaemon moaned.

“Does the Captain know about this?” he asked, getting a head shake in return.

“I don’t think so, sir. I know the guy needs to stop, but I’m afraid if we tell the Captain, he might end up doing something worse, knowing him.” Minato stated.

Tetsuzaemon turned back towards the grounds. The officer had a good point, Timothy was the type of individual that would do whatever was necessary to get done what he needed to.

But the man had to be stopped.

“I’ll deal with it.” Tetsuzaemon responded a moment later, then flash stepped away.

“I don’t like the look of this.” Minato mumbled, then followed the Lieutenant.

Down at the grounds, Timothy was short on breath as he swung three times in quick succession, then transported back to the kidō targets.

He held up two fingers. “Hadō #4, Byakurai!” he announced, and energy bolts emitted from his fingers and destroyed the target.

He transported again near the tree and swung at the air. But his sword actually hit something.

A loud clang sound emitted as Timothy’s sword collided with another sword, Tetsuzaemon’s sword. Timothy glared at him and the man glared back from behind his shades.

“Can I help you, Lieutenant?” Timothy asked, keeping his pose.

“Yeah, you can stop your nonsense.” he flatly responded.

Timothy rose a brow. “Excuse me sir?” he half asked.

Tetsuzaemon lowered his blade, but kept his stare. “I said you can cut out this nonsense. Enough is enough.” The Lieutenant responded in a serious tone.

Timothy stood straight. “Not for me it isn’t…sir.” Timothy remarked in nonchalant manner.

“Yes, it is. Now get your ass back to the barracks and get yourself cleaned up. And if I catch you out here doing another stunt like that again, we’re gonna have a serious problem.” Tetsuzaemon demanded, now angry.

“I’ll leave when I am ready to leave.” Timothy retorted.

“Excuse me?!” Tetsuzaemon demanded, now getting furious.

Timothy kept his serious expression as he stared back at the Lieutenant.

“In case you have forgotten, the Captain gave me permission to train how I wish, that was part of the deal for me joining. So, if you have a problem Lieutenant, take it up with the Captain.” Timothy flatly pointed out in a raised voice.

Minato meanwhile stood there completely shocked. He couldn’t believe that this man had the guts to talk down on the Lieutenant.

He then raised his hand slightly and took a step forward. “Fellas, lets all calm…” he started as Timothy turned to him.

“With all due respect Minato, stay out of this.” Timothy warned, causing the man to stop.

Normally, he would have said something to him about his disrespect, but the look in the man’s eyes told him to listen to his words.

“That is enough!” Tetsuzaemon yelled, getting Timothy’s attention.

“You want a beat down? Well then I’ll give it to you.” Tetsuzaemon stated as he entered a combat stance.

Timothy rose a brow. “I’m not so sure you want to do that Lieutenant, I’m not as weak as I was before.” he warned, causing the Lieutenant to scoff.

“If you think you’re good enough to take me on, then prove it!” he bellowed.

Timothy closed his eyes and lowered his head. “Fine.” he answered, then turned to Minato. “Minato, I’d stand back if I were you.” Timothy warned, and the man quickly flash stepped to the edge of the field.

Timothy turned to the Lieutenant. “You better not hold back Lieutenant, cause I won’t.” Timothy growled, and the man nodded.

“I don’t want you to hold back, show me what you’ve got, fool.” he retorted as Timothy got into his stance as well.

They both knew that this was not going to be a normal duel, this was a serious matter.

“First to draw blood?” he half asked, and the man nodded.

“First to draw.” Tetsuzaemon acknowledged.

A moment passed in silence as both men stared at each other. Then suddenly, Tetsuzaemon flash stepped, ending up behind Timothy to swing down.

Timothy expected this, and quickly rolled to the right, swinging back once he stopped on his knee.

Tetsuzaemon leaped back, but Timothy then disappeared. The Lieutenant quickly looked behind him to see Timothy was there and ready to swing.

“Don’t play into your enemy’s hands!” Timothy yelled as he swung.

Tetsuzaemon quickly flash stepped to the left and swung across. Timothy quickly blocked and held up his hand.

“Hadō #31, Shakkahō!” he yelled and sent a red ball of fire at the Lieutenant at point blank range.

The Lieutenant quickly swung his body to the side, keeping his sword locked with Timothy’s and let the kidō pass by in front of him, just barely missing. He then turned and bought his left leg up to kick, Timothy vanishing just before he made contact.

Tetsuzaemon turned to see Timothy was now on his left side, ready to strike. He waited just a second until Timothy swung, then darted to the side and swung back.

Tetsuzaemon nicked Timothy’s shihakusho in the side, but just barely missed the man’s skin. Timothy responded with a quick kick towards the man’s face, but Tetsuzaemon leaned back, letting the foot pass by.

Timothy quickly vanished and remained hidden. Tetsuzaemon got into a stance and waited for him to make his move.

“You gonna try to make me lose my patience too? Well, I’ve already lost it with you, but I’m not going to let myself become reckless.” Tetsuzaemon stated as he continued to wait for his opponent.

After a minute, Tetsuzaemon flinched and quickly swung behind him and caught Timothy’s sword as he tried to hit him from behind.

“Avoid blocking if you can, otherwise your opponent can plan his next move, Lieutenant.” Timothy mocked, then grinned. “Too bad I’ve already made my plan.” he added and Tetsuzaemon quickly looked down with wide eyes to see two fingers extended into his gut.

“Bakudō #9, Hōrin.” Timothy commanded.

Before Tetsuzaemon could react, an orange energy vine wrapped around him and bound his arms down.

“Have a nice trip!” Timothy yelled as he flung his hand out and threw the Lieutenant away from him and towards the stands.

Tetsuzaemon landed with a crash as his body tore through the stands, stopping him. A second later, Timothy appeared right in front of him.

“Get up Lieutenant, this ain’t over.” he demanded with a serious stare.

Tetsuzaemon quickly shook his head and got back up, returning to a combat stance.

“You’re damn right it ain’t over! Is that all you got?!” he yelled back, getting a raised brow from Timothy.

“You want more? Fine with me.” Timothy responded as he charged right at the Lieutenant.

Tetsuzaemon quickly held up his hand.

“Bakudō #8, Seki.” he commanded.

A small, blue orb appeared in front of his hand, but did nothing else. Timothy tried to stop his swing, but not in time. His blade hit the orb and was repelled back against him, tossing him back across the grounds. He managed to land on his feet, but quickly turned to see Tetsuzaemon now behind him in a swing.

Luckily, Timothy had one of his flames nearby, so he quickly used it transport to a flame a little distance away from the Lieutenant. He looked down to see that the fabric over his right leg had a rip through it, telling him that Tetsuzaemon had almost got him.

“Come on, quit playing games.” Tetsuzaemon demanded, getting Timothy’s attention. “You’re obviously stronger than before, but you’re still holding back. Quit playing around and take this fight seriously.” he followed, getting a growl from Timothy.

“Fine…as you wish.” he replied, then held up his fingers.

“Hadō #4…” he started, but before he could finish, Tetsuzaemon flash stepped behind him, sword high.

Timothy simply glanced behind him and Tetsuzaemon flinched when he saw Timothy’s ‘other’ hand pointing right at him.

“Byakurai!” Timothy finished as a blue energy bolt lit on his fingers.

_‘Damn, I fell for it!’_ Tetsuzaemon mentally berated.

Tetsuzaemon knew he couldn’t dodge in time. But lucky for him, this was one of Timothy’s bad ‘occasions’. His kidō immediately exploded in his face, tossing both of them back.

Tetsuzaemon landed on his feet, unscathed. But Timothy took the whole force of it and got thrown back. He landed on his back and slid across the field a few feet.

“Huh…looks like you need to learn to control your kidō better, fool!” he yelled as Timothy began to get to his feet.

“Ha! You missed an easy opportunity to draw first blood, that makes you the fool, Lieutenant.” Timothy retorted as he got to his feet.

Tetsuzaemon scoffed back at him. “I thought you said you weren’t going to hold back…so what’s keeping you?” he taunted.

“Nothing…I was just waiting for that explosion to happen.” Timothy calmly responded to the taunt.

Tetsuzaemon gave him a serious look. “What are you blabbing about?” he demanded.

“I’ve been paying close attention to when my kidōs tend to explode on me. After a while, I’ve determined that they seem to explode on me every four to six times that I use one, regardless of the power. So, I’m guessing that after it happens, my concentration on casting them gets higher.” Timothy explained.

“What do you mean?” Tetsuzaemon asked, now puzzled.

Timothy grinned. “This is what I mean.” he returned, then raised his palm up. “Sprinkled on the bones of the beast.” he started and Tetsuzaemon widen his eyes in shock.

“You fool! You’ll kill yourself!” he yelled, then flash stepped over to Timothy to cut him off.

As he did, Timothy quickly vanished and re-appeared a few feet away behind him. “Sharp tower, red crystal, steel ring.” Timothy continued.

Tetsuzaemon quickly flash stepped again to him and swung, but he quickly transported over to his right.

“Move and become the wind…”

Tetsuzaemon stepped and attacked again, trying to stop him. But Timothy again transported just out of reach, now behind him again.

“…stop and become the calm.”

Again, Tetsuzaemon stepped to him, but he kept moving away at the last second. And he couldn’t predict Timothy’s movements because his teleporting was too fast for him to track.

“The sound of warring spears…” Timothy continued on the man’s right.

Tetsuzaemon was now getting desperate. Not because he was afraid of getting hit, but because if that kidō exploded on Timothy with a full incantation, he would most certainly be killed.

“…fills the empty castle.” Timothy finished.

_‘I have no choice!’_ Tetsuzaemon quickly thought as he held is palm out.

“Bakudō #63, Sajō…” Tetsuzaemon started, but too late.

Timothy was now suddenly behind him, palm up.

“Hadō #63, Raikōhō!” he yelled.

A bright, yellow ball of electricity quickly built up in Timothy’s palm, then shot out at the Lieutenant. He quickly turned with wide eyes, knowing there was nothing he could do.

But suddenly, a large being flash stepped in front of him.

“Bakudō #81, Dankū.” the being spoke.

Immediately, a large, transparent barrier appeared and Timothy’s kidō collided with it, causing it to split and erupting out to the sides, kicking up dust. Everything froze as Timothy waited for the dust to settle, but once it finally did, he was shocked at what he saw.

Sajin Komamura standing in front on the Lieutenant with a barrier in front of him. After a moment, the barrier began cracking, then shattered as it’s effects wore away.

Both Sajin and Timothy stared at each other; Timothy with a look of shock, and Sajin with a look of anger.

“What is the meaning of this?” he demanded in a low, but disappointed tone.

Tetsuzaemon waked up to the Captain, causing him to turn to him.

“Captain, I was showing Timothy here what it means to…” he started, but was interrupted.

“Lieutenant…” Timothy began, causing both men to turn to him.

Timothy then turned to Sajin. “I disrespected the Lieutenant when he tried to stop my training. It elevated from there and we ended up fighting, sir. I have no excuse for it.” Timothy flatly elaborated.

Sajin turned to Tetsuzaemon, who nodded in agreement, then turned back to Timothy.

“I see. So, tell me this, when did you come to believe that it was a good idea to use a 60s level kidō, with a full incantation, against a fellow squad member, even in a fight such as this?” Sajin demanded.

“He told me not to hold back, so I didn’t. As I said, I have no excuse. If you’re going to punish, or reprimand me, just do it Captain.” Timothy ordered.

Tetsuzaemon was about to berate him, but Sajin predicted this and held his arm out.

“I see. Normally, I would do so. But fortunately for you, you are technically not at fault here.” Sajin stated, getting a confused look in return.

“What do you mean, Captain?” Timothy inquired.

“Lieutenant Iba had instructed you to not hold back, and obviously, you didn’t. So technically, you were following orders. But keep this in mind, Timothy Durn, do not do something like that again.” Sajin instructed as he lowered his arm down from in front of Tetsuzaemon.

Timothy bowed.

“Thank you, sir. Might I ask a question?” Timothy added.

“What is it?” Sajin responded as Timothy raised himself.

“With all due respect sir, could you stop your act now?” Timothy asked, getting raised brows from him and the Lieutenant.

“What do you mean?” Sajin asked in return.

Timothy gestured to the small forest behind him.

“You were hiding in those woods long before I attacked the Lieutenant with that kidō. Again, with respect sir, if you think I didn’t notice you, you’re a fool.” he flatly stated.

Sajin widened his eyes in surprise, then turned to the woods.

“And how did you know? I concealed my spirit energy, so you shouldn’t have been able to detect me.” he asked, and Timothy pointed at Tetsuzaemon.

“I have him to thank for it. He taught me to always move or act in a way the enemy wouldn’t predict. So ever since then I’ve always had one of my flames hidden in the woods as a quick getaway. After he dodged my kidō, I relocated to the woods to hide and plan my next move. That’s when I saw you.” Timothy cleared and Tetsuzaemon scoffed.

“Hmph. So that’s where you were hiding huh?” he retorted, and Timothy grinned.

“While you were worried about where I would show up, I was planning my next move. Did you honestly think that I was only training my body, Lieutenant? This whole time, I was training my mind as well.” Timothy shot back, getting a chuckle from Sajin.

“Well done Timothy.” Sajin offered.

“One question though sir.” Timothy responded, getting a nod back.

“If using a 60s level kidō in a squad fight is not allowed, why did you not stop me? Surely you should have known I was doing it because it took a while to get that incantation out. So why?” Timothy asked, causing Tetsuzaemon to turn to Sajin, interested in the answer as well.

“Very perceptive. Indeed, I did know what you were going to do, but as I said, Tetsuzaemon instructed you to not hold back, so I didn’t interfere.” he answered in a calm tone.

“Don’t give me that crap, Captain. I’m not stupid. If using a 60s level kidō is so dangerous to use in a squad fight, especially with a full incantation, you would have jumped in, regardless of what your Lieutenant said. Now quit playing hooky with the truth.” Timothy demanded.

_‘This man is more perceptive and intelligent than I thought…’_ Sajin inwardly concluded.

“Very well…the truth of the matter is that I’m impressed with your abilities. Although your core skills still need work, your overall combat abilities are impressive.” Sajin admitted, then glanced to Tetsuzaemon.

“You managed to best my Lieutenant, much to his dismay.” he added, causing Tetsuzaemon to slightly lower his head in shame.

“Forgive me Captain.” he pleaded in a low tone.

“There’s nothing to forgive, Tetsuzaemon. It’s quite simple, your skills are easily far more advanced than his, but the truth of the matter is that they are simply no match for his ‘style’ of fighting.” Sajin reassured, causing him to feel a bit better.

“Yes sir.” he responded, then turned to Timothy.

“Even I have to admit, I simply cannot fight you using my traditional method of fighting.” Tetsuzaemon reluctantly agreed as Sajin turned to Timothy.

“So, with all things considered; even though you tend to overdo things, and you have only been here for a little over a week, I am still considering assigning you as my new 5th seat.” Sajin stated, getting shocked looks from Timothy and Tetsuzaemon.

“There is no way you can be serious right now, Captain. How about you stop playing games.” Timothy responded in shock, surprisingly earning a nod from Tetsuzaemon.

“I am not playing any ‘games’, Timothy Durn. You managed to beat my Lieutenant, a former member of Squad 11, the most well-known fighting squad in the soul society. That means you can fight at a Lieutenant’s level and be able to hold that position. So, placing you as my 5th seat would actually be considered an ‘under-placement’.” Sajin cleared.

Timothy thought it over for a moment, trying to determine if it was a trick. But the look that Sajin was giving had told him otherwise.

“And what if I decide to refuse?” Timothy inquired, surprising Sajin.

“Then that is your choice, but not one I think you’ll make.” he returned, causing Timothy to scoff.

“You think you know me?” Timothy asked sarcastically, getting a nod back.

“I know the type of person you are. I know you care deeply for others, but you try to hide it. I can also see that you are fighting for something important to you, and you intend to not let anything get in your way.” the Captain pointed out.

Timothy slightly flinched, then lowered his head.

“What do you know about it? You have no idea what I’ve been through.” Timothy retorted.

Sajin gave a sigh, walked over to him and placed a hand on his shoulder.

“I may not know what you have been through, but I do know the pain you feel. I also know that suppressing that pain will only make it worse.” Sajin tried to comfort, but got a scoff instead.

“If you say so, Captain.” he returned.

Sajin was about to say something further, but stopped when he noticed someone walking up to them. He turned to the man and inwardly moaned when he saw Captain Zaraki approaching.

_‘Why did he have to choose now to show up?’_ he complained mentally, then turned to the man.

“Captain Zaraki, what brings you here?” Sajin asked in an annoyed and slightly angry tone.

The man looked at him with a serious expression.

“I’m looking for someone, someone that one of your boys brought back here from Rukongai.” he flatly answered, causing Sajin to slightly fret.

As soon as Kenpachi said that, Sajin knew immediately who he was looking for, and the man was standing right next to him.

“Might I ask your reason?” Sajin returned, though he already had an idea as to why.

“I’m looking for the guy who gave my boys a good beating. He seems to be strong, so I thought I’d see it for myself.” he flatly answered.

As he did, the gears in Timothy’s head clicked, and he quickly turned to the man.

“Can I ask your name, Captain?” Timothy asked in a serious tone, causing the man to glance at him.

“I’m the Captain of Squad 11, Kenpachi Zaraki. So, who the hell are you?” he returned in a similar tone.

Sajin decided that now was the time to step in before something happened. He turned back to Zaraki, and was about to speak, but Timothy acted first.

“Timothy Durn, the one that put a ‘beating’ on your ‘boys’.” Timothy answered with an angry tone, causing the man to grin.

“Is that right?” he asked, getting a nod in return.

“It is. So, tell me, what are you gonna do, Captain?” Timothy slightly taunted, causing the man to grin even more.

“You’ve got guts, I like that. Maybe you’ll give me a good fight.” Zaraki pointed out, getting a scoff back.

Sajin turned back to Timothy to see he had an angry look on his face, and he began to worry.

“What makes you think I’d fight a pathetic excuse for a Captain like you?” Timothy returned in a growl.

Zaraki rose a brow in surprise, not expecting someone like him to talk down upon a Captain, especially him. Sajin quickly interjected.

“That is enough.” he stated as he stepped between them.

“I don’t think so Sajin, I want to hear what this guy has to say.” Zaraki demanded, and Timothy took a step to the side, so he could see Zaraki past Sajin.

“You want to hear what I have to say? Fine. I think you’re nothing more than a gang leader.” Timothy accused, causing Zaraki to raise a brow in surprise.

“Your men have constantly terrorized my home in Rukongai. We looked up to you soul reapers for help, for protection from the criminals. And yet, it turned out that your men were worse than the criminals. What kind of a Captain are you that allows such nonsense?” Timothy finished.

Sajin and Tetsuzaemon both stared at Timothy with complete shock as Timothy stared down Zaraki with a look of hatred. Tetsuzaemon walked over and set a hand on the man’s shoulder.

“Easy there, you better calm down and watch yourself.” he warned, getting Timothy’s attention.

“Unless you want to go another round, stay out of it.” Timothy seethed in anger.

The three men could clearly see in his eyes that he meant exactly what he said. But the look in his eyes also caused Zaraki to ‘smile’.

“I like the look in your eyes! If you’re so angry with me, then go ahead and take it out on me.” Zaraki taunted, getting Timothy’s attention back.

“Be careful what you ask for, you oversized brute.” Timothy growled through his teeth.

Sajin had had enough, he needed to stop this before another fight broke out, one that would result in Timothy’s death. Timothy may have had a good fighting strategy that was hard to counter, but fighting strategies meant nothing when pitted against Zaraki.

Sajin stepped back between the two men and turned to Zaraki.

“Captain Zaraki, if you have no business to discuss, then I must ask you to leave.” Sajin half commanded.

Zaraki’s grin disappeared as he turned to him.

“Tsk…whatever.” he answered, then turned back to Timothy. “If you feel like settling your grudges against me, you’ll know where to find me.” he stated, then turned and began walking away.

As he turned, his pink haired Lieutenant hopped onto his shoulder and waved.

“Bye Koma-Koma, Shades, and Zippy! Come and visit us soon, okay?!” she yelled and Sajin nodded, but Timothy rose a brow.

“Zippy?” he deadpanned.

Sajin continued to watch Zaraki as he walked across the field towards the headquarters. Timothy returned from his confusion and turned to him.

“Captain Komamura.” he called, and he turned to him. “Tell me…how did a man like him ever manage to become a Captain?” Timothy asked.

Sajin turned to him fully and sighed.

“He became a Captain through a method that none of us are proud of.” he answered, and timothy rose a brow.

“Method?” Timothy half asked, confused even more.

Sajin sighed again. “I see you have not gotten the far in the book on the laws. There are three methods to become a Captain. The most common method is to take the proficiency test. The member must have achieved Bankai, and the test is given by three Captains, including the Head Captain.” Sajin was stopped by Timothy holding up a hand.

“What’s a Bankai?” he asked.

“Remember our fight when I used Tenken against you?” Sajin asked in return, getting a nod.

“That was my Shikai, my zanpakutō’s first release. Most everyone has achieved this release. But for those that train hard and long enough, they may possibly gain their zanpakutō’s second release, called a Bankai. It’s immensely powerful, but depending on the user, can be very hard to control.” Sajin answered, getting a nod to continue.

“The second method, although not used as much, is to be recommended for the position by six Captains. In addition, the member must also be given the approval for the position by three other Captains. Only those who have truly proven to be fully capable have used this method.” Sajin paused a moment and lowered his head.

“The final method…is to challenge a Captain to a duel, a fight to the death. The fight is only between the Captain and the challenging member. The duelists also have to have at least 200 members of that squad present to witness to fight. If the challenger can fight, and defeat the current Captain, he then takes his position as the new Captain. This was the method Captain Zaraki used.” Sajin finished, getting a look of anger from Timothy.

“That’s barbaric, true to his nature.” Timothy commented as Sajin and Tetsuzaemon nodded in agreement.

“Yes, and no one approves of it, but it is the law.” Sajin returned, then Timothy placed his chin in his hand in thought.

“So, any member can challenge a Captain?” he asked in directly and the two officers widened their eyes.

“Don’t even think about it Durn.” Tetsuzaemon warned, getting him to turn.

“Why? Is his zanpakutō release that good?” Timothy asked.

“He doesn’t have a release.” Tetsuzaemon responded, getting a confused look.

“Then how can he be a Captain? Isn’t a release required?” Timothy asked, and Sajin sighed again.

“In his case, no. There are no requirements to challenge a Captain. But even if he does not have a release, you are no match for him.” Sajin warned, now getting Timothy’s full attention.

“I managed to fight you and the Lieutenant, and you used a release.” Timothy pointed out.

“That does not matter. Captain Zaraki’s fighting skills and endurance are something beyond comprehension. Except for the Head Captain, he is the strongest fighter in the soul society. Unfortunately, even I must admit that I cannot fight one-on-one with the man.” Sajin reluctantly stated.

Timothy thought about his statement, then sighed.

“I understand. So, what happens now, Captain?” Timothy asked and Tetsuzaemon turned to him.

“Continue your training, as long as you don’t kill yourself.” he instructed, and Sajin looked at him.

“Also, consider my offer for the officer’s position.” Sajin added, getting an annoyed look back.

“I might not want the position. I’ve got my own problems to worry about right now.” Timothy stated, getting a nod from Sajin.

“I understand. But I would still like you to consider it. Come, Tetsuzaemon. We have our own tasks to catch up on.” Sajin instructed, getting a nod in return.

“Yes sir.” He answered, then turned back to Timothy. “We’re not done with our fight, Durn. We’ll continue this another time.” he warned, and Timothy snorted.

“Anytime you want your ass handed to you again, feel free to come and find me.” he taunted back, causing the man to slightly growl and Sajin to chuckle.

Both officers began walking back towards the headquarters while Timothy stood there.

“Should I take it?” he asked in a low voice.

**_“It sounds like a good plan to me.”_** the sword answered, getting a sigh from him.

“I’m not so sure myself. But, besides that we seem to have a new problem…a big one.” he returned.

**_“You’re talking about that gorilla Zaraki, aren’t you?”_** it asked, getting a slight nod back. **_“I agree, he’s definitely going to be a problem for us.”_** the sword admitted.

“Yeah, if we end up fighting him, it’s possible we may have to use your full power.” Timothy stated, causing the sword to fret.

**_“It’s too risky Tim, you know that.”_** it warned, but Timothy sighed.

“If I fight him, we may have no choice.” Timothy pointed out.

**_“Well, let’s hope it doesn’t come to that. So, what are you going to do now? Train more?”_** the sword inquired, getting a head shake in return.

“No, I think I need to put my training on hold for a bit.” he answered as he sheathed his sword and turned to the tree.

“Right now, I need to focus on getting in touch with my zanpakutō.” Timothy finished as he began walking towards the tree.

**_“Well, good luck with that.”_** the sword mocked, causing Timothy to growl.

“Shut up.” he replied as he arrived at the tree.

Timothy drew his zanpakutō, then sat down next to the tree and set his weapon on his lap. He sat there thinking for a moment, then finally took a deep breath and closed his eyes.

** Squad 7 Headquarters, Seireitei, 5 minutes later **

Sajin and Tetsuzaemon entered the Captain’s office and walked over to the desk, both taking their appropriate seats. Sajin poured two small cups of tea and handed one to the Lieutenant.

“I know you wish to say something Tetsuzaemon, so go ahead.” Sajin instructed as he took a sip.

Tetsuzaemon placed the cup on the desk and set his hands in his lap as he sighed.

“Captain…I’m not so sure about offering Durn an officer’s position.” he stated as he looked back at Sajin.

Sajin had expected him to say something along those lines. He and Timothy were just two individuals whose personalities wouldn’t allow them to get along.

“Might I ask what your reasoning is behind that statement?” Sajin asked, although he was sure he knew the answer.

“The truth is Captain, he and I may not see eye to eye, but that is not why I don’t think he should be given the position. It’s his demeaner in general.” the Lieutenant stated as Sajin set his cup down.

“What exactly do you mean?” Sajin asked back, getting another sigh from the Lieutenant.

“What I mean sir, is that Durn tends to act on impulse. He acts before he stops to think about the actions.” Tetsuzaemon rephrased, get a slight nod from the Captain.

“I see. That may be true, but it can also be corrected, given time and effort.” Sajin offered to the man’s dismay.

Tetsuzaemon didn’t like the tone the Captain was using when he made the remark.

“May I ask what you intend to do about it, Captain?” the Lieutenant hesitantly inquired. Sajin rose a brow and continued to look at him as the Lieutenant’s suspicions came true. “You want me help him, don’t you sir?” he asked, knowing the answer.

Sajin grinned and nodded, knowing his Lieutenant was not happy with it.

“Yes. I would like for you to take him in, try to help him overcome his ‘impulsiveness’. If anyone else were to help him, he would become better, but his method of acting before thinking would remain.” Sajin instructed, getting a sigh from him.

“You do realize that it would likely result in further fights, right Captain?” he asked in a worried tone.

Sajin chuckled back at him.

“I don’t recall you ever avoiding a fight, Tetsuzaemon.” Sajin teased, getting a sigh back.

“If you two do end up fighting again, that’s fine as long as neither of you kill the other. Just be sure you take it away from the Seireitei. I don’t need Timothy destroying the grounds in the process.” he added in a joking tone.

Tetsuzaemon slightly lowered his head and rubbed his temples.

“I have a bad feeling about this Captain.” he warned, then returned to Sajin. “When would you like me to start?” he inquired in a depressed manner.

“Tomorrow. For now, let him be.” Sajin instructed as he finished his cup and set it back down. “Now, let’s get this paperwork finished.” Sajin stated, but Tetsuzaemon slightly lowered his head. “Is there something else Tetsuzaemon?” Sajin asked with a raised brow.

The Lieutenant raised his head back to him. “If I may ask sir, what is your plan about Durn and Captain Zaraki?” Tetsuzaemon asked with a hint of worry.

Sajin set the papers down and began stroking the fur on his chin. The Lieutenant posed a good question. It was now evident that Captain Zaraki had chosen Timothy as a ‘sparring’ victim. If Zaraki wanted to fight him, he would find a way to do so, and Timothy had no chance against him.

“Leave that to me, Tetsuzaemon. I’ll figure something out.” he assured him.

Tetsuzaemon nodded then stood up to bow. There was then a knock on the office door, so Tetsuzaemon stepped aside.

“You may enter.” Sajin responded.

The door opened and the 8th seat walked in a few feet before bowing.

“Please forgive the interruption sir, but a messenger from Squad 4 just reported that Hetoku and the other members’ bodies can now be retrieved.” the man reported.

Sajin nodded, signaling the man he may leave, then turned to the Lieutenant.

“Tetsuzaemon, please see to it that their bodies are returned here promptly.” Sajin instructed in a saddened tone, getting a nod in return.

“Yes sir.” Tetsuzaemon responded in a similar tone.

He then bowed, Sajin returning the gesture, then walked out of the room, closing the door behind him. Sajin picked the papers back up and began sifting through the top layers.

However, he didn’t get far as he heard another knock on his door. Sajin inwardly sighed as he set the papers back down on the desk.

“You may enter.” he answered.

The door slowly opened, and to his surprise, Captain Hitsugaya walked in, closing the door behind him.

“Good afternoon, Captain Komamura.” the short Captain greeted.

“Good afternoon, Captain Hitsugaya. What can I do for you today?” Sajin greeted back as he gestured to the seat in front of his desk.

Tōshirō walked up to the desk and sat down in front of him.

“I was hoping you could do me a favor, Captain.” he started, getting a nod to continue. “I would like to send a couple of my squad members with your replacements in response to this hollow attack.” he responded, causing Sajin to raise a brow in question.

“May I inquire as to why, Captain Hitsugaya?” Sajin asked, getting a serious look from the short Captain.

“This whole situation doesn’t sit well with me. There’s something about this matter that doesn’t make sense. I would like to send a couple of my squad members to conduct their own investigation. I’ll be sure they do not interfere with your squad’s duties.” Tōshirō reassured.

Sajin started stroking his chin in thought about the request.

“Have you inquired to the Head Captain about this?” Sajin asked in concern about the answer.

“No. As you are aware Captain, another squad may send their own members on a mission to the world of the living as long as the squad’s Captain has permission from the Captain of the sector’s assigned squad. So that is why I am asking you directly.” he clarified.

Sajin thought about it more but didn’t see a problem.

“Very well. You have my permission to send some of your squad members with mine. Considering what happened, it would be a good idea to have some assistance nearby. Please instruct your men that if they encounter this hollow to please get my mens’ help.” Sajin politely instructed.

“Very well Captain, I will inform them. You have my thanks.” Tōshirō finished.

He was about to stand, but Sajin held up his hand to stop him.

“One more thing if you have a moment, Captain Hitsugaya.” Sajin asked, getting a nod back.

“Perhaps you could give me an opinion on a rather…odd matter.” Sajin struggled to find a good term.

“Very well, what is it?” Tōshirō asked.

Sajin sighed and rubbed his temples.

“I will keep it short. I’ve recently inducted a new member into my squad.” Sajin paused, then Tōshirō nodded for him to continue.

“Barring the details, the man has managed to gain the interest of a particular, brutish Captain.” Sajin paused again, getting a knowing look from Tōshirō.

“I assume you’re referring to Captain Zaraki?” The short Captain asked, getting a nod back.

“The Captain was…’kind’ enough to pay my squad member a visit today, looking for a fight. Fortunately, I was there to prevent the massacre.” Sajin stated, getting a questioning look from Tōshirō.

“What exactly did your squad member do to ‘gain his interest’?” Tōshirō asked.

“Again, I’ll try to keep it short. But my squad recently assumed his squad’s sectors of Rukongai. This squad member is from one of those sectors. Before he came to be here, he managed to fight off seventeen of his squad members…alone.”

Sajin emphasized that last word, causing Tōshirō to raise a brow in disbelief.

“Seventeen members of squad 11? Alone?” Tōshirō asked in surprise, getting a nod back. “How did he manage to accomplish that?” he asked in amazement.

“His abilities are…interesting, to say the least. I’m not surprised he managed to defeat them with the way he did it.” Sajin clarified.

“I see. No wonder he got the Captain’s interest. So, what is the problem?” Tōshirō pressed.

“The problem, is that the squad member in question believes he can fight Captain Zaraki, and may try to take him up on his offer to fight.” Sajin answered in an annoyed tone.

Tōshirō eyes widened. “Is this man a fool?!” he quickly asked, getting a chuckle from Sajin.

“Tetsuzaemon thinks so. He’s a good man, just a bit too impulsive.” Sajin remarked, getting a nod back.

“I see. Well, since you are asking for my opinion, I’d suggest keeping him in a position where he won’t be able to come into contact with the Captain. It’s too bad I can’t do the same for me and a particular Lieutenant.” Tōshirō complained and Sajin chuckled.

“Very well. Thank you for your advice, Captain Hitsugaya.” Sajin stated in a bow.

Tōshirō the stood up and returned the gesture.

“Thank you for your time, Captain Komamura. I will send my selected squad members here when your team is ready to leave.” he replied as he rose.

Sajin nodded in acknowledgment, then the short Captain walked to the door and left the room.

Sajin sat there for a moment thinking on Tōshirō’s advice. But the problem he faced was how he was going to keep him from the Captain. He continued to ponder on the question as he returned to his papers.

** Squad 7 Training Grounds, Seireitei, 4 hours later **

The sun was starting to disappear on the horizon, yet Timothy still remained sitting next to the tree, constantly reaching out to the spirit of his zanpakutō.

But doing so was proving to be difficult, due to the anger he felt after his confrontation with the Squad 11 Captain. He only met the man once, and he already despised him. Many years of pointless suffering for himself and others, all because the man neglected to do his job as a Captain.

No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t the man’s face out of his mind, and it kept on distracting him. He took another deep breath as he tried again to clear his mind of the matter and call out to his zanpakutō, but he still couldn’t shake his thoughts away.

A voice deep down inside him kept telling him to just give up, to stop fighting. But he also knew deep down that it was not possible.

He tried taking another deep breath, but held it for a moment before very slowly letting it back out.

And this time, he thought that he suddenly felt something. Something…odd. It felt like something had tried to ‘pull’ on him from inside. But as briefly as it came, it just as briefly subsided. Timothy then took another deep breath, again holding it before slowly exhaling.

As the last bit of air left his lungs, he suddenly felt the sensation again, but a little more pronounced than last time. But it again quickly disappeared. Timothy knew that there was something happening, but he couldn’t quite place what it was.

Once again, he took a deep breath and let it out slowly. But this time, his body suddenly felt much lighter, almost as if he was floating. He wasn’t sure what was happening, but he didn’t get the chance to think about it because his mind suddenly seemed like it was being pulled from him as his thoughts evaporated.

Timothy slowly opened his eyes, and very much to his surprise, he found himself standing in a large field.

His eyes widened as he quickly looked around at the environment around him. Multiple thoughts and worries started to fill his head as he tried to figure out what had just happened.

_‘Where am I…and what is this place?’_ he thought as he turned this way and that, trying to understand what was going on.

It was then that he noticed that it was pouring down raining. But to his surprise, he wasn’t getting wet. He looked at his body all over and found that he was still completely dry.

_‘Okay…that’s weird.’_ he mentally stated as he turned back to the field.

Upon closer observation, he found that the field was completely barren, desolate, and overrun with weeds, as well as flooding in some spots. But what caught his eye the most about the field was the fact that they were on fire, and in the heavy rain as well.

He turned a little to see that there were also buildings around him. Some small, some large, but he also saw what appeared to be some sort of cathedral.

Every one of them in ruins. All of the roofs were caved in, most of the walls torn down, and the top of the cathedral was completely torn off and laying on the ground in front of it.

As he looked closer at the top of the cathedral, he noticed that it was squared and had a clock face on each side of it, each one broken and in multiple pieces. The ruins all appeared to be many years old, and were steadily falling apart as he stood there.

The area he was standing in looked like a ransacked medieval village, and it was starting to give him the chills. Just by simply standing there he could feel the despair that the place was emanating.

**“You are…persistent.”** a cold, and slow voice suddenly spoke.

The voice startled Timothy and he quickly turned around. His eye then fell upon a solemn figure sitting on the ground in front of the cathedral.

The figure was sitting on its leg with the other foot planted on the ground, one arm laying on top of its knee, while the other laying in its lap.

As Timothy looked a bit closer, he saw the figure was a man. The man was wearing red, tattered clothes, boots, and gloves that completely concealed his entire body. He was also wearing what looked to be a red sash that covered the top of his head, his neck, mouth, and ran over his left eye, leaving only his right eye visible.

It was then that Timothy noticed that the man had a small pair of black horns on the sides of his head, slightly pointing down. He also noticed that the man’s eye was yellow with a slit iris.

The man’s overall appearance reminded Timothy of a demon. As the man stared at him, he began to feel a bit fearful, but swallowed and took a chance at a question.

“A…are you my…zanpakutō?” Timothy hesitantly asked.

The man didn’t answer him, he simply continued to sit in his spot and stare at Timothy. He fretted for a moment, then tried another question.

“What is your name?” he asked.

But again, the man didn’t answer him, maintaining his gloomy stare. The man’s silence was starting to affect Timothy more.

“Are you not going to answer me?” he pressed.

Silence followed for a moment, but after that time, the man finally spoke.

**“Why should…I bother?”** it replied in its slow and depressed tone.

The question slightly confused Timothy as he tilted his head a bit.

“What do you mean?” he asked.

Silence followed for a moment before the man replied.

**“I could call…out to you…endlessly…and yet still…you would never…be able to…hear my name.”** the man answered in a very slightly higher tone.

This remarked only served to confuse Timothy more as he slightly shook his head.

“I don’t understand.” Timothy responded.

Again, a moment of silence passed before the man answered.

**“How could…you possibly…hear my name…when your heart…and soul is…filled…with such…raging emotions?”** the man pointed out, adding to Timothy cluelessness.

“What are you talking about?” Timothy asked, starting to get a little annoyed with the man.

**“I am speaking…of the emotions…that you have…kept locked…within yourself.”** he clarified.

Timothy’s patience was starting to grow thin, but he managed to keep calm for the moment.

“I still don’t understand what you’re talking about. Can you explain it?” Timothy asked.

As he asked the man, he saw the one exposed eye slightly narrow as the man focused more on him.

**“Despair...hatred…anger…these emotions…have filled…your heart…and tainted…your soul.”** the man added.

Timothy rose a brow at him. “What are you talking about?” Timothy asked in elevated tone.

**“You feel despair…for the ones…that you…have lost.”** The man began, causing Timothy to flinch.

**“You feel hatred…for those…who have…taken them…from you…”** the man continued, causing Timothy to ball his fists as the image of Aizen come to his mind.

**“And you…feel anger…anger…towards yourself…for what…you have deemed…to be…your failure…to protect them.”** the man finished.

Timothy lowered his head and bared his teeth in anger at the man’s words.

“How do you know all that?! How long have you known?!” Timothy growled.

**“I have…always known…Your wife…”** he started, causing Timothy to quickly look at him with wide eyes.

**“…your friend…Hetoku…”** he added, now causing Timothy to growl in anger.

“What do you know?! How could you possibly know what it feels like?!” Timothy yelled back at the man, tears starting to form in his eyes.

The man narrowed his gaze further.

**“I know exactly…what it…feels like.”** the man returned, then spread his arms out wide. **“Look at…this place…my world…my home…in ruins.”** the man continued, his voice never changing. **“This world…is affected…by the state…of your soul…”** the man added, then pointed at Timothy with a now serious glare. **“…and your soul…destroyed it.”** he finished in an angry tone.

The man’s voice startled Timothy a bit, just with the slight hint of evil behind it.

“My soul did this? And how is that possible?” Timothy demanded.

The man then lowered his hand and set it back in his lap.

**“The fields…they were…once golden…waving…with the breath…of the wind…now turned into…a desolate wasteland...by the…furious flames…of your anger.”** the man stated as he pointed to them with his other hand.

**“The buildings…that were…once immaculate…and beautiful…have crumbled…from the frailty…of your soul…caused by…your hatred.”** he continued, now pointing at the cathedral behind him.

**“And the sun…that once…blessed this place…with its…warm touch…is now covered…with the…torrential rain…that the sorrows…of your despair…has brought.”** he finished as he pointed to the sky.

He then spread his arms out wide again.

**“This…entire world…was brought…to ruin…because of you!”** he added in an angry tone as he pointed at Timothy.

Timothy slightly gasped as the man’s words began to seep into his mind. He then gritted his teeth and lowered his head in shame. Both men remained unmoving as the endless rain beat upon both of them.

‘I…I caused this? My pain…did this?’ Timothy began to dread.

He continued to stand there, head down as time passed. Finally, he wiped away his tears and turned back to the man.

“What do I need to do to fix this?” he solemnly asked.

The man stared at him for a moment, then finally stood up. The man was just a little taller than Timothy, and very slender. Timothy could now see the man’s long, knee length, red hair, tied into a single braid.

**“Let go…of the…pitiful feeling…within your heart…accept what…has happened…and learn…to let go…only then…can this world…ever recover…Only then…will you hear…my name.”** the man instructed.

He then turned away from Timothy for a moment, then glanced back to him.

**“Farewell…Timothy.”** the man finished.

As soon as the man finished, the whole world turned white as everything disappeared, then suddenly went black.

Timothy slowly opened his eyes as he came back into consciousness. He remained unmoving for a moment as he blinked repeatedly as clear his vision. After a brief moment, he looked up to see that in was now evening. The sun had gone down a while ago, but there was still a hint of light on the horizon.

Timothy took his face in his hands and started rubbing his face awake.

**_“Tim...are you ok?”_** his sword quickly asked in a worried tone.

“Uh…yeah…I’m fine.” he responded in a confused tine.

**_“I’ve been calling to you for an hour now, but you wouldn’t respond. Are you sure you’re alright?”_** it asked again, getting a nod back.

“Yeah, I’m fine. I just…I finally managed to speak with my zanpakutō.” Timothy sadly responded.

**_“You did? Well…what did it say?”_** the sword asked, causing Timothy to sigh.

“That I have destroyed myself.” he mumbled under his breath as he returned his zanpakutō.

**_“What do you mean Tim?”_** it asked confused.

“I’ll tell you another time. But right now, I have a lot on my mind.” Timothy answered as he got to his feet, his legs slightly cramped.

He stood there for a few minutes to let the blood return to his legs, then shook the cramps out. Once he finished, he turned towards the barracks and began a slow and thoughtful walk back.

Everything that the spirit had told him had shaken him and he began to hate himself for all the torturing he had been doing to himself all this time. It was then that he mentally decided that he needed to get some help, to ask someone to help him get over all of the emotions that plagued him.

Fortunately, he happened to know someone that should be able to help. And thankfully, tomorrow was a rest day, so he knew that person would be around. But, he was going to have to do something drastic, something that would put him, and his mission at a great risk.

As he got close to the barracks, he let out a sigh.

“There’s something I have to do…I and know for a fact…you will not like it.” he mumbled as he looked at his sword.

** Squad 7 Headquarters, Seireitei, The next morning **

Sajin and Tetsuzaemon were both sitting in the Captain’s office enjoying some tea and discussing paperwork matters.

They then both heard a knock on the door, and Tetsuzaemon scooted a little to the side.

“You may enter.” Sajin announced.

Outside, Timothy stood for a second as he gathered his wits for what he was about to do. He took a deep breath, then opened the door and walked in. He closed the door behind him, turned to Sajin, then bowed.

“Please forgive my intrusion sir. May I have a moment of your time?” Timothy politely asked, getting a surprised look from the Lieutenant.

“Of course. Please, come and have a seat.” Sajin instructed.

Timothy raised himself and began walking towards the man’s desk. Once he was there he sat down and slightly lowered his head.

“Tim? What’s wrong?” Sajin asked, now getting worried.

It was unlike Timothy to act like this, so fearful thoughts began to come to both of the officers’ minds.

Timothy again bowed.

“Captain, I wish to apologize to you both for the blatant disrespect that I have constantly shown you. You both have done so much for me, yet I have been ungrateful. Please forgive me.” Timothy pleaded in a low and solemn tone.

Both officers looked at each other confused, then back to him.

“I understand Tim. Your apology is accepted, from both of us.” Sajin returned.

Timothy raised himself, but kept his head low. Sajin rose a brow as Tetsuzaemon scooted closer to Timothy.

“Hey, what’s the problem here?” he asked in his usual gruff tone.

Timothy took a breath, then turned to the Captain.

“I managed to speak with my zanpakutō’s spirit yesterday.” Timothy informed, getting surprised looks from both men.

“I see. But judging by the look on your face, I am going to assume that it didn’t end well.” Sajin observed, and Timothy nodded.

“It’s a long story Captain, but before I begin…” Timothy paused for a moment.

Sajin again rose a brow, and Timothy’s sword stirred.

**_“Tim…are you sure about this? You know there’s no turning back.”_** it quickly stated.

_“I’m sure.”_ Timothy replied, then turned back to Sajin.

“Before I begin…there is…someone you should meet.” Timothy hesitantly finished, getting a nod back.

“Very well. And where is this person?” he asked.

Timothy took a deep breath, then slowly pulled his sword from his sash and set it on the table in front of him.

“Right here.” he answered in a sad tone.

Sajin and Tetsuzaemon looked at each other again with puzzled stares, then back to him.

“What do you mean?” Tetsuzaemon asked, and Timothy took another breath.

“Go ahead…introduce yourself.” he instructed.

A moment of silence fell on them, but it was broken by a feminine voice.

**“Good morning, Captain.”** the sword spoke out loud for the first time in years.

Both officers froze, eyes wide in shock.

“Perhaps I am losing my mind…but tell me I didn’t just hear that zanpakutō talk out loud…” Tetsuzaemon pleaded in a confused tone.

**“Well, from everything I have seen so far, you are crazy; and yes, you did hear me.”** the sword retorted.

Normally, Tetsuzaemon would have said something about the insult, but he was simply too shocked to even care.

“What is the meaning of this?” Sajin demanded to Timothy.

Timothy scratched his head for a moment.

“It’s…a long story sir. But…it has to do with a common enemy.” Timothy started, getting an angry look from Sajin.

“Let me guess, Aizen!” he seethed, and Timothy nodded.

“Before I begin, perhaps my sword should finish her introduction.” Timothy insisted, knowing that there was no turning back now.

Sajin growled, then looked down at the sword. “Go ahead.” he instructed.

**“Thank you, sir. You know me as Moeru Kitsune…but that is a false name. My real name…is Susan.”** she finished, and Timothy lowered his head.

“My wife.” He added, causing both officers to quickly turn to him in absolute shock.

“Say that again?!” Tetsuzaemon demanded, getting no reaction from Timothy.

**“I’m his wife…or at least…the soul of his wife.”** Susan answered, causing both men to turn to her.

“The soul?” Sajin asked, and Timothy nodded.

“It’s Aizen’s doing sir…he did something to her and sealed her in that sword.” Timothy solemnly answered.

Sajin closed his eyes and lowered his head in sorrow. Tetsuzaemon then started rubbing the back of his head, trying to comprehend everything he was seeing and hearing.

“Would you…care to meet her?” Timothy asked in sorrow.

Sajin raised his head back to him, even more puzzled.

“What do you mean?” he asked, and Timothy sighed.

“Exactly as I said, Captain. Would you like to meet her?” Timothy asked again.

Both officers looked at each other a moment, then turned back.

“Please.” Sajin responded, and Timothy nodded.

He raised his hand and set it and the hilt of the sword as tears came to his eyes.

“Release.” Timothy sadly commanded.

The sword then burst into flames and papers began scattering around the room. A moment later, the flames lifted off the sword and hovered over next to Timothy and began to take shape.

The two officers stared dumbfounded at what was happening right in front of them, mentally trying to believe what they were seeing. A moment later, the flames began to subside and disappear. The officers’ jaws dropped as they look at what was standing in front of them.

Where the flames once were, now stood a five-foot, seven-inch-tall, anthropomorphic red fox wearing a red kimono. The being was completely surrounded by calm, dancing blue flames around its body. After a moment, the being then lowered itself in a bow.

“I am Susan, Captain. It’s a pleasure to finally meet you.” she greeted, then Sajin slightly recovered from his shock.

“It’s…a pleasure for me as well.” he slightly stuttered.

Tetsuzaemon then got up and began walking towards her, but she quickly backed up and Timothy turned to him.

“Don’t touch her.” he warned, causing the man to turn to him.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, and Timothy turned back, head down.

“Her entire body is cover in what we call ‘Fox Fire’. Anyone who touches her immediately catches fire. For some reason, only I can touch her.” Timothy clarified.

Tetsuzaemon turned to her for a moment, then nodded.

“Fine.” he responded and returned to his seat.

Susan walked back over to Timothy and sat down next to him, placing her hand on his shoulder to prove his point. Both officers watched as the flames danced on his shoulder, but did not affect him, nor his clothes. Sajin then turned back to Timothy.

“Tetsuzaemon, please stand outside and do not let anyone in.” Sajin instructed, and the man nodded.

Tetsuzaemon then got up, took one last look at Susan, then walked to the door and left the room. Sajin let out a sigh and started rubbing his temples.

“Now, start explaining Tim.” Sajin ordered, and he nodded.

“Yes sir. It happened a few days after Susan and I both died, back in the living world. It was him and two others, but I can’t remember their names.” Timothy stated, and Sajin flinched.

“Would one of them happen to be Kaname Tōsen?” he asked, and the couple turned to him.

“Yes, that was it sir. So, I assume he was one of the defecting Captains?” Timothy inquired, getting a solemn nod from Sajin.

“I see. Anyway, the two of us were walking down the street back in our old city. The three of them then suddenly appeared behind us. We were both shocked that the men could see us, us being dead and all.” Timothy paused for a second and Sajin nodded to continue.

“Well, Aizen started talking about…an experiment or something, saying that we would be good subjects.” Timothy stated and Sajin slightly growled.

“Go on.” he instructed in an angry tone.

“Well, we both started running, and we ran for a good while. But, they still managed to find us somehow. We tried to run again, but the man with a blindfold blocked our path.” Timothy continued more.

“Kaname.” Sajin growled, then nodded for him to continue.

“We both suddenly saw a flash of light, then my body locked up and I fell to the ground. Aizen then walked up to Susan and pulled out some kind of…rock thing.” Timothy stopped when Sajin’s eyes went wide.

“The Hōgyoku!” he said in surprise, getting and odd look from the couple.

“The what?” Susan asked, and Sajin lowered his head.

“I’ll explain another time, but for now please continue.” Sajin requested, getting a nod back.

“Anyway, I saw the…Hōgyoku…start to glow, then…” he paused and lowered his head.

Susan placed a hand on his shoulder then turned to Sajin.

“My body suddenly burst into flames, but I wasn’t burning. I then felt an unbearable pain and dropped to my knees. A few minutes later, everything went dark.” she finished, and Timothy rose his head.

“I saw her body evaporate and turn into a small flame on the ground. The third man then handed Aizen a sword and Aizen held it out to the flame. He then chanted something, and the flame got absorbed by the sword.” Timothy added, and Sajin lowed his head in sadness.

“After that, Aizen sheathed the sword, then tossed it onto the ground next to me. The blindfolded man then walked over, drew his sword, and hit my head with the bottom of the hilt. The next thing I knew, I woke up in the woods in Fallen Tree.” Timothy finished, and Sajin sighed.

“He performed what is called a konsō on you. It is how soul reapers send souls that are still in the living world to the soul society. After the konsō is performed, the soul will wake up in the soul society. That is how you came to wake up in the forest in Rukongai.” Sajin educated, getting a nod of understanding from the pair.

The whole room went silent as Sajin tried to comprehend what he had just heard. But a moment later the silence was broken by Susan.

“Tim, I really should return.” she stated, and Timothy lowed his head.

“Return?” Sajin inquired, and Susan nodded.

“It’s impossible for me to stay like this indefinitely. Being released slowly takes up my energy, and if Timothy doesn’t reseal me, my soul will fade away.” she answered, and Sajin turned to see tears in Timothy’s eyes.

“I should never have done this.” Timothy stated in a low tone.

The pair slowly got up as Timothy grabbed the sword off the desk. He drew the sword from its scabbard and held it out in front of her.

“Breaths of wind sweeping the plains. Calm waters flowing smooth.”

Sajin’s eyes went wide as Timothy began an incantation for a high-level seal.

“Life of the sun during the day. Light of the moon during the night. All come together, creating harmony. Tengoku shīru.” Timothy chanted.

The flames on Susan’s body began to dance violently as she slowly lost her shape. Soon after, the flames started to seep into the sword, eventually disappearing.

Timothy lowered the sword to his side and sheathed it before slowly walking back to the desk and sitting down. He set the sword back on the table and lowered his head.

“You and the Lieutenant are the first ones to ever see her form…and I would like to ask that you keep it that way, Captain.” Timothy pleaded, and Sajin sighed.

“As far as I’m concerned, the only thing I saw was a man telling a sorrowful story of his past, nothing more.” Sajin reassured, and Timothy bowed.

“Thank you, Captain.” he answered, then rose.

Sajin let out a depressed sign as he turned around and poured Timothy some tea. He turned back, gave the cup to the man and crossed his arms in thought.

Both men sat in total silence; Timothy trying to recover from what he had done, and Sajin trying to comprehend everything he had seen.

After a few more moments, the Captain took a deep breath and closed his eyes.

“Timothy.” Sajin started, causing the man to look up to him. Sajin took another deep breath, then opened his eyes to him. “I am going to be blunt with you.” the Captain warned, getting an understanding nod. “This is a very delicate situation. Since you have read at least half of the book on our laws, you must have seen the laws regarding dangerous weapons that have not been sanctioned, correct?” Sajin asked, causing Timothy to lower his head again, but nod.

“This swor…I mean Susan, could possibly be considered a dangerous weapon. Although what happened was no fault of yourself, or Susan, the law does not take that into consideration. I am sure you are aware of what the repercussions for breaking those laws are, correct?” Sajin asked, getting another nod.

“I understand sir. If it comes down to it, I will leave the squad. That way, you cannot be held at fault for it.” Timothy stated, getting a sigh from Sajin.

“That will not be necessary.” Sajin replied, causing Timothy to look to him.

“What do you mean sir?” he asked.

“You are a good man, with a troubled past. You, and your wife, have both become victims in an evil man’s disgusting experiments. I cannot allow you to be held responsible, nor feel responsible for that man’s actions. If your secret is discovered by the Head Captain, I will gladly defend your case.” Sajin reassured.

Timothy lowered his head and Sajin could see a single tear fall from his face.

**“Captain…”** Susan spoke, getting the man’s attention.

“Yes?” he answered.

**“If our secret is discovered, why defend us? I may not know your laws, but common sense tells me that if you were to defend Timothy, your position as Captain, even your life could be at risk. So why?”** she asked in a saddened voice.

Sajin closed his eyes in thought as he prepared to answer her question.

“You saw my appearance for yourself, didn’t you?” Sajin asked.

**“Yes, I did.”** she replied, getting a nod back.

“Before I became a soul reaper, as I am sure you can imagine, I was constantly scrutinized and judged to be a monster, a freak. I spent most of my life avoiding others because of my appearance. But one day, a stranger found me, and took no heed to my appearance. It was because of that man I joined the academy as a soul reaper. Even the Head Captain, when he saw my face, did not judge me. Both of them viewed me as an equal. Do you want to know the name of the man that found me?” Sajin asked, causing Timothy to look up.

Sajin closed his eyes. “Kaname Tōsen.”

Susan slightly gasped and Timothy’s eyes widened.

“Wait…you mean the same man that…” Timothy paused, and Sajin nodded.

“The truth is, I feel guilty for what has happened to you two. The same man that viewed me as a being and not a monster, is the same being that caused you great pain and suffering. It is because of this I feel obligated to help you by keeping your secret.” Sajin assured, causing Timothy to sigh.

“Now, I do have a question regarding your secret.” Sajin paused, getting a nod telling him to ask his question. “Why tell me? Why not keep your secret from me? Surly you should have known the risks.” Sajin pointed out and Timothy sighed with a nod.

“I did. And your answer is because of my conversation with my zanpakutō.” Timothy answered, taking a sip of tea.

“Go ahead.” Sajin instructed.

“I’ll keep it short and to the point sir. When I spoke with my zanpakutō, he said that my heart and soul were filled with…horrid emotions.” Timothy started, causing Sajin to sigh in understanding.

“He said my heart was filled with anger, hatred, and despair. Despair for everyone I had lost, hatred for those who took them, and anger towards myself for feeling that I failed them.” Timothy continued, getting a slow nod.

“The thing is sir…I need help. I need help in trying to get rid of these emotions. And the truth is sir…I feel you’re the one I could turn to.” Timothy finished.

Sajin leaned back and started stroking his chin in thought. He knew what the man was talking about because he could actually see these emotions on his face every day. He wanted to help the man, but he faced a difficult problem.

Timothy was a…difficult individual, one who had gone through many years of keeping these emotions locked inside. It would take a great amount of effort to try and get him to release those feelings.

Sajin was just about to answer him, but he had a couple of questions that he couldn’t ask. So, came up with smart, and ironic, idea.

“Very well. I will help you. But, on one ‘condition’.” Sajin answered with a finger held up.

Timothy narrowed his gaze and sighed.

“And that is?” he asked.

“I have some questions about…Susan. You let me ask three questions, and you must answer them. Agreed?” Sajin asked, getting a surprised and worried look.

Timothy lowered his head in thought, but before he could say anything, Susan spoke up.

**“I will answer them.”** she stated, and Timothy turned to her.

“Are you sure?” he asked in worry.

**“Yes, he already knows about me, so what can it hurt?”** she returned.

Timothy took a deep breath in defeat. Afterall, she did have a valid point. Timothy turned to the Captain and nodded.

“Very well. My first question is, how can you use your…abilities?” Sajin started, and Susan answered.

**“The abilities are not actually Tim’s, they are mine. However, while I am sealed, I can still use my abilities as well as Tim, but at a weakened state. If Tim wants to use them, I simply allow him.”** she answered, getting a nod.

“I see. For my next question, I am going to assume that using her abilities uses up her energy. So, my question is, how does she recover her energy? Is it the seal?” he asked, looking at the sword.

“Not the seal itself, no. The seal only locks her soul into the sword, but cannot recover her energy. Instead, I have placed another seal on the scabbard, one that is similar to medical kidō that recovers spirit energy. As long as the sword is in the scabbard, she will recover her energy. It also acts as a barrier to protect the blade’s seal from being harmed in any way.” Timothy answered, getting another nod.

“I understand. And my final question, if the abilities are Susan’s, how are you able to use them Timothy? Can anyone use them if they are holding the blade?” Sajin asked, getting a head shake.

“Honestly sir, I really can’t answer that one because we really don’t know. The only thing I can give you is a theory.” Timothy offered, and Sajin nodded.

“We believe that somehow, when Aizen…” Sajin twitched at hearing the man’s name. “…did whatever it was to her, it somehow formed some kind of bond between us, allowing me to use her powers. It would also explain how when I came to the soul society, that she, or the sword she was sealed in, came with me. But again, it’s only a theory, Captain.” Timothy clarified.

Sajin took a breath and rubbed his head, feeling a headache coming. All three remained of them silent as Sajin pieced together what he was told and tried to understand it all.

“I understand. Very well, I will try to help you with releasing your emotions. Keep in mind that it may take some time. With everything that you two have been through, it won’t be easy. Do you understand?” Sajin asked and got a nod in return. “Very good. Also, I would like to ask if you have put any thought into my officer for 5th seat?” Sajin inquired.

Timothy gave a deep sighed and closed his eyes.

“Captain, considering everything we just discussed, are you sure that’s a wise idea?” Timothy asked to the ceiling.

Sajin nodded. “I am. Regardless of your…unique situation, I still see you as a worthy individual for the position. That has not changed with what you have told me.” Sajin reassured, getting a nod.

“I understand sir. Well…considering what you are doing for us, and the risk you are putting yourself in for helping us, I guess it would be the least I could do. So…I guess I’ll accept.” Timothy reluctantly answered.

Sajin slightly smirked and nodded. He had to admit that he respected the man, and he was glad that he could call him a comrade.

“Very well. Timothy Durn, you are hereby appointed as the 5th seated officer of Squad 7.” Sajin stated in an authoritative voice.

Timothy nodded, then bowed to him.

“Thank you, sir.” he responded, then straightened.

Sajin returned the bow and Timothy was about to get up to leave, but Sajin held a hand up to stop him.

“One more thing.” Sajin stated, causing Timothy to return to his seat. “Perhaps it would be possible to see Susan’s ‘released’ abilities for myself. Perhaps in combat?” Sajin attempted, but Timothy simply rose a brow.

“Two problems with that sir. One, where would we go? Someone would likely be able to sense her power. So, keeping this hidden would be close to impossible. And two, and with respect sir, I doubt you would have any chance at all to face her. If I could just barely handle you, then I doubt you could handle her.” Timothy pointed out, causing Sajin to raise a brow in surprise.

“I see. I am still willing to put that to the test. Also, I know of somewhere where we can go and not be disturbed. However, that is still up to you.” Sajin pressed, causing Timothy to fret.

**“I accept.”** Susan jumped in, causing both men to turn to the sword in surprise.

“Uh…are you sure?” Timothy asked in worry.

**“Yes, I am. You always get to have all the fun, now I have a chance to have some as well.”** she answered in a somewhat happy tone, causing Sajin to turn to Timothy.

“What does she mean by that?” he asked, getting Timothy’s attention.

“It means that I won’t be the one fighting you, she will. And this is where I have to warn you Captain…” he paused, causing Sajin to raise a brow. “If you fight her, I strongly recommend that you go all out on her from the start. She’s not like me, trying to discern your opponent, she will fight you all out, without holding back.” Timothy warned.

Sajin looked back at the sword for a moment, then back to Timothy.

“I see. So, can I assume that while she is released, you cannot use her abilities?” Sajin asked, getting a headshake.

“No, I can still use them at will, but I won’t be interfering. In truth, I don’t want to do this, but she’s insisting. So, she’s your opponent, not me. I’ll simply watch from the sidelines. So, when did you want to do this?” Timothy asked, but Susan again jumped in.

**“Why don’t we make this more interesting?”** she offered.

“How so?” Timothy asked as both men turned to her.

**“Get the Lieutenant in on this. That way, maybe next time he won’t make fun of my abilities.”** Susan teased, getting a chuckle from Sajin.

“That is interesting. Very well, I will see if he would join us.” Sajin paused, then turned to the door. “Tetsuzaemon.” Sajin slightly hollered.

A brief moment later, the door opened as the Lieutenant walked in. He closed the door and returned to the seat he was in before.

“Yes sir.” he answered, and Sajin turned to him.

“How would you feel about joining me in a fight against…Susan?” Sajin asked as he turned to her, causing Tetsuzaemon to turn and raise a brow.

“You plan to take on a Lieutenant ‘and’ a Captain?!” he asked in surprise.

**“Yes. Timothy has already fought both of you, so now it’s my turn to have some fun.”** she stated in an amused voice.

Timothy lowered and shook his head in disbelief.

“I cannot believe this is happening.” he moaned as he started rubbing his temples. Timothy then turned back to Sajin. “Alright, I’ll let her fight. But if I see that she is starting to struggle with holding her form, the fight stops right there and then. No exceptions Captain.” Timothy pointed out flatly.

Sajin and Tetsuzaemon both nodded and Timothy sighed.

“So, when and where?” he asked.

Sajin turned to Tetsuzaemon, who nodded, then back to Timothy.

“Will one hour from now work for you?” Sajin offered.

**“Sounds good to me.”** Susan answered, causing Timothy to sigh and Sajin to nod.

“Very well. Please return here in one hour. Besides that, I have nothing further, so you may leave.” Sajin stated in a polite manner.

Timothy grabbed the sword and stood.

“Thank you for everything sir.” he stated in a bow.

Sajin returned the bow, then Timothy turned and began walking towards the door. Once he had left the room and closed the door, Tetsuzaemon turned to the Captain.

“Are you sure about this sir? I mean, two on one?” Tetsuzaemon asked, getting a chuckle.

“To be honest, I don’t think that it’s her you need to be worried about, Tetsuzaemon.” Sajin started, then turned to the Lieutenant. “I believe it is us that we should worry about.” he admitted.

Tetsuzaemon raised a brow in confusion, then turned to the door.

“I don’t know, sir.” the Lieutenant slightly mumbled as he started to wonder about the fight.


	7. A Fox's Cunning

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 7

**(A Fox’s Cunning.)**

** Squad 7 Barracks, Seireitei, Present **

Many relieved, and worrying thoughts were putting constant pressure on Timothy’s mind. For so long, he had managed to keep the secret of his and Susan’s past just that, a secret. He always knew, without a doubt, that if his secret was discovered, someone would try to take her from him and most likely destroy her.

For so long, he had felt that it was his fault, that he had caused her to be in the state that she was in. But after hearing the words from the spirit of his zanpakutō, he steadily started to see reason. He started to see that, regardless of what he did, the outcome would not have changed.

But over and over as he tried endlessly to sleep the night before, his thoughts kept reverting to what the spirit had labeled as his hatred.

The hatred he felt towards Aizen.

But what could he do? How could he possibly not hate the man who had destroyed his and Susan’s life? That left her in such a state? And his despair, how could he not feel sadness for the people he had lost? Such feelings were not only normal, they were instinct.

He may still have Susan’s soul with him, but she was now trapped in a world without feeling. He could talk to her, but he could not feel her, hold her, comfort her. He had thought, on some occasions in the past, to release her and let her fade away; but neither of them knew if that would let her soul go to the soul society, or if she would disappear for eternity.

And now, after seeing her next to him in front of the Captain and having to send her straight back to her ‘prison’ again, he was beginning to contemplate these thoughts again as he walked back.

Timothy had walked into the barracks to find that the common area was, for the most part, vacant. There were a couple members sitting down and either having breakfast or enjoying simple conversation.

But then, being a squad rest day, most of the members were either still in bed sleeping in, or just out and about; so, it was expected for the common area to be quiet at this hour in the morning. But as he walked further into the room, he happened to turn and see Hinata, Issei, and Kenta sitting together at a table talking.

Timothy gave a quiet, amused scoff as he noticed that Issei looked half asleep, and Kenta was vigorously rubbing his temples. Clearly both men had been drinking the night before and were suffering from a mild hangover.

His amusement slightly turned to pity when he looked to see Hinata with a tired and annoyed look on her face, evident that she most likely had to babysit the two men.

Timothy wanted to return to his room and think about his/Susan’s upcoming fight, and to also contemplate on what he had done. The Captain and Lieutenant now knew about Susan, and he was inwardly pleading to any and all forms of higher entities that they would keep his secret.

But as he slowly walked through the room watching the friends, he thought that it would be a good idea to sit and talk with them to help get his mind off of the matter for a bit. He passed the notion in his head and turned back towards the friends just before he got to the stairs.

As he got closer to the table, he began to hear Hinata’s voice, very clearly annoyed.

_‘Must have been a rough night…’_ he thought. In the back of his head he was starting to dread the story that was most likely to come.

Just before he made it to the table, Kenta slowly looked up to see him and rose the fingers on his hand in an attempt of a wave, still rubbing his head. His action got Hinata’s attention, and she turned to see what he was looking at. Her turn stopped when she saw Timothy and she gave a slow and tired wave as well.

Timothy waved back at the group as he arrived at the table, trying his hardest to hold back a laugh.

“Morning guys.” he greeted. He got mixed reactions back; from Kenta nodding, Issei ‘moaning’, and a depressed sigh from Hinata.

“Morning Tim. How are you?” Hinata asked in a low voice. It was now very obvious that she was very, very tired.

“It’s another day, not much else. And how about you?” he asked as he looked at Hinata with a knowing grin.

Hinata slowly looked back to him with an annoyed look on her face. She didn’t say anything, she simply stared at him with eyes that pretty much told him the whole story before he heard it.

Maintaining her stare, Hinata slowly patted her hand on the seat next to her, gesturing for Timothy to join them. He walked over to her and sat down with a heavy sigh. Timothy then set one arm and his other elbow on the table, starting to rub his own temples in preparation for an evaluation of their night.

“Alright…what happened?” Timothy asked in a voice of pity.

Hinata, still staring at him, then turned and glared daggers at the two men, one at a time. When her glare met each of them, they both flinched in fear of her. A tinge of fear was starting to grow in the back of Timothy’s mind. She wasn’t annoyed, she was mad!

“I think the question you should be asking is, what is ‘going’ to happen. And the answer is: a funeral.” she answered with a hint of anger, causing both men to slightly back away.

Timothy was now struggling with trying not to laugh, chuckle, or even smirk, knowing that she would most likely turn on him as well in her current mood. He turned to Kenta and raised a brow, but the man just lowered his head in shame. He then turned to Issei, who in turn set his head on the table.

Timothy crossed his arms and tilted his head back as he took a deep breath, thinking on how to approach this without earning her wrath as well.

“Do I even ‘want’ to know?” he asked, his voice now low as well.

Hinata turned back to him and growled. “Something that better not happen again.” She hissed at him.

Timothy opened his eyes, and without moving his head, turned his eyes to her. His eyes widened when he saw her with a look that could probably kill a Captain. He slowly turned back to Kenta with worry flooding his face.

_‘What could they have possibly done to piss her off so badly?!’_ he quickly thought.

He remembered the night that he spent drinking with them, and it was true that Issei did act a little retarded before they called it a night, but they couldn’t have done anything that bad…could they?

“What did you do?” Timothy asked in a moan.

Kenta raised his head just enough to be able to get his eyes on Timothy. He was wearing a look of absolute shame and guilt, causing Timothy to fret.

“What?” he reluctantly pressed again.

The only answer he got from the man was his head dropping back down. Hinata then turned her gaze back to Kenta and growled again.

“…He…stripped me…” she answered with a very, very furious tone.

Two things happened; Kenta dropped his head onto the table with an audible thud, and Timothy about choked in shock as his breathing stopped. He quickly turned to her with a face of complete shock and disbelief, then back to Kenta, then Issei. After a second, he turned back to her, trying to figure out if she was joking.

He could see her face turning bright red as she began blushing from embarrassment, still maintaining her evil glare at the culprit.

She…was ‘not’…joking!

_‘She couldn’t possibly mean…did he…?!’_ Timothy quickly tried to summarize before quickly turning back to Kenta.

“Y…you guys didn’t…” Timothy tried to ask, but he was too shocked to get his words out.

He didn’t want to even consider that the two of them would do such a thing, especially to Hinata. But everyone knows that being drunk beyond all reasoning can cause such…incidents.

Kenta quickly raised his head, causing his hangover to hit him again. He clutched the side of his head with one hand while waving furiously with the other in defense.

“No no no no! It wasn’t like that! I swear!” he quickly, but quietly pressed.

Timothy remained frozen, staring at the man, trying to recover from what she had told him. But he somewhat recovered when he heard Hinata give a low growl and banged her head on the table as well. He turned to her and slightly lowered his shocked look.

“Soooo…what happened?” he asked once more, but now in a tone of pity.

Knowing Kenta, Timothy now knew that, whatever happened last night, it must have been an accident; just a very…embarrassing one.

Hinata rose her head, her blush still plastered on her face, and started rubbing her face.

“It was an accident…so I can’t hate him.” she started, but quickly returned to glaring at him. “But I won’t forgive him!” she hissed.

Timothy twitched at the sound of her tone and began to sweat from fear.

_‘Oh dear god.’_ Timothy inwardly moaned. He then turned to Kenta.

“For god’s sake, what the hell did you do?!” Timothy demanded from him, causing him to now blush.

Hinata let out a very deep sigh, then turned back to Timothy, getting him to return to her.

“We were drinking last night…” she paused, and Timothy looked at the men.

“So I see.” he confirmed, getting a headshake from her.

“I was the guardian for the night, so I was keeping an eye on everyone. Yuka and Junya were there as well.” she continued, but Timothy quickly interjected.

“But not Narumi, right?” he asked, getting a hesitant and slow nod in return.

“…Yes…And that is what made it the worst…Anyway, it was late, these two idiots were toasted, so we called it a night. Junya wasn’t that far gone, so I asked him to help me get these two back to their rooms.” She paused for a moment to see if Timothy was following her.

He gave her a nod to continue. “Well, he had Issei, and I picked Kenta up to his feet. He was just barely standing on his feet, when he started to wobble. I tried to catch him before he fell…but…” she paused and lowered her head, the blush returning. “He fell over before I could catch him…and…he g…grabbed me…” she half answered.

Timothy rose a brow, trying to put the pieces together. He was starting to see what she was getting at, but this was not a time to make quick assumptions.

“He…grabbed you…?” Timothy tried to press for clarification.

Her blush got even redder. “He…grabbed my…my robe…as he fell…” she added.

Timothy’s prediction had turned out to be true and he instantly felt sorry for the poor woman for her accident.

“Y…you mean that…?!” he started, and she nodded.

“He…pulled my kosode down…” she finished.

Timothy’s jaw dropped, and Kenta started to repeatedly bang his head on the table. Timothy quickly turned to Kenta with the same look of shock and stared.

Timothy was now fighting a steadily losing battle trying not to laugh. He couldn’t help but feel sorry that she had to go through that, but just picturing it in his mind, unintendedly, he also wanted to laugh.

He suddenly felt his composure break and he quickly slapped a hand over his mouth to contain the laugh. It did not work. He was now laughing through his hand and Hinata quickly turned to him with an evil glare.

“It. Is. Not. FUNNY!” she seethed, her face now beet red.

Timothy didn’t want to be mean, and he sure felt terrible for her, even more so that he was laughing about it, but no matter what he did, he simply couldn’t help himself.

Unfortunately, the situation kept playing in his head, and every time it did, it just made his laughing worse. He kept on laughing uncontrollably, and Hinata was getting really mad now.

“Shut up!” she demanded, but to no effect.

After a few moments more of laughing, she had had enough. She suddenly, and quickly slapped the back of his head hard, causing his head to spring forward from the force and slam on the table with a loud thump.

“Ow!” he yelled as he slowly raised his head and held a hand to the impact area.

Hinata turned away from him and crossed her arms, pouting. Meanwhile, Kenta and Issei started laughing up a storm of their own at Timothy’s misfortune.

They both looked to see that Timothy now had a bright red spot on his forehead from where it had hit the table, causing them to laugh even more. Timothy hissed as he touched the spot, then turned to her.

“What was that for?!” he quietly yelled at her and she simply turned her eyes to him.

“I told you to shut up. Maybe next time you won’t laugh at me.” she growled as the other two men kept laughing.

Timothy moaned in pain as he turned forward and held his head. He set his elbows on the table and rested his aching head in his hands.

“Damn you’ve got a mean swing, woman!” he stated a little ‘too’ loudly.

She quickly turned to him and slapped his head again, causing him to, again, slam his head on the table.

“OW!”

Kenta and Issei were hugging each other, trying to support each other with how hard they were laughing.

Hinata then turned to them with her glare, but they ignored her and kept on laughing. Timothy raised his head and the two men now saw that Timothy had two red spots on his head. This proved to be too much as Kenta leaned back from laughing and fell off the chair onto the floor.

Hinata quickly looked over the table to see that he was holding his stomach, still laughing. She sat back down with a huff.

After a moment of listening to the two men laugh up a storm, she turned to Timothy to see the two spots. She smirked, then chuckled, then started laughing herself, forgetting last night’s ‘event’.

Timothy slowly turned to her and growled. “Shut up.” he moaned, causing her to laugh harder.

“I…I guess…we’re ev…even now!” she said through her laughs.

Timothy gave an annoyed moan and returned to cradling his head.

After a while, the three friends finally calmed down and Hinata gently patted his back.

“I hate you all.” he moaned, getting a chuckle and a nod back.

“I bet.” she acknowledged.

He really didn’t ‘hate’ her, but he was most definitely ‘not’ happy with her at the moment. His head was now killing him, and he was also confused on how his, and the two men’s roles suddenly switched.

Hinata saw his pain and was beginning to feel a little bad for doing it, but it was such an embarrassing moment for her, and he was laughing at it, even though he couldn’t help it. She gave him a couple more soft pats on his back and sighed.

“I’m sorry Tim.” she said, getting a moan in return.

Kenta picked himself up after he could breathe again and sat back down in his chair. “Yeah…sorry.” he followed.

Timothy simply waved them off and tried to sooth his headache. The red spots were starting to fade, but not the pain.

“So how is your morning going so far, Tim?” Issei inquired.

Timothy needed a moment to let his headache sooth a bit before he could try to humor him with a decent answer.

“It ‘was’ fine, until I got my head bashed in.” he answered in a very displeased tone. “And yours…besides the incident?” he followed in a question.

Issei raised his hand level with the table, tilting it side to side to state that it was alright. Timothy slightly nodded as Hinata turned back to him with a small smile.

“Ok, so besides this ‘incident’, how is your day going?” she mocked.

Timothy turned to her with a foul look. “It took me long enough, but I finally realized something.” he paused, getting her full attention. “You’re evil.”

She replied to him with a simple shrug of the shoulders and a grin. “And proud of it.” She announced.

He then remembered something that caused him to pause and grin back. “So, tell me…” he started, causing the woman to begin fretting at him sudden chance in demeaner. “…How did it go once Narumi saw your little ‘incident’?” he inquired with a cheeky tone.

Hinata froze and turned a bright red with wide eyes. She had ‘prayed’ that he had forgotten that detail. But fate, as it were, decided to be cruel to her for some reason.

“Uh…” she started, but couldn’t finish.

Unfortunately for her, Issei was all to glad to elaborate. “Oh, let’s just say that she ‘really’ enjoyed the show.” He said, then snickered.

Kenta was quick to follow, if only to get back at his friend. “Yeah. So much in fact, that she passed out from her enjoyment and collapsed on the table, taking it out as well.”

Timothy snorted from trying to hold back a laughing spree, and luckily managed to do so. “Junya and Yuka had to check on her just to make sure she didn’t actually die.” Issei stated.

The young 5th seat’s resolve then broke. He slapped a hand on the table as he bawled out laughing, along with his two male friends while Hinata buried her face in her hands to hide her, now scorching red face.

“I hate you all!” she whined into her hands.

Timothy then patted her on the back in a soothing gesture and began to calm down from his painful laughter.

“It’s alright, Hinata. You can have Kenta and Issei keep her at bay as payback for what happened.” he offered, causing the two men to suddenly freeze from the thought.

“Y…You can’t be serious, Tim!” Kenta demanded.

Timothy simply looked at him and shook his head. “Nope! But anyway, I just got back from talking to the Captain.” he returned in a calm tone.

This caused everyone’s brows to raise slightly and Hinata to turn to him. “What for?” Kenta asked.

Timothy simply sighed heavily. “To get bullied.” he moaned.

“…Bullied? How?” Hinata followed, causing Timothy to glare.

“I got bullied into an officer’s position.” he returned in a tone of annoyance.

All of his friends widened their eyes in surprise and shock at hearing his answer. Not because they didn’t think he could do it, but because of how quickly he got it, being there for only a little over a week.

They had all seen him training endlessly and excessively for the past couple of days, so they all knew that he had improved since his fight with the Captain the day he became a member. But to be offered an officer’s position after only a week as a soul reaper, it was almost unheard of. Hinata simply couldn’t believe it and thought he was joking with them.

“You’re lying.” she stated, getting nods from the two men in agreeance.

Timothy continued his glare, a serious expression glued to his face.

“No…I am not.” he flatly, and sternly replied.

All three of them stared at Timothy with jaws dropped and unable to speak. After a moment, Kenta finally managed to find his voice as he shook his head.

“I don’t believe it…I mean, congratz to ya, but…wow.” he said as he ruffled his hair.

“So…what position?” Issei asked and Timothy turned to him with a displeased look, with a hint of sadness.

“The 5th seat…Hetoku’s place.” Timothy answered.

All four of them sat silently at the mention of the man’s name. Even though he had passed a few days ago, his death was still very fresh on everyone’s minds. Finally, Hinata raised her head back to Timothy and slightly smiled.

“That’s good Tim. We’re all happy for ya…sir.” she teased, and he quickly turned to her.

“Don’t you start…I didn’t even want the damn job to be honest.” he warned, getting a chuckle.

“Alright, but still, you are a seated officer now, so we still have to show you the respect. You know how it is.” she offered.

“True, but you know that I am not all that respectful myself. So, let’s just go with this, ignore the title and ‘sir’ part and just…do what you’re supposed to do. At least ‘try’ to make my life less painful.” he pleaded.

All three of them nodded in understanding, then Timothy rose to his feet.

“Well, sorry to leave you guys so soon, but I have some things to take care of this morning. I guess I’ll catch you guys later. And Hinata…” he paused, getting her attention.

“Don’t kill him.” He finished as he pointed at Kenta.

She glared at the said man again, causing him to flinch, then back to Timothy.

“No promises.” she offered, causing him to moan.

They all said their goodbyes as Timothy began to return to his room. Once he got to the top of the stairs, he went to the railing overlooking the common area and the table where his friends were.

“Hey, Hinata.” He called out, getting her attention. “Say hi to your new girlfriend for me, will ya?” he teased.

Before he knew it, she was on her feet and running towards the stairs. “I’m going to kill you, Tim!” she yelled.

He quickly bolted away and ran down the hallway, only slowing to a walk once he realized that she wasn’t actually chasing after him. He chuckled and turned back to the front. He started rubbing the side of his head again as the pain was still there from his ‘forced introduction’ to the table…twice. But at least it was not as bad as it was before.

His thoughts went back to Hinata’s story about the night before and he chuckled again as he slightly shook his head in disbelief.

_‘That idiot is going to be the cause of many headaches to come, I know it.’_ he thought.

Once he returned to his room, he walked over to his bed and plopped down on it with a sigh. It was still early morning, and yet he was already mentally exhausted.

He laid there looking at the wall as he tried to come to terms with what had transpired earlier that morning, again contemplating if he had made the right decision in telling the Captain and Lieutenant his secret.

**_“Tim…are you mad at me for accepting the Captain’s challenge?”_** Susan asked in his thoughts.

Timothy closed his eyes and sighed.

_“I really don’t know. I can’t say I’m mad, but I’m am definitely not happy about it either.”_ he replied with a depressed tone.

**_“I’m sorry Tim…I guess I should have asked you.”_** Susan admitted, getting another sigh back.

_“It’s fine I guess. Just don’t make it a habit.”_ he half asked, getting a chuckle back.

**_“Alright, I won’t.”_** she replied.

_“Are you sure you can handle it? I just…I can’t afford to lose you…you’re all I have left.”_ he thought as a lone tear began to form.

**_“One, I’ll be fine. And two, I’m not all you have left. You have your friends downstairs. You also have the Captain and the Lieutenant.”_** she advised, getting another sigh.

_“Yeah…I guess you’re right. Just don’t push yourself, please?”_ he pleaded. He knew that if he lost her, he would very likely break down and lose himself.

**_“Don’t worry, I won’t. I’m just glad that I finally get to have some fun for once.”_** Susan stated with a happy voice.

_“Bloodthirsty witch.”_ Timothy moaned.

**_“I am not bloodthirsty! And I am not a witch! Take it back!”_** she demanded, and Timothy scoffed. Normally, she was the one who was causing him grief, but on the off chances that he could get the better of her, he tried to savor it.

_“After all the times you teased me? Nah.”_ he retorted, getting a growl in return.

**_“I think I’ll go after you instead of the Captain.”_** Susan threatened, getting a chuckle.

_“I’m immune to your flames, remember?”_ he taunted, annoying her.

**_“I hate you.”_** she hissed.

_“I thought you ‘loved’ me?”_ he teased.

**_“Oh, I do…it’s just too bad I can’t ‘physically’ show it to you.”_** She replied in a suggestive tone.

His eyes then widened, and he blushed. _“Fuck you, you seductive vixen!”_ he retorted.

He then heard her snicker. **_“Oh, I’m sure you’d ‘love’ to do that, wouldn’t you?”_** she shot back. Although he couldn’t see it, he just ‘knew’ she had to be flashing her brows at him suggestively.

_“…I hate you.”_ He finally said after a few moments of silence.

Yet again, the woman ‘somehow’ managed to turn a win into a cataclysmic defeat for him. After twelve years…scratch that…‘twenty-eight’ years, if you included the twelve years of being in the soul society, six years of marriage, and the ten years that he knew her before that, that he knew her, she ‘always’ managed to turn the tables on him; on ‘everything’.

**_“But I thought you ‘loved’ me?”_** she teased.

_“Shut up!”_ he yelled.

He then sat up, and was about to get up to walk to the Captain’s office, but instead decided to sit for a moment longer and clear his thoughts. He started to take deep, yet mellow breaths as he began to calm his nerves and prepare himself for the worst.

All it would take is a single moment where he wasn’t watching closely, and Susan could be gone forever; a horrid thought that he didn’t even want to consider happening.

After a few moments, he took a final breath, then stood up and straightened his robe. _‘I hope you’re ready for this.’_ he thought to himself as he walked to the door.

As he entered the hallway and slid his door closed, he turned back to Susan’s blade.

_“So, what’s your plan?”_ he asked, rhetorically as he started walking down the hall.

**_“Simple, hit them hard, and hit them fast. That way I won’t have to fight a prolonged battle and worry about my energy.”_ **

_“Sounds like a good plan, but that still doesn’t make me feel better about all this.”_ He stated, then walked down the stairs into the common area.

As he was walking down, he saw that his friends were still there and had noticed him, now waving.

_“Hold that thought…”_ he paused. “Hey guys, I’m off for now.” he called out, getting nods back.

He then pointed at Kenta. “No stripping.” he mockingly ordered, causing Hinata to blush and glare, Issei to laugh, and Kenta to quickly shake his head with wide eyes.

“Don’t you worry, Tim…I ‘will’ kill you later!” she hissed.

He chuckled and waved again as he left the common room towards the rear doors.

_“Anyway…”_ he continued inwardly. _“All I’m asking is, don’t do anything stupid, and please be careful. Please?”_ he pleaded.

**_“Stop worrying, I’ll be fine. Just let me do what I need to do.”_** she demanded, and he sighed.

_“Alright.”_ he finished, closing the debate. He continued his walk towards the headquarters in silence.

** Squad 7 Headquarters, Seireitei, Present **

Sajin sat at his desk with Tetsuzaemon in front of him as both men sorted through the stack of papers. Even though it was a rest day for the squad, that had no effect on the amount of incoming paperwork.

Sajin absolutely loved his squad, and he enjoyed being its Captain; but like any officer, he ‘hated’ paperwork. Day after day without stopping, the paperwork kept coming.

“Tetsuzaemon, please have these sent out with the morning reports.” Sajin instructed as he handed him about a dozen papers.

The man nodded and stood up as he took them from the Captain, then turned to the door. But the man stopped as they heard a knock.

“You may enter.” Sajin answered without looking up as he finished signing a document.

The door opened, and Timothy slowly entered, closing the door behind him before he bowed. Sajin nodded and gestured him to step up, so Timothy rose and began walking towards the desk.

“I’ll be a few more minutes Tim, I need to finish a few inquiries.” Sajin assured as he gestured further for Timothy to sit down on one of the couches.

Timothy nodded and walked over to the right side, near couch as Tetsuzaemon walked by to complete his task. Timothy was a little surprised at how comfortable the couch was, and slowly leaned back to relax a moment as he waited.

Sajin glanced up at him without moving his head to see a distressed look on the man’s face. He set his hand down and turned his head to him.

“Is everything alright?” he asked.

Timothy let out a deep sigh and lowered his head, keeping his back against the couch.

“To be honest, no. The thing is, I really don’t want to do this, but…you know she said she wanted to.” he admitted.

Sajin took a breath and gave him an understanding nod. “So, am I to assume that the duel is called off?” Sajin asked with a hint of disappointment.

Timothy sat there and could feel Susan getting mad at him for what he was saying.

“No…the duel is still on. Truth is, she would probably kill me if I said no. I’m…I’m just worried is all. I don’t want to lose her, sir.” he finished as he laid his head back.

“I understand. You don’t need to worry, we will not bring any harm to her.” Sajin reassured, but Timothy rolled his head to him.

“If you are hinting that you will try to hold back some, you better drop that thought right now sir. I was not kidding, or even exaggerating when I said to go all out. If you hold back, even the slightest, she will put you down.” he stated with a serious expression.

After getting a nod from the Captain, he rolled his head back and sighed.

“I don’t even think the duel will last more than a couple minuets.” Timothy added, still keeping his serious tone.

Sajin rose a brow. “So, are you ‘hinting’ that I should start out in my Bankai?” Sajin asked with a slight bit of amusement. But he was surprised by the man’s answer.

“I highly recommend it, Captain.” he confirmed.

It was at this time that Tetsuzaemon walked back into the office and returned to his seat.

“I handed the reports to Ikeda, Captain. He’ll have the paperwork turned in within the hour.” he stated in his usual gruff tone.

Sajin nodded and set his pen down in its holder. “Very well.” he answered, then stood. “Then shall we be on our way?” he asked towards Tim.

Timothy threw himself forward, stood up, and nodded back. Tetsuzaemon set some papers neatly to the side and stood as well, turning to Timothy. The man turned to the Lieutenant as well with a serious expression.

“I’d be careful, Lieutenant. As I said to the Captain, she’s going to take this seriously.” he said again, getting a slight chuckle.

“We’ll see.” he retorted.

Timothy turned back to Sajin. “Well, I guess I’m ready if you are, Captain.” he stated, getting a nod before Sajin walked up and placed a hand on his shoulder; all three of them disappearing in a flash step.

** South Rukongai, 80th district, Crushed Hope, 20 minutes later **

Far to the south near the border of Rukongai, the three men stepped into a sizable clearing in the woods. Timothy took a moment to look around and listen, but saw and heard no one around.

“Where are we, Captain?” he asked, getting the man’s attention.

“We are in the 80th district, known as Crushed Hope. This is as far from the Seireitei as you can get in the southern regions of Rukongai. We shouldn’t have any observers here.” he answered with an assuring tone.

“So…what’s life like here for the residents?” Timothy asked, but he wasn’t sure he wanted to hear the answer.

“For lack of an appropriate term…pitiful.” he returned, now in a saddened voice.

Timothy closed his eyes and shook his head slightly. “Why doesn’t anyone do anything about this? That’s just…not right. I thought this place was supposed to be a wonderful place to be after death.” Timothy stated with a heavy voice.

“I guess a simple answer would be lack of funds and manpower. We simply cannot maintain the vast amounts of territory and souls. The further you get from the Seireitei, the higher the district, and the higher of the amount of souls.” Sajin answered in a similar tone.

Timothy lowered his head in shame as he crossed his arms. He had lived in Fallen Tree, the 67th district, for twelve years, and the crime was bad there. He didn’t want to even begin to imagine what the crime and living standards were here in District 80.

After a few moments, he let out a sigh has he pushed those feelings back and turned to Sajin.

“Well…let’s get this over with.” he stated, getting a nod from the two officers.

“Very well. I assume that…Susan…can hear me?” he asked.

**“I can.”** she confirmed.

“Alright. Rules are simple. Obviously, no killing, or permanent damage. The combatant is done if that person can no longer fight. Understood?” he asked her.

**“Got it.”** she again confirmed, getting a nod.

“Very well. Tim, you will start the match.” Sajin instructed. Timothy sighed, then nodded.

Both officers nodded, then flash stepped a distance away from Timothy has he drew his sword. His mind was currently haunted with thoughts and worries of the many way that this could end badly.

“You ready?” he asked her in a low tone.

**“Yeah, I’m ready.”** she answered, and he nodded.

“Release.” he commanded.

Like before, the blade burst into flames, dancing for a moment, then left the blade to float next to him and begin to take shape. After a few seconds, Susan’s flaming form stood next to him, facing the officers.

“I know I’ve already said this…but please be careful.” he pleaded once more.

She simply smiled and set a flaming hand on his cheek. “And I know I’ve already said ‘this’, but I’ll be fine. Now go away and let me have my fun.” she instructed.

Timothy shook his head at her. “Just don’t kill em.” he retorted and began walking towards the edge of the field between the two teams as he sheathed the now empty blade.

As he walked, Susan turned to the officers. “I hope you boys are ready to get your butts kicked!” she yelled across the field.

“Bring it on, princess!” Tetsuzaemon taunted back, causing her to grin.

“Oh…I will.” she whispered in a happy tone. “Thanks for the acknowledgement of my title, but I already have a man of my own, sweetie.” She then teased in a normal, yet seductive tone at the man, causing him to flinch and Sajin to raise a brow in surprise.

Timothy shook his head at her usual antics as he made it to the middle of the field and turned to take a quick look at the duelists. He looked over to Sajin.

“Ready?” he hollered, getting nods. He then turned to Susan. “Ready?” he hollered again, getting another nod.

_‘God, why do I have such a horrid feeling that something is going to go wrong?’_ he wondered as he sighed and held a hand in the air. He took a last glance at Susan, then to the officers, then threw down his hand.

“Fight!” he yelled.

In an instant, the entire field began filling up with numerous floating flames, many more than when Timothy had used Susan’s power while sealed. Close to a hundred flames now littered the field, surprising the officers.

“Captain…I can now say that I believe Durn when he said not to hold back.” Tetsuzaemon commented, amazed at the sheer number of the flames,and getting a nod from Sajin.

“I agree.” Sajin added.

Both he and Sajin knew how effective those flames were for Timothy, but now there were more than twice as many of them. Something that did catch their eyes though, was the fact that Susan did not have a weapon. She had both arms hanging limply at her sides as she gave them a simple stare.

“It seems she is waiting for us to make our move.” Sajin offered, getting a nod form Tetsuzaemon.

Something then caught the Lieutenant’s attention, so he turned to the left. He saw one of the flames slowly moving towards him, but still a few feet away.

“Since when do they move?” he asked, getting Sajin’s attention.

Tetsuzaemon turned and got into a stance, ready in case she decided to show up at that flame. Slowly, but surely, the flame inched its ways towards the Lieutenant, until it was now almost next to him.

“Alright, enough of this.” he stated.

Tetsuzaemon raised his zanpakutō high, then swiftly swung down at the flame. The blade simply passed through it, but as he swung, the sleeve of his shihakusho touched the flame. In an instant, the spot where his sleeve touched the flame caught fire and was burning furiously. Sajin quickly turned with eyes wide as Tetsuzaemon grabbed the sleeve and started to rip it off.

Meanwhile, Susan stood there, patiently, watching the Lieutenant panic trying to rip the sleeve off. A large grin started to emerge on her face, exposing her pointed teeth.

“Guess I forgot to tell you!” she yelled, getting the Captain’s attention.

She spread her arms out wide. “All of these flames are part of my fox fire! A single touch to any of them, and you’ll become barbeque.” she taunted as Tetsuzaemon finally got the burning sleeve off of him.

Both men’s’ eyes grew wider at the statement, then they quickly flash stepped away from the flames. Susan spawned a flame next to her and reached her hand into it. Both men watched in shock as the flame shrunk in size and lengthened in her grip to form a flaming sword. She then spawned another flame next to her, then disappeared.

The officers quickly got into a combat stance with their backs to each other.

“Be careful Tetsuzaemon. Don’t let those flames come into contact with you. It is safe to assume that her weapon will also have the same effects.” Sajin warned, getting a nod back.

Both men watched cautiously as the numerous flames slowly moved about on the field. They now realized that they were not only going to have to watch where she goes, but also where they go.

Because they had both fought Timothy in the past, they had some personal experience with his fighting style. However, this was a whole new level for them as a single misstep would end the fight for them.

They kept a close guard as a few of the flames came close to the pair. Sajin kept his body straight, but turned his eyes to keep watch on the approaching flames. The flames steadily got closer and closer, but when they got only a few feet away, they suddenly vanished. Sajin rose his brows in surprise and confusion.

_‘They disappeared…but why? She would lose the ability to appear and attack…something’s not right…’_ Sajin thought as he tried to put the pieces together.

“Captain! Watch out!” Tetsuzaemon yelled, causing Sajin to quickly turn around to see two flames mere inches from his right side.

Both men quickly flash stepped away, now ending up several feet from each other. Sajin quickly recovered and returned to his stance, but then swiftly turned to block a low swing from Susan, who was waiting for him.

Tetsuzaemon saw the attack and flash stepped over to swing down and across Susan’s back. His blade was just about to make contact, but she quickly vanished, leaving one of the flames behind.

He then realized his mistake and quickly pulled back the swing just before he touched the flame. The flame started to move towards him, so he deftly jumped back and returned to his stance.

Sajin slowly stepped back away from the flame as well and took a quick glance at the battlefield. The flames were still slowly moving around, but he noticed that they were in small groups.

_‘She’s gathering her flames into clusters, trying to force us to appear next to them and trap us. Clever.’_ Sajin mentally concluded.

He turned back to his Lieutenant and flash stepped over next to him.

“Tetsuzaemon, she’s trying limit our movements and make us predictable. She steadily pushing us into a trap. Keep your guard up and mind your surroundings.” Sajin instructed.

“Sir.” the Lieutenant responded. He was also starting to come to that conclusion as well.

So far, she had only tried to attack them directly once in order to gain the upper hand, but has mainly been forcing them to constantly change their position. Susan then appeared next to Tetsuzaemon, and he turned to see that she wasn’t trying to swing at him, she was reaching out to him to touch him with her hand.

He swung at her outstretched hand, only to be blocked by her blade as her hand got closer. Sajin quickly turned and kicked his armored foot out, catching her in the side and throwing her into one of her flames, disappearing.

Because of the armor on his foot, the flames surrounding her body didn’t burn him or catch fire, but it did leave a black scorch mark on the top of the armor and was slightly smoking from the heat. He then set his foot back down as Tetsuzaemon returned to his guard. Susan then reappeared a few yards away with her arms to her sides.

“Nice reflex Captain, and good call using the armor on your feet.” she complemented, getting his attention.

“You are doing well yourself, trying to force us into a cluster of flames and trap us.” he added, getting a raised brow.

“Oh? So, you caught onto that, huh? Observant, but aren’t you forgetting something?” she asked, getting a cautious stare back.

“And what would that be?” Tetsuzaemon scornfully returned, getting a grin from her.

“Didn’t you ever wonder where those flames from earlier went?” she replied, her grin getting wider.

She then swung her flaming blade twice in quick succession, sending two fireballs at the two men and shocking them. Tetsuzaemon flash stepped away, but Sajin simply jumped back out of the way…but his right arm was caught by Susan when he landed, who was now right behind him. His sleeve then burst into flames as she smiled at him.

He quickly turned and threw a punch at her, hitting her blade as she blocked. The force that he put behind the swing pushed her back several feet, and he used this time to briefly pat the flames away with his armored hand as he stared at her.

Tetsuzaemon then appeared next to him in a guard stance as Sajin continued to put out the fire. After a few seconds, the fire was out and there were now a few small holes in his sleeve, exposing some of the underlying, lightly singed fur on his arm.

“So, you can use your flames as a projectile as well? I can see that this is going to turn out badly for us if we don’t get serious about it.” Sajin concluded, getting a scoff from her.

“Tim warned you over and over to take it seriously, and to be honest, I knew you wouldn’t start off going all out. It’s just not the way you fight. That’s why I held back as well, out of respect. Unfortunately, time is something I don’t have; so how about we quit fooling around take this to the max?” she retorted, getting a nod in return.

“Agreed. Tenken!” Sajin hollered as he held his zanpakutō high above his head.

As he said his release, a giant, ghostly arm holding an even larger sword appeared above them. Sajin then swung down, causing the arm to do the same.

Susan’s brows rose in surprise as this was the first time the ‘she’ had seen this technique. Afterall, while she is sealed in the sword, she can hear everything around her, but she cannot see anything. But although she couldn’t see the attack last time, she knew what it did to her flames once it had struck the ground, blowing a large number of them out.

She watched as the large sword came hurling towards her at a monstrous speed, giving her little time to react. She quickly disappeared using the flame next to her, while at the same time extinguishing as many flames as she could.

By the time that the large sword hit the ground, only a few dozen flames remained. The force of the impact spread out in all directions with a large amount of force.

On the sidelines, Timothy’s eyes went wide as he quickly held a hand out in from of him.

“Bakudō #81, Dankū!” he yelled, causing a kidō barrier to appear right in front of him just as the shockwave got to him.

Luckily, the barrier held strong, causing the shockwave to go around him and continue on into the woods.

As the shockwave ended, Timothy could now see that the entire field was covered in dust; leaving him unable to see any of the combatants, or any of Susan’s flames. This was starting to worry him. Neither him, nor Susan knew what would happen if all of the flames were put out while in transit. For all he knew, it could kill them.

No actions were taken as the two officers stood back to back, waiting for the dust to settle and trying to sense her spiritual pressure. It only took a minute for the dust to start blowing away, but for the officers, and especially Timothy, it was the longest minute of their lives.

“You think you got her, Captain?” Tetsuzaemon asked, keeping his guard.

The Captain didn’t answer at first, he stood perfectly still, eyeing the field as their vision started to clear. So far, he couldn’t see any flames around them, but he still had the uneasy feeling that something was not right.

“I don’t think so, Tetsuzaemon. I think she is still here somewhere. Keep your guard up.” he instructed.

After a few more moments, the dust cleared enough, and Sajin could now see Susan standing several feet away…smiling. He narrowed his gaze at her, but rose a brow when she slowly raised her hand next to her head, pointing up. Sajin’s eyes went wide as it came to him that he had been played.

He quickly looked up to see several dozen flames right above their heads coming at them. Knowing that the Lieutenant had not noticed them yet, Sajin, as quickly as he could, gave the man a swift, and powerful kick, tossing the man away from him and across the field several feet.

The flames fell down upon Sajin and he found himself now trapped in a cocoon of fire, his shihakusho instantly catching fire in numerous locations as many of the flames came into contact with him.

Tetsuzaemon stood back up from where he landed and quickly turned to see the horror of his Captain being consumed by the flames.

“Captain!”

** Throne Room, Los Noches, Hueco Mundo, Present **

Deep within the heart of Los Noches, the fortress of Hueco Mundo, former Squad 5 Captain Sōsuke Aizen sat in his large marble chair in the throne room.

He was a man of just under average height with brown, mid length hair, and an intellect that far surpassed anyone within the soul society.

For well over a hundred years, he had managed to remain a part of the 13 Court Guard Squad’s ranks, keeping his true intentions hidden as prepared his plans.

Even when he had faked his own death and murdered the entire council of Central 46, no one had ever suspected him. In fact, everything that had happened leading up to him leaving the soul society had gone exactly as he had planned.

However, it was not only his intelligence that played a key role in deceiving the 13 Court Guard Squads, but also the unique power of his zanpakutō, Kyōka Suigetsu. But the power of Kyōka Suigetsu was not in its attack, but in its ability; complete control over the senses of an opponent.

By controlling the individual’s senses, Kyōka Suigetsu could make a person see, hear, feel, taste, and even smell things that were actually not there, or were different than what was actually there. Aizen had labeled this power as ‘complete hypnosis’.

It was because of this power that Aizen was able to fake his own death, causing the soul reapers to ‘see’ his dead body. But in truth, it was nothing more than an illusion.

Aizen was currently sitting in his chair, leaning to the side and propping his head up with his fist while his elbow rested on the arm of the chair. He had his other arm resting on the opposing arm while his left leg was hung over his right.

He had a slight smirk on his face with his eyes closes in thought. He was happy and content, because even now events were unfolding exactly as he had planned.

Over to his right, another man, just as tall as him, walked into the room with his arms folded into his sleeves, a very wide grin etched onto his face.

The man was Gin Ichimaru, the former Captain of Squad 3 and one of the other Captains that had left the soul society with Aizen. The man was well known for his silver hair and always present grin, a grin that resembled the smile of a cunning fox.

Gin always had a ‘playful’, and happy demeaner. When he was still the Captain of Squad 3, he liked to take things easy, sometimes even abandoning work to relax. But he also had a yearning to cause trouble for people.

He was also quite intelligent himself, although nowhere near the level of intellect that Aizen possessed.

Gin walked across the empty halls of the throne room with his calm and ‘happy’ face as he came to the steps leading up to the chair in which Aizen sat.

“Good morning, Captain Aizen. You seem to be quite happy today.” he greeted as came up to the man’s right side.

“Good morning to you as well…Gin.” Aizen answered as he slightly opened his eyes to the man. “And what makes you say that?” he asked in return.

Gin came up to now stand in front and slightly to the side of the man, keeping his grin while Aizen looked at him with calculating eyes.

“Isn’t it obvious? You seem to be smiling more than usual. Did something happen that pleases you?” Gin pressed with his amusing tone.

Aizen stared at him for a moment longer before he smiled even more closed his eyes with a slight chuckle.

“Now that you mention it…I am happy. I have found recent events to be rather…amusing.” Aizen stated in his calm voice.

Gin tilted his head slightly to the left. “Are you referring to that boy, Ichigo Kurosaki?” he inquired.

“Indeed. Along with other…current events.” Aizen answered as he opened his eyes back to the man. “It would seem that our failed experiment could prove to be quite useful.” he added as he sat straight up.

“What do you mean by that, Captain Aizen?” Gin asked, leveling his head.

“You should not ask about things that do not concern you, Gin.” a low, shadowy voice spoke from behind the silver haired man.

Aizen shifted his gazed as Gin turned around to see Kaname Tōsen, the blind, former Captain of Squad 9.

A man slightly shorter than the other two former Captains, Tōsen was the last of the three men who had deceived and left the soul society.

Although the man was blind, and had been all his life, it made no difference to the man as his ability to detect spiritual energy was much stronger than most, allowing him to sense his surroundings and others around him with ease.

Tōsen was once a very close friend to Captain Komamura and could frequently be seen with the furry Captain. He had an absurdly strong sense of what he determined to be justice, and it was because of this sense that he had join Aizen in his deceit.

He continued walking up the steps towards the chair where Aizen was sitting, stopping right next to Gin.

“Ah, good morning Captain Tōsen. What ever could you mean?” Gin asked in a ‘fake’ surprise.

Tōsen did not turn or even glance at the man.

“Lord Aizen has already told you everything you need to know, Gin.” Tōsen clarified.

“It’s alright, Kaname. It is nothing of importance, however it would be wise to keep a close eye on this matter.” Aizen gently corrected.

“A little concerned are we, Captain Aizen?” Gin inquired, getting a light scoff back.

“I am not sure what you mean, Gin. I am simply saying that this could work towards our goal. Therefore, that makes him a subject of interest.” Aizen as he slowly stood up and began walking towards the steps.

“Shall I send someone to monitor him, Lord Aizen?” Tōsen asked, keeping his low tone as Aizen kept walking down the steps.

“That won’t be necessary. Even if I were to include him in my plans, it would be some time until I do so. We will observe him for now.” the calculating man finished as he left the room.

Tōsen turned to where the man left the room. “Yes, Lord Aizen.” he acknowledged in a bow.

** South Rukongai, 80th District, Crushed Hope, Present **

Timothy stood on the sidelines, recovering from Sajin’s shikai attack as he watched the myriad of flames encircle the furry Captain. Tetsuzaemon stood in his place, shocked at what was occurring right in front of him. He wanted to help the Captain, but he knew that there was no way he could get to him.

If he tried to get near him, the flames would set him on fire again. He could try to use kidō, but he was afraid that he might hit the Captain as well, and he couldn’t get a line of sight on the Captain to use a Bakudō.

He turned to see Susan was now facing the rampage of flames, but also looking at him, waiting for him to make a move. The Lieutenant got into a ready stance as he tried to plan his next move. Whatever it was, he knew he had to act fast, or the Captain would be quickly defeated.

_‘Damn, she’s got the Captain pinned, and I can’t get near him. I’m gonna have to try and keep her attention on me and hope the Captain can break out.’_ the man thought as he got ready to flash step to her.

“Bankai!” the fighters heard a voice yell. “Kokujō Tengen Myō’ō!”

Both of them turned to the flames to see a sudden burst of spirit energy, just slightly pushing the flames back a bit, allowing Tetsuzaemon to now just barely see the Captain. Behind the entire group, surprising Susan and Timothy, a gigantic, ghostly, armor clad warrior rose from the ground and stood tall.

Both Susan and Timothy were absolutely shocked at the sheer size of the being. It stood almost three hundred feet tall. It looked similar to an ancient samurai, clad in dark colored armor, wielding a sword that Timothy had to guess was around two hundred feet in length.

Susan became frozen in shock as she looked, almost straight up, at the demonic face of the giant.

Tetsuzaemon knew that now was the perfect opportunity to try and rescue his Captain from the fiery prison. He quickly held out his two main fingers of his left hand and pointed them at the Captain.

“Bakudō #9, Hōrin!” he yelled.

An orange, rope-like, energy shot from his fingers and sailed straight at Sajin. He wrapped the energy around the Captain’s waist, then quickly yanked, pulling the man out from the ball of flames.

Sajin flew back and landed on his feet right next to the Lieutenant, the man releasing the spell as soon as Sajin landed.

A good portion of his uniform was burned away, exposing multiple patches of fur, while already exposed fur was singed even further. His Captain’s haori had a few black soot marks on the back, and except for a few slightly singed edges, was relatively in good shape.

“Thank you Tetsuzaemon. It was starting to get a bit hot in there.” Sajin offered, but the Lieutenant simply scoffed.

“A cheap trick if you ask me.” he returned, but Sajin shook his head.

“No, she is very cunning, and we played right into her hands. But we won’t make the same mistake again. Are you ready, Tetsuzaemon?” Sajin asked as he glanced at the man.

“As ready as I’ll ever be, Captain.” the Lieutenant confirmed.

They both looked to see Susan was still gazing at the giant, clearly distracted. It was then that Sajin got an idea.

“Tetsuzaemon…” he started, getting the man’s attention.

“I have something I want you to do, but you need to make sure you get it right, understood?” Sajin asked, getting a raised brow, then a nod.

Meanwhile, Susan was trying to recover from her shock as she tried to figure out a plan on how to defeat the giant.

Her senses suddenly kicked in, causing her to quickly turn and hold her weapon in a block, catching Sajin’s sword. Her eyes then widened, and she quickly turned her head back just in time to see the giant swing down on her, exactly the same way Sajin had just done.

“Shit!” she growled.

Luckily, she had one of her flames nearby, so she used it to instantly vanish just as the giant blade struck the ground. It didn’t hit as hard as last time, so the shockwave wasn’t as bad, but it still managed to blow out a few or Susan’s flames.

She then reappeared and swung her blade three times in rapid succession towards the giant, sending three fireballs at it. The projectiles struck the giant in its chest, having no effect on its armor, not even burning it.

The giant swung down at her again, but she quickly vanished again as the giant blade impacted the ground a mere second afterwards. She suddenly reappeared thirty feet to Sajin’s right, an evil grin on her face.

“Well, that was close…didn’t expect that.” she stated as she turned to the giant for a moment, then back to the Captain. “Guess this turned into a three-on-one, huh?” she inquired.

Sajin kept his arms to his side as he stared at his opponent. “This is my bankai, Kokujō Tengen Myō’ō. So yes, in effect, this has turned into a three against one battle, Susan. You wished for me to not hold back, so I won’t. Prepare yourself.” He said, then got into a fighting stance, as did the giant being.

Susan smiled, then vanished before reappearing right in front of Sajin in a low stance to strike upwards. The Captain blocked the attack with his zanpakutō, stopping her blade, then threw a fist out at her head.

The move was predictable enough for her to tilt her head to the side, letting the man’s fist pass by. She then tried to reach out and grab his outstretched arm, but then gasped with wide eyes as she saw the giant’s own fist sailing right for her.

She didn’t have enough time to use her flame to vanish, which allowed the mountain sized fist to collide into the ground where she stood. The impact created a decent sized crater and kicked up a mountain of dust.

Her body was thrown away from the site and sent crashing and rolling along the ground several feet before she regained her footing and slid to a stop. Timothy was calling out to her in worry, but she ignored him and got back into a fighting stance with a grunt of pain.

Sajin turned to her to see that her body was a bit bruised up and her flaming fur matted up. Susan looked at him, then the giant for a moment before returning to him.

Something just wasn’t adding up. Why would the giant use its fist against her instead of its ridiculously large sword? If it had done so, she would have easily been defeated, or at least been severely hurt and unable to continue for much longer.

The more she thought about it, the less it made sense. But then, something dawned on her.

_‘If I’m not mistaken, that giant acted the same way he did. He punched at me, and so did his giant. Unless it’s a coincidence, that being seems to do exactly what ‘he’ does…like it’s an extension of him. Only one way to test that theory out.’_ She thought quietly.

She got into a low ready stance and quickly vanished, reappearing right in front of Sajin with the giant to her right. She swung at him, expecting him to block, but he did so with his armored bracer.

Sajin then swung down at her and she quickly glanced to see the giant acting the same way he did. She could see that the giant’s arm was held up, same as Sajin’s, and it was swinging down just as Sajin was.

_‘So, I was right!’_ she thought and quickly vanished just before the giant’s blade made contact.

She was now back in her previous spot and watched as the giant’s sword landed exactly where she was just at a second ago. She stood there and watched for a second longer as Sajin and the giant stood back straight and turned to her.

_‘Every move that he makes, that giant makes, so that means that it ‘is’ an extension of him. But, I wonder what else is affected by him…’_ she thought as a plan started to come to mind. _‘Let’s find out.’_

She looked at some of her flames and started to dissipate some of them. Sajin turned and watched as she did so, confused as to why she was doing it.

“You’re not going to give up, are you?” he asked in a relatively calm tone.

She turned back to him and gave a slight smirk. “Not quite.” she stated.

She quickly respawned a flame next to him and vanished to reappear at that flame. Sajin quickly turned and blocked her weapon, but she suddenly stepped to the side and ran past him, brushing her hand across his side as she did.

She glanced at the giant to see that its side, in the exact spot that she touched him, suddenly burst into flames. Her eyes slightly widened.

_‘So…any damage ‘he’ receives, the giant receives as well! If that’s the case, it should be the other way around if I attack the giant. But it’s covered in armor, so my fox fire won’t affect it, meaning I can’t fight it…Except…’_ she inwardly concluded.

She ran right into one of her flames, disappearing, then reappeared right behind Sajin at the previous flame. She swung across at him, but Sajin was expecting it. He quickly half turned, blocked the swing with his zanpakutō, then grabbed her blade with his left hand, the armor instantly starting to smoke.

Her eyes slightly widened at his action as he readjusted the blade and got ready to swing again. But he suddenly stopped, letting go of her blade as he quickly backed up and started swinging his left hand all around his face, growling in pain.

He quickly turned to see the giant warrior with Susan’s flames all around its face, burning it. He then yelled and swung his free hand into his face, crushing some of the flames, then got ready to hit the other side.

Seeing her chance, she quickly leaped forward at him, ready to swing across his midsection.

“Hadō #33, Sōkatsui!” a voice rang out to her right.

She quickly glanced to her right to see multiple blue energy bolts heading right for her from out of nowhere. She had no flames nearby, and was in midstride and unable to stop. The bolts struck her in the side, tossing her away from her target.

She landed on the ground a few feet away and came to a stop on her knee. She looked at where the kidō came from, but saw nothing there.

“What the…” she whispered.

See turned back to the Captain to see that he had managed to get the flames of the giant’s face and was turning back towards her.

She could see that his facial fur was singed in multiple places, and he was clearly mad. She slowly got back to her feet, but was beginning to feel that she was running low on energy, meaning that she needed to finish this quick.

“I see that you’ve figured out my bankai’s weakness.” Sajin commented, getting a light smirk from her.

“It took longer than it should have, but I discovered that any damage you take, it takes. So, I made a bet that the effect was the same in reverse. Not that it did much good.” she confirmed.

“I’ll admit, I wasn’t expecting you to purposely go after Tenken to get to me.” Sajin added, getting a scoff.

“Yeah, but what I want to know is where the hell that kidō came from.” she demanded, but Sajin didn’t buy it.

“You should pay more attention to your surroundings.” he jabbed back, getting a growl.

“Whatever, the fact is, is that I ain’t got much time left, so I’m gonna have to finish you off quickly.” she finished.

As she did, she spawned all of the flames she could muster all around them, now numbering a little over a hundred. She got herself into a stance, ready the use one of her flames, but something caught her attention…or that is, a ‘lack’ of something.

_‘Wait a minute…’_

She quickly looked all around the field, but saw that something, or someone, was missing.

_‘Where the hell did the Lieutenant go?!’_ she thought, and then she remembered the kidō from earlier. Her eyes widened as she realized what Sajin was talking about with her surroundings.

_‘The Lieutenant fired that kidō! But if I can’t see him, he must be using another kidō, or something similar to hide him! They pulled me right into a trap, and I fell for it…’_ she mentally berated, then turned back to Sajin.

“I got it now…you had the Lieutenant hide somewhere and wait till I was wide open, then send a kidō at me. You used my own tactic against me…very cunning, Captain.” she stated, getting a slight smile back.

“I’ll take that as a compliment. But as you said, you don’t have much time left, so how about we finish this?” Sajin taunted, causing her to grin.

“My pleasure, handsome.” she answered in a sweet tone with a wink, causing the man to give her a deadpanned expression.

Sajin turned to Timothy. “Is she always like this?” he asked.

Timothy followed the man’s expression with his own. “Unfortunately.” He moaned back.

“…My condolences.” The Captain returned in a similar voice.

“I am not that bad!” Susan yelled.

She then quickly vanished and reappeared right in front of Sajin, regaining his attention and swinging down. He blocked the swing and thrusted his body at her, forcing her back as he readied a swing of his own, causing the giant to do the same.

He swung down at her, but she quickly transported to his right, ready to jab. She pressed forward, but he quickly turned, adjusting his blade mid swing to toss her blade away, causing the giant to ‘sweep’ the ground just over their heads.

She dropped down to the ground for a sweeping kick, but he simply turned and raised his foot up, stopping her kick.

“Hadō # 31, Shakkahō!” a voice yelled.

Susan glanced to her right in time to see a large mass of fire hurling towards her. She swiftly rolled back and hopped further towards one of her flames, vanishing and reappearing several feet away. She took a quick glance over to where the kidō came from.

_‘He’s over there somewhere…’_ she thought as she held back from sending a barrage of fireballs in that direction.

She knew the general vicinity of where the Lieutenant was hiding, but her fireballs were only effective if they actually struck the target, not near it. The Lieutenant would obviously expect that move and flash away, finding somewhere else to hide and starting the whole thing over again.

The only option she had, was to avoid him entirely and keep dodging his attacks until she could pinpoint ‘exactly’ where he was at. She didn’t like the idea, but considering the amount of time she had left, it really was her only option.

She transitioned back to Sajin and returned to swinging at him a few times, but tried to give the Lieutenant a few openings while she kept glancing over to where the kidō was coming from. Sajin swung down on her and she quickly blocked with her weapon over her head. The giant’s blade was on its way down when an idea hit her.

She quickly vanished, her resistance against Sajin’s blade now gone. Because he was putting some force behind it, his sword suddenly dropped down, causing him to slightly lurch forward.

Susan then appeared right behind him and she gave him a hard kick to his back, forcing him forward, right into the path of the giant’s blade. The blade crashed down and kicked up dust, obscuring her view.

_‘Now to draw ‘him’ out.’_ she thought and transported a few feet away.

She now, intentionally, had her back to where she thought the Lieutenant was hiding. She had her face forward towards where Sajin was, but her eyes towards the suspected location.

_‘Come on…don’t choose now to be shy…where are you…’_ she thought as she waited for either the dust to clear, or for the Lieutenant to act.

It turned out that the dust clearing happened first. She glanced to see that Sajin was a little scratched up and was breathing a little heavier, but otherwise in decent shape. She could really feel the drain in her energy now, and if things kept up as they were, she had about five minutes before she would have to call it quits.

She took another quick glance around to see that she didn’t have that many flames left, only about a third of what she could gather.

It was just enough to set a trap, but the problem she faced was the invisible Lieutenant, and the lumbering giant behind the Captain. If she could figure out where exactly the Lieutenant was, she could trap him, but she would need to get him to fire at her.

But that was a problem in itself, he wasn’t taking the bait. She left herself open plenty of times for him, but he never acted on them.

Then an idea hit her; a risky one, but better than nothing. She gave the Captain an evil grin. “Time to end it!” she growled, getting one in return.

“I am waiting.” Sajin taunted.

Susan opened her right hand and let her weapon revert back into a flame. This confused the Captain, but what she did next froze him. She held both of her hands in front of her, palms facing him, and began chanting.

“Ye lord! Mask of blood and flesh…” she started causing Sajin’s eyes to widen.

“You’re bluffing. You can’t use kidō.” he flatly stated, but she just grinned even more.

“…all creation, flutter of wings, ye who bears the name of Man!” she continued, freezing Sajin’s blood.

He was about to move to stop her, but his hesitation was all the time she needed, and she suddenly spawned multiple flames around him, keeping him in place.

“On the wall of blue flame, inscribe a twin lotus!” she continued further.

Sajin was now unsure if she was bluffing or not, but he couldn’t take that risk. She had him pinned now and flash step wasn’t going to help him. He only had one action he could take.

He raised his zanpakutō high and began swinging down towards Susan, causing the giant to follow. Just before the giant blade hit her, she transported over next to him, evading the blade, and getting close enough that she couldn’t possibly miss with the kidō.

“In the abyss of conflagration, wait at the far heavens!” she finished, Sajin’s eyes now wide as saucers.

She gave him one final grin, showing him all of her pointed teeth as she glared in his eyes.

“It’s over.” she stated. “Hado #73…”

She was interrupted by a sudden burst of blue energy bolts soaring towards her location, but she was watching that area in her peripheral view, so she saw exactly where it came from.

_‘Found you!’_ she thought as she quickly vanished.

The flames around Sajin suddenly dispersed and freed him, then respawned in a large cluster near the middle of the field in a wide, but closed off formation. Susan reappeared near the cluster with her hands still facing Sajin and kept an eye on him as the cluster of flames slowly closed together.

“I know you’re in there, Lieutenant! Yield now and save yourself the pain! There is no chance for you to get out! And if the Captain makes a single move, I’ll roast him! This is a full incantation 70s level hadō, so there is no chance to escape it!” she threatened.

The two combatants entered a near-endless contest of staring. Sajin still trying to determine if she was bluffing, and Susan waiting for them to submit. Time simply ceased to exist for the two as the flames crept closer and closer.

Second after second the ball of flames closed in until there was very little space inside left with Sajin switching his glares between her and the chamber of fire. Finally, after a deep sigh, he lowered his zanpakutō, causing the giant to slowly disappear, and closed his eyes.

“Tetsuzaemon…yield.” he ordered.

Susan glanced to her right to see the man in question slowly appear. He gave her an angry look, but finally got down onto his knee.

“I yield.” he announced very reluctantly.

She turned back to Sajin and nodded, before dispersing the flames and lowering her hands to her sides. She took a deep breath, smiled, then took a single step forward. But her energy suddenly left her, and she fell down to her knees, holding herself up with her arms.

Back on the sidelines, Timothy’s eyes went wide as he saw Susan collapse on the ground. He quickly bolted in a dead sprint to her as Sajin flash stepped next to her with worry in his eyes. He wanted to try and help her, but with her body covered in her flames, he didn’t dare touch here.

Her breathing was starting to pick up and she clutched her chest in pain as she lowered her head while the flames on her body were starting to go out. Sajin was beginning to curse to himself for being unable to help her.

“Susan!” Timothy yelled as he ran across the field, but still a good distance away.

Tetsuzaemon quickly stood, flash stepped to him, placed a hand on his shoulder, then flashed back next to Susan. Timothy quickly drew the empty sword and held it to her.

“You damn fool!” he growled, then began his seal enchantment. “Breaths of wind sweeping the plains. Calm waters flowing smooth. Life of the sun during the day. Light of the moon during the night. All come together, creating harmony. Tengoku shīru.” he finished.

Susan’s body began reshaping into a small, blue, and very weak flame as it slowly got pulled into the sword, the spell resealing her soul inside. Once she was fully inside, he quickly sheathed the sword and lowered his head.

He dropped his hands to his side and stood there for a moment while the two officers sheathed their zanpakutōs. Timothy started running his hand through his hair and sighed.

“You just ‘had’ to overdo it.” he remarked to no one in particular.

**“I told you not to worry, I’m fine, aren’t I?”** Susan retorted, getting a glare from him.

“You ‘almost’ killed yourself stupid! I need to find a way to put a leash on you!” Timothy yelled back.

Sajin walked up and set a hand on his shoulder, getting his attention. “Calm down Tim, she’s still here. She told you she would be fine.” Sajin tried to comfort.

Timothy wanted to say something, but he was not in the mood for any arguments, so he let it go.

“Alright, fine.” he surrendered.

Sajin looked down to Timothy’s sword. “You fought quite well, Susan. I never expected you to use kidō to force Tetsuzaemon’s hand.” he complemented, getting a nod from the Lieutenant.

“I agree. I still can’t believe I let you trap me like that.” he added begrudgingly.

Susan started laughing while Timothy slowly shook his head, confusing the two officers.

**“I still can’t believe you fell for it.”** she remarked, causing the Captain to glare at her.

“You can’t use kidō…can’t you?” he asked, knowing the answer.

**“Nope. I was just trying to make you two panic. I was really trying to draw the Lieutenant’s fire, so I could figure out where he was. But once I saw the look of belief on your face, I played it off.”** she answered.

Both of the men growled and lowered their heads in shame, shame for falling for such a lousy trick.

**“By the way, how the hell were you hiding like that?”** she asked in a chuckle.

“Bakudō #26, Kyokkō.” Timothy answered, getting Sajin’s attention. “It’s a kidō that allows the user to hide their appearance, as well as their spiritual pressure, as long as they don’t move from that spot.”

“I’m impressed Tim. But then again you did use a 60s level hadō yesterday, so a 20s level Bakudō should be fairly easy.” Sajin stated.

Timothy nodded and crossed his arms. “Well, are you satisfied Captain?” he asked.

“I am. It was an…interesting battle. I’m very impressed. As I said before, your secret is safe, we will not tell anyone. Now, it is time we returned to the Seireitei.” Sajin instructed.

Timothy gave a nod and drooped his hands as Tetsuzaemon placed his hand on Timothy’s shoulder. The two officers flash stepped away, carrying Timothy away.

** Squad 7 Headquarters, Seireitei, 10 minutes later. **

The three men flashed back to the headquarters, then walked inside and into the Captain’s office. Sajin walked around behind his desk and began pouring some tea while Tetsuzaemon and Timothy sat down in front. Sajin turned back around and handed each of them a cup before sitting down himself.

“Now, with that out of the way…Timothy, I would like you to find 7th seat Minato, he should be here in one of the offices. Ask him to show you how to handle paperwork.” Sajin instructed.

Timothy gave him a slight nod and took a sip of his tea. “Anything else sir?” he asked as he set the cup down.

“For the moment, no. Tetsuzaemon and I need to change, as well as finish some of this paperwork here. This evening we will talk about what you asked earlier.” Sajin answered, then took a sip.

“And no more trying to kill yourself Durn.” Tetsuzaemon added, getting a moan back.

“Don’t start that again.” Timothy pleaded, earning a glare from the Lieutenant, and a smirk from the Captain.

Timothy drank the rest of his tea, then stood up and bowed. “Thank you, sir.” he stated, getting a slight bow back.

Timothy rose, then started walking towards the door as the two men started sifting through paperwork. He continued into the hallway and closed the door behind him before setting off to find Minato.

The headquarters was quite large, so Timothy thought it best to ask one of the clerks if they knew where the officer was. He turned to see a man sitting at one of the numerous desks and started walking towards him.

“Excuse me.” he addressed when he came closer.

The man turned to him. “Yes?” he answered.

Timothy walked up and stopped next to him. “I’m looking for 7th seat Minato, do you know where he is?” Timothy asked politely.

The man nodded and pointed to the floor. “He’s downstairs. When you get to the hallway from the stairs, make a right, and it’s the second office on the right.” the man answered.

Timothy nodded. “Thanks.” he replied, getting a nod back before the man returned to his work.

He followed the man’s directions as he went to the first floor and made a right, now looking for the appropriate office. Once he came to the door, he spotted Minato sitting at a small, six-seat conference table with another man looking at paperwork.

He walked into the office and continued towards the officer, greeting him once he was within earshot.

“Hey Minato.” he greeted, getting the man’s attention.

Minato smile and waved. “Hey Timothy. Are feeling better than yesterday?” he asked, referring to the numerous conflicts he had with multiple officers.

Timothy rubbed his neck and nodded. “Yeah, a little. Anyway, the Captain sent me to find you so you can show me how to handle paperwork.” he stated.

Minato rose a brow. “Ok, I wonder why.” he stated nonchalantly.

Timothy sighed and scratched his head. “Probably because I’m the new 5th seat.” Timothy flatly answered.

Minato rose both of his brows in surprise. “Is that so? Well, congratulations Timothy.” he happily stated, getting a nod back.

“Yeah, yeah. Anyway, could you help me?” Timothy asked.

Minato nodded and gestured for him to sit next to him. Timothy nodded back and sat down with a heavy sigh. Minato grabbed a couple sheets and slid them over to Timothy, who glanced at them to see that they were some sort of financial papers.

“What have we got here?” Timothy asked to himself.

“These are the forms we use for handling the squad’s finances. Every month, the squad is allotted a set amount of funds, and these forms record what those funds were used for.” Minato answered.

Timothy took a moment to look them over, but he didn’t even need that much to become agitated. He could see that there were many expenditures listed on the form; ranging from training expenses, building repairs, salaries, and a few other items.

“Well, this seems simple enough. Could use a little tidying up though.” Timothy commented.

Minato glanced at him with a raised brow. “What do you mean?” he asked.

Timothy set the paper down as he turned to him. “I was an accountant for a small company when I was still alive, so I’m sort of used to looking at numbers all day.” Timothy clarified.

“Ok, but what did you mean by it could use ‘tidying up’?” Minato pressed.

“It looks good for the most part, but with the way its jumbled up, it makes it a little confusing to read. My suggestion is to rearrange the items by either how much you spent on them, or put them alphabetical order. Looking at these few papers, there don’t appear to be a set order, so it makes comparing a little difficult.” Timothy suggested.

Minato took a look at the papers for a moment, then nodded. “Actually, that’s a good idea. Thanks for the advice. Does that mean you’re volunteering to handle ‘all’ of the financial papers?” Minato joked.

Timothy gave him a deadpanned look. “Uhhhh…no!” he flatly answered, causing the two men to chuckle.

“Right. Anyway, let’s get to work. It’s our job to get all the information together and put it down on the forms. Once that’s done, we check them to make sure there aren’t any mistakes, then they are turned in to the Captain for final review. It’s the same procedure for all of the forms.” Minato instructed, getting a nod.

“Ok. So, another question. Does everyone handle all types of forms?” Timothy asked.

“What do you mean?” Minato returned.

Timothy rubbed his chin for a second before answering. “Well, what I mean is, does everyone who handles paperwork handle all of the types of forms, or do they focus on certain ones?” Timothy clarified.

“Oh, well we all handle the same paperwork. We first go to the offices and pick some of the paperwork up, and get to work on it.”

“Isn’t that a little…counterproductive?” Timothy asked, giving the man an odd look.

“Not that I know of. What would you suggest?” Minato asked as he set his paperwork down to give Timothy his full attention.

“Well, when I was working for the company, we had certain offices that handled certain aspects of the company. For example, we had an office that handled finances, and finances only. Then we had one for human resources, and that…” Minato interrupted him.

“Human resources?” he inquired.

“Yeah. In other words, it handled the management of personnel. Hiring, firing, reassignments, stuff like that. Anything that has to do with managing the people that work for the company.” Timothy again clarified.

“So…would that include training?” Minato inquired more.

“It could, but in this case, it would be better to have a separate office for that. But anyway, I would recommend splitting the paperwork into their own offices. That way, certain personnel can focus on one aspect of paperwork, instead of multiple. It also eliminates the chances that paperwork can get mixed up, or lost.” Timothy finished.

Minato leaned back with his arms crossed, thinking about Timothy’s advice. After a moment, Minato turned back to him.

“I like the idea. I think you should bring that up to the Captain. First day as a seated officer and you’re already trying to make changes.” he finished in a joking tone.

Timothy thought of a way to get back at the man, so he gave him a grin.

“I’d be careful how you speak to others, ‘7th’ seat.” he emphasized the 7th part in a mock serious tone.

Minato looked at him with wide eyes, realizing that he just got put down by him. He recovered quickly and gave a slight bow.

“My apologies, ‘sir’. he returned.

Timothy snorted and shook his head. “Wiseass.” he remarked, causing the two men tow laugh.

“Anyway, let’s get this done. So, what’s next?” Timothy asked.

Minato slid him a different form and started pointing out the different parts of the form. Form after form, Timothy would get a quick lesson on them, then try to fill them out accordingly.

The three men sat in the office filling out papers for a while until they had finally finished. Timothy, although he was somewhat used to paperwork from the past, quickly became annoyed by the sheer amount of it.

Minato grabbed all of the papers and started sorting them out by type as he put them in a neat pile. He then stood up, causing the other two to follow suit, then picked up the stack of papers.

“Alright, now we turn these in to the Captain for his final review. I’ll take care of it, so I guess you can head to the barracks and take it easy for a bit. There’s not much else going of today.” Minato explained.

Timothy gave him a nod and began to walk out of the office, but he stopped when something came to mind. He turned back to Minato and held a hand up slightly.

“One more thing, how are the other members assigned? Are certain members assigned to certain officers?” Timothy asked, getting a nod.

“For the most part. Every officer is responsible for every member, but they do pay closer attention to certain members to make training and assignments easier. I’ll get you a list of the members that Hetoku was taking care of.” Minato answered.

Timothy nodded and waved as he turned back to the hallway. Once he entered the hallway, a thought came to him that he should practice his flash step. He only got to practice it once, and that was with Hetoku.

He thought that it had to be embarrassing that he was a 5th seat, but couldn’t use shunpo. If word of that got out, not only would he feel bad, but it would most likely bring embarrassment to the squad and Captain as well.

He continued on these thoughts as he walked out the rear doors of the headquarters and turned towards the training grounds. As expected, the grounds were empty, so that meant that he could practice without people watching him make a fool of himself.

He made it about halfway to the grounds before someone flashed in front of him. Timothy stopped and looked to see it was Tetsuzaemon with his hands on his hips and a smug look on his face.

Timothy slightly fretted inside, wondering what the man could be upset about now. Before Timothy could speak, the man placed his hand on his shoulder.

“We need to have a talk.” he stated in his usual gruff voice.

Before Timothy could reply, the Lieutenant flashed away taking Timothy with him.

** West Rukongai, 3rd District, North End, 5 minutes later **

The large town of North End was a bustling combination of simple residents, shop owners, and the occasional noble. Unlike the lower districts like Fallen Tree and Crushed Hope, North End was one of the highest districts.

Because of this, the district was considered to be very wealthy, and possessed very little, if any crime. The population in the higher districts were considerably lower than the lower ones, and it was also here that most of the higher and middle ranking noble families resided.

On the edge of the street in the middle of town was a smaller soup shop, where the owner was wiping a small stack of bowls with a rag and humming. He turned to the front of his shop as two men, soul reapers, flashed into place.

The two men spoke for a second, then the black-haired man gestured towards his shop, leading the shorter man. The two men began walking towards him, so he set down the bowl he was working on and stepped out from behind the service window.

He stood there and waited until both men walked inside and gave them a bow.

“Good afternoon, gentlemen. What will it be today?” he asked in a polite manner.

The black-haired man with shades held up a hand with two fingers.

“Two specials.” he answered simply.

The owner nodded. “Two specials, yes sir.” he replied and returned to the kitchen to begin preparing the order.

Meanwhile, Timothy and Tetsuzaemon found a seat near the service window as the owner’s coworker walked out with a tray carrying two small cups and a clay tea pot. She set the tray’s contents down in front of the men and gave a slight bow before returning to the back.

Tetsuzaemon poured both of them a cup of tea and handed one to Timothy.

“Thank you.” Timothy replied, then took a sip before putting the cup down. “So, what is it that you wanted to talk about, Lieutenant?” he asked as polite as he could.

Tetsuzaemon took a sip as well, then set his cup down and turned to him.

“We need to clear the air between us.” he stated in a gruff, but lighter tone.

Timothy gave him a nod. “I would have to agree.” he returned, then took another sip.

“First, you need to keep a better control on your attitude. I’ve been biting my tongue trying to let you get used to how things are done in the squad. But now that you’re an officer, that goes out the window.” the Lieutenant stated.

Timothy gave a quick sigh and nodded. “I understand, but you also have to understand where I come from as well. Even when I was still alive, I had little patience for people’s nonsense. But after living in Fallen Tree for twelve years, my patience only got worse. I understand what you’re saying, Lieutenant, and I am trying to keep my mouth in check, but you should know that habits are hard to break. Nonetheless, I promise that I’ll try to watch my attitude.”

Tetsuzaemon took a sip and refilled his cup. “Good. Next thing is that you need to respect others. Your outburst with Captain Zaraki yesterday was inexcusable. To be frank, you’re lucky that neither of the Captains decided to punish you. The only reason our Captain didn’t do anything is ‘because’ of what you said to Captain Zaraki.” Tetsuzaemon finished with a slight smirk.

“What do you mean?” Timothy inquired.

“What I mean is that you had the guts to talk down on Captain Zaraki and call him out for his deficiencies. Truthfully, Captain Komamura was impressed with your lack of fear for the man, and while we’re being honest, so was I. It’s not every day that someone talks like that to Captain Zaraki, besides another Captain. Even most Captains won’t speak like that to the man.” The man took another sip, as did Timothy.

“Well, thanks for the…complement. But I should warn you, if he wants to act like that again, I’ll gladly show him the same response as last time. That man is nothing more than a bloodthirsty ogre.” Timothy remarked, getting a chuckle from Tetsuzaemon. “Well what do you know, I managed to make you laugh.” he teased, getting a scoff back.

“Well, I can’t disagree with you in that matter. But with that aside, you also need to get respect from the men. You’re an officer now, so they need to respect you as such. So, you need to start talking with them and get their respect, even if you have to demand it.” He took another sip.

“Now that’s where I disagree.” Timothy flatly stated.

Tetsuzaemon turned to him with a raised brow. “I won’t ‘demand’ anything. If I want the men’s respect, I’ll ‘earn’ it. Sure, they need to show the common respect such as sir, bowing, and things like that. But when it comes to them respecting me as an individual, I plan to earn it. By demanding it, they’re only going to respect me less.” Timothy corrected.

The Lieutenant stared at him for a moment, then finally smirked. “Now that’s more like it.” he stated without his gruff tone.

Timothy rose a brow at him. “You were testing me…weren’t you?” he asked in an annoyed tone.

“And you passed. I think you might possibly make a decent officer yet.” Tetsuzaemon commented. Timothy gave him a growl.

“And what is that supposed to mean?” Timothy now felt insulted.

“Nothing at all.” the man returned with a grin and took another sip. But his grin fell, and he then looked at Timothy with annoyance. “And please do something about that flirtatious woman of yours!” he demanded.

Timothy face then faltered. “I’ve been trying to do that for twenty-eight years, Lieutenant. I really hate to say it, but I don’t think it’s possible to do anything about it. At least you’re not ‘stuck’ with her in your head, so be thankful for that.” He moaned, earning a look of slight pity from the Lieutenant.

**_“I am ‘not’ that bad, Tim.”_** she pointed out.

He then dropped his head onto the table with a thump. _“Yes…you are.”_ He growled.

Both men turned as the woman came back with a tray carrying their orders. She set the bowls on the table and gave them a slight bow.

“Please enjoy.” she stated before she rose and returned to the kitchen.

Both men then began eating in silence.


	8. Practice Makes Perfect

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 8

**(Practice Makes Perfect.)**

** Squad 7 Training Grounds, Seireitei, 1 hour later **

Once Timothy and Tetsuzaemon had finished eating, they both returned to the squad headquarters to continue their day. Tetsuzaemon gave Timothy a brief lecture on the roles and duties that were expected of him as an officer before he returned to the headquarters.

Timothy however decided to get a little bit of practice done with his flash step, and perhaps meditate a little and communicate with his zanpakutō. Thankfully, the grounds were still empty, leaving him with plenty of room to work with.

He had managed to get the basics of the use of shunpo down with the help of Hetoku; so, he could perform it, but he needed to practice controlling it.

He concluded that the best way for him to do this would be to mark a location in the middle of the field, then flash to it as close as he could; that way he could get an idea of how much energy he needed to put into the move to get the results that he wanted.

Now that he had arrived at the grounds, he began looking around for something to use as a marker. He looked over towards the tree where he would study and saw some twigs and small branches.

“Those should work.” he mumbled to himself.

He walked over to the tree and looked around for a decent sized branch that he could stick into the ground to mark his spot.

After a couple of minutes, he found a branch that would do the job and began walking out to the middle of the field. He chose a good enough spot and shoved the branch into the ground deep enough that it wouldn’t fall over.

As he stood back up, he turned to see Hinata and Issei walking towards the grounds from the barracks. Although he enjoyed their company, he didn’t feel like talking with them at the moment.

But then he thought that perhaps he could ask them to help him a bit with his practice. He stood in place waiting for them to come close before he waved at them.

He saw Issei tap her shoulder, then point out at him to focus her attention. Once she noticed him, both friends waved back with her smiling. It only took another few seconds before they were next to Timothy.

“Hey guys.” Timothy greeted.

“Hey Tim.” Issei returned.

The two men shook hands, then he and Hinata shook hands as well before Timothy placed his hands on his hips.

“Hi Tim. You training again?” Hinata asked cheerfully.

Timothy gave a quick nod. “Yeah, I’m practicing my flash step. Can’t have an officer that can’t use shunpo.” Timothy joked.

Hinata chuckled a bit and Issei lightly shook his head.

“Nah, that wouldn’t be good at all. So how did your errands go this morning?” Issei inquired.

Timothy lightly scoffed. “Good, but not quite as good as I hoped. So, what are you two up to? Where’s Kenta?”

“He’s out walking around somewhere with Junya, probably causing trouble.” Issei answered.

“Probably striping women again.” Timothy teased, earning a glare from Hinata.

“I swear you better not tell anyone!” she threatened as Issei chuckled.

Timothy held his hands up in surrender. “I won’t, I won’t. Just messing with ya.” he responded in a calm voice.

“You better not. Anyway, we came out here to practice our kidō for a bit.” she stated, answering his other question.

“Really? So, what level are you at right now, if I may ask?” Timothy asked as he crossed his arms.

“I’m at 52 in Bakudō, and 38 in Hadō. Issei’s at 51 and 53 respectively. My Hadō never was that good, sad to say. What about you?” Hinata returned, getting a smirk from Timothy.

“Well…I’m at 82 for Bakudō, and 72 in hadō. I’ve practiced Sōren Sōkatsui a couple of times, but…it didn’t end well. I’ve also practiced some middle level seals as well.”

Both friend’s jaws dropped with wide eyes. They knew he had some skill in kidō, but they had no idea that he was that good.

“How long have you been practicing?” Hinata asked in shock.

“Oh…eleven years now. In fact, I used a full incantation Raikōhō against the Lieutenant in a duel yesterday. But the Captain blocked it with a Dankū.” Timothy recalled.

Their shock only got worse. “What?! Why the hell did you do that?! Don’t you know it’s not allowed?!” Issei asked in a panic.

Timothy quickly held a hand up. “Hey, he said not to hold back, so I didn’t. Even the Captain agreed to that. Besides, I wish you could have seen the look on his face when I started the incantation. Talk about priceless.” Timothy finished in a chuckle.

“I can only imagine.” Issei deadpanned.

“Whatever. So, if you’re practicing your shunpo, would you like some help?” Hinata offered.

Timothy nodded. “Sure, I’d appreciate it. Hetoku taught me the basics on how to use it, I just need to control it.” he stated.

“Alright, we’ll give you a hand. Maybe you can teach us a few tricks with kidō?” Hinata pressed.

“I’m not sure if I would make a good teacher. I just learned everything I know from books with no tutoring.” Timothy clarified.

Hinata shrugged her shoulders and placed her arms behind her back. “It’s fine, just thought I’d ask.” she responded with a hint of disappointment.

“Hey, I don’t have a problem helping you, I just don’t know where to begin when it comes to teaching. It’s not exactly something I’ve done before.” Timothy tried to reassure. “But if you really want me to, I guess I can give it a try.” he added.

Both friends smiled and nodded. “Thanks Tim. But first, let’s work on your flash step.” Issei finished.

Timothy nodded and gestured with his hand towards the tree. The three friends began walking, and once they got back to the tree, Timothy got into a stance to use shunpo.

“Alright, you said you already have the basics down, so now it’s just a matter of getting the amount of energy used right. And really, the only way to get that down is to keep doing it over and over until it becomes muscle memory.” Issei instructed.

Timothy gave a brief nod, then turned back to the branch from earlier. He began redirecting the flow of his energy to start accumulating it in his legs.

Using the trick Hetoku had taught him, he tried to imagine a wall keeping the energy in place. He took a breath, then stepped forward as he released the energy in his leg, instantly stepping over to where the branch was.

He stood up straight and looked behind him to see he had overshot his target by about two yards. He glanced back at the tree to see his two friends giving him thumbs up. He then turned to face just a bit to the left of Hinata, so that he wouldn’t run into her; and taking a stance, he began funneling energy back to his legs and got ready to step again.

He took another breath, then stepped again, this time bypassing Hinata by ten feet, worse than he did with his previous target.

He stood up straight and turned back to them. “I think I put a little too much into it.” Timothy stated in agitation, getting a nod from her.

“Just a little. Like Issei said, you just gotta find the right amount of energy, then keep doing it over and over until your body does it automatically. But don’t worry, once your body learns exactly what is needed, it’ll start doing it on its own without you having to think about it.” she encouraged.

Timothy nodded and got ready to step again back towards the branch. He channeled the energy into his leg, but pulled a little back before he stepped again.

This time, he found that he didn’t go far enough, ending up shy by about three yards. He let out a light growl as he walked the rest of the way to the branch.

“Not quite enough.” he mumbled as he came to the branch and turned around. Let’s try again.”

He got back into a stance, channeled his energy, then stepped again, now ending up only a yard from Hinata.

“Better. Just remember how much you used that time and add just a tad bit more.” Issei instructed.

Timothy turned around and got ready to try again.

For the next hour, Timothy flash stepped back and forth, over and over and adjusting his energy output each time. Sometimes he would overshoot, other times he would end up shy of his target. He managed to stop in the target area a few times, but for the most part he would just miss it.

After a while, his legs were starting to get tired, so he decided to take a break for a bit and give his friends a hand with their kidō. The three friends walked over to the kidō range and Timothy faced the other two.

“Alright, have either of you two practiced any barriers or seals before?” he asked.

“A couple simple ones, but that’s it.” Hinata answered.

“Alright, let me show you a relatively easy one that I came up with.” Timothy stated.

Both friends raised their brows at him. “One that you came up with? What do you mean? You made your own seal?” Issei asked in surprise.

Timothy gave a slight nod. “Yeah, but it’s purely a defensive one. Like I said, I find it easy to cast, the problem is maintaining it.” he responded holding a finger up.

“I call it Datsuraku Shōheki, or Shedding Barrier. It’s a barrier that is placed on top of your body, but it’s transparent and undetectable. Once you’ve cast the barrier, you have to feed your spirit energy into it to maintain it, or it will shatter because of how weak it is.”

“So, what does it do?” Hinata asked.

“It’s like…a second skin. It’ll act as a protective barrier against kidō, especially Bakudō. It’ll protect you against lower level hadō, but it’s most effective against binding spells. If you have it over you, and you get attacked with a bakudō, the bakudō will bind to the barrier instead. All you have to do is release the barrier and the bakudō will fall apart with it. But as I said, after you’ve cast the barrier, you have to constantly feed spiritual energy into it. So, if you keep it up for an extended amount of time, you would end up tiring yourself out.” Timothy answered.

Both friends nodded, but still seemed confused.

“Alright, I’ll show you. I’ll put up the barrier, and one of you two hit me with a binding kidō.” Timothy instructed.

The two friends nodded and Timothy stepped back a few feet. He lowered his head and closed his eyes as he placed both hands in front of him, interlocking his thumbs, index and middle fingers, and extending his ring and little fingers.

He took a deep breath, then released a little bit of spirit energy.

“Datsuraku Shōheki.” he whispered as he pushed his energy into his hands.

The friends watched as a rectangular, transparent barrier appeared around Timothy. After a moment, the barrier began shrinking at a mild pace until it formed onto his body, then faded away. Timothy lowered his hands and raised his head towards them.

Hinata raised a brow at him. “You don’t need an incantation for it?” she inquired.

Timothy gently shook his head. “No. Like I said, the barrier is quite thin and not that powerful at all. Just using the name is good enough to get what you need. So go ahead and try it, send a bakudō at me.” he stated, getting a nod from Issei.

Issei raised his hand to Timothy and started drawing a symbol in the air in front of him, a small, red trace of light following his finger’s movements.

“Bakudō #9, Geki.” he chanted.

Timothy’s body instantly started giving off a red hue and he found himself completely unable to move. But a second later, he took a breath and the bakudō quickly dispelled with a shatter. Timothy raised his hand up and flexed his fingers.

Both friends looked at him with both surprise and shock as Timothy turned back to them.

“See? Your bakudō attached itself to the barrier. But keep in mind, the reason I couldn’t move was because the kidō was binding the barrier, therefor binding me. But once I dropped the barrier, the kidō shattered with it.” Timothy stated.

“Is it effective against physical attacks?” Hinata asked, now recovered from her shock.

“Not really. The barrier is too thin to hold up against anything physical. And you can’t make the barrier thicker because it will prevent you from moving. It’s just thin enough to allow free movement. It might reduce the impact of a hit hadō by a little bit, but not really noticeable. Although, it is good at keeping you dry when it’s raining.”

The two friends chuckled at his joke, then nodded.

“So, how do you cast it?” Issei asked.

Timothy placed his hands in front of him and interlaced his fingers the same way as before.

“First, put your hands out like this.” he began.

The two friends did as instructed, holding their hands out in front of them and tried to mimic the position of Timothy’s fingers. Timothy walked up to them and slightly readjusted Issei’s fingers to the right position.

He turned to Hinata and moved her hands out from her chest a little more and gave a quick adjustment to her fingers.

“Alright, just like you do for regular kidō and other seals, focus your spirit energy into your hands.” The two friends closed their eyes and began channeling energy towards their hands. “Now, visualize a thin barrier around you, and start to put the energy into it, but be careful not to put too much energy into it.”

For the next few moments, they both slowly put their energy into the barrier that they had in their minds. Very slowly, a small, rectangular barrier started to form around Issei, but Hinata was having some trouble.

“Hinata, try to see the barrier in your mind, and place it around you. Once you visualize it, then put the energy into it.” Timothy corrected.

She slightly nodded and tried again. After another few seconds, a small barrier started to form around her. It was slightly larger than Issei’s, but Timothy could see that she got the concept.

“Ok, now, pull the barrier closer to you and keep pulling unto it wraps around your body. Remember, do not put too much into it, just enough to keep it active, that’s it.” Timothy instructed.

For a moment, nothing happened. But after that their individual barriers started to slowly close in on them. Timothy drew his zanpakutō and held it facing backwards so he could break the barriers if they made a mistake.

It took a few minutes, but after a while the barriers were now closely wrapped around their bodies.

“Now, state the name and the barriers will freeze and hold their shape. Repeat after me, Datsuraku Shōheki.” Timothy paused.

“Datsuraku Shōheki.” The two friends called in unison.

Instantly, the two barriers stopped and became completely clear. They both let out their breaths and started moving their arms around.

“It feels weird…like my arms are heavy.” Hinata stated.

“You’re not used to it, and I can tell that you made it just a little bit thicker that it should be. But, it’s not bad for the first try. Like the flash step, once you get the gist of it down, it’s just a matter of getting used to putting the right amount of energy to it.” he reassured.

Right as he finished his statement, Issei’s barrier suddenly shattered, startling him.

“What happened?” he asked.

“You didn’t put your energy into it. As I said, once you’ve cast it, you have to constantly keep feeding your energy into it to keep it up. Try it again.”

Issei nodded and held his hands in place again to try again. He took a breath and slowly gathered energy into his hands. A moment later, another thin barrier appeared around him. A few seconds afterwards, the barrier started to close in around him until it encased him.

“Datsuraku Shōheki.” he commanded.

His barrier became clear and he rested his arms.

“Good. Now, I’ll send a low level bakudō at you two. Once the kidō has attached to you, I’ll tell you to drop the barrier.” Timothy stated, getting nods back.

“I’ll use Geki as well.” he added and held his hand up to Hinata.

He drew the incantation in the air with his fingers, the same red tracer from last time following his finger’s movements. Once he finished, he held his hand out to her.

“Bakudō #9, Geki.” he chanted.

The same red hue as before now enveloped Hinata’s body, and she found herself unable to move. Timothy lowered his hand.

“Alright, now cut off the energy you’re feeding to the barrier and let it collapse.” he instructed.

She closed her eyes, and after a few seconds the barrier around her shattered, taking the bakudō with it. She opened her eyes back up and started moving her arms around.

“Wow! I can’t believe that worked!” she stated in surprise.

Timothy smiled at her, which she returned, then turned to Issei. He held his hand up again and drew the incantation again.

“Bakudō #9, Geki.” He chanted once more.

Issei’s body, like before, was enveloped in the same red hue, also finding himself unable to move.

“Now it’s your turn. Do the same as Hinata and stop feeding energy into the barrier.”

Issei slowly stopped sending his energy into the barrier, causing it to shatter as well with the kidō. He rotated his shoulder and flexed his fingers.

“Now that’s cool. Thanks Tim.” he stated.

Hinata nodded. “Yeah, thanks.” she added.

“No problem. But keep this in mind, when you are trying to perform it, if you feel that something isn’t right, or the barrier is too strong, do not state the name, just let it drop. You can always try again, but if you cast it and it’s not right, you might have just screwed yourself.” Timothy warned with a finger in the air.

Both friends nodded back to him.

“Got it.” Hinata confirmed.

Timothy nodded back and returned his sword to its sheath. “Alright, that’s enough rest for me. I’m gonna head back over there and work on my flash step some more.” He stated as he gestured with his thumb towards the tree. “You guys can keep practicing if you want, but one at a time. I’d recommend the other person have their zanpakutō drawn in case you have to break the barrier by force if something happens.” he added.

The pair nodded again. “Sounds like you’ve had a bad experience before.” Issei mocked.

The officer’s face dropped. “…Yeah…One time, I accidentally trapped myself for almost two hours.”

The two friends laughed while Susan snickered. **_“Oh my God, ‘that’ was so damn funny!”_** she remarked.

_“Be quiet, you!”_ he shot back with a hiss.

“Alright. Have fun.” Issei remarked when he calmed down to a chuckle.

Timothy gave them a quick wave before turning and walking back to the tree.

Truth be told, even though both of his friends were moderately proficient in channeling their spirit energy, he was still a little impressed that they had managed to perform the barrier that quickly. In the past, it took him almost three weeks to perfect it.

It was now midafternoon, and he still needed to speak with the Captain that evening. He guessed that he would have a couple of hours left to practice before he would have to leave to go meet with him.

Once he arrived at the tree, he took a few minutes to stretch out his legs because they were starting to cramp from earlier. Once he finished, he turned to face the branch in the distance and prepared himself to flash step.

He tried to remember exactly how much energy he had put into his last step and, put that same amount into this one. After a short breath, he flashed forward, and managed to come to a stop only a few feet away.

“Decent…but it needs to be better.” He mumbled under his breath.

He turned back around towards the tree and quickly stepped again, but this time he stopped right next to it.

“There we go, now I’ve just gotta remember the force behind it.”

He raised each knee to his chest, one after the other to get another quick stretch. He took a quick breath, then turned and stepped again, ending up just a little bit close than before.

**_“Hey Tim.”_** Susan spoke up.

Timothy turned back towards the tree and stepped again, again landing next to it.

_“Yeah?”_ he answered inwardly as he turned back.

**_“Are you calm enough to talk about earlier?”_** she inquired, getting a sigh back.

_“I guess. What is it?”_ he asked, then stepped again, stopping where he did last time.

**_“Well, I wanted to ask you what you thought about the fight.”_** Susan stated.

Timothy turned around and prepared to step again.

_“You did good, from what I saw.”_ he paused and stepped, right next to the tree. _“Can’t believe you made those two fall for your fake kidō.”_ he added and turned back.

**_“That was funny, but I’m asking about overall.”_** she clarified.

Timothy stepped again and landed right at the branch. _“Overall, you did a really good job.”_ He turned and flashed again. _“You managed to take on, not only the Captain, but the Lieutenant as well, at the same time.”_ he stated and flashed. _“I may not have been here long, but even I know that just to be able to take on a Lieutenant is ‘not’ an easy feat.”_

He stepped again as Susan spoke. **_“Thanks. And Tim, I’m sorry for scaring you like that. It just…hit me out of nowhere.”_** she admitted.

He flashed once more, then sighed and placed his hands on his hips.

_“Susan…we need to work together. I know after the past few days I don’t have much of a right to say this, but we can’t overdo it. You know full well what could happen if you lost all of your energy. If I lose you, I doubt I would be able to keep going.”_ Timothy stated, then got ready to step again.

**_“I know, but just…cut me a little slack. Besides, it does get very boring being sealed like this, so you gotta let me live at least a little.”_** she pleaded.

Timothy stepped, then sighed. _“Alright, I’ll try. If I could help it, I would let you out once in a while. The only problem is that we can’t risk others seeing you.”_

**_“I’m aware. And now that you mention it, a…wild idea came to my mind earlier after the fight.”_** she stated.

Timothy stepped again back to the tree and stood for a moment.

_“An idea coming from you? Why do I have the feeling that this is either going to be really funny, or really stupid?”_ he mocked.

Susan growled back at him. **_“Just…shut up and hear me out!”_** she demanded.

Timothy snorted and nodded. _“I’m listening.”_

**_“Remember the Captain’s…giant, or whatever that thing was?”_** she asked, getting a nod. **_“Well…it leads me to think that some bankais, and maybe even some standard releases allow the zanpakutō’s spirit to fight with its owner.”_** she began.

Timothy could already see where this was going, and he immediately thought it was a bad idea. But he decided to let her finish.

_“Go ahead.”_ he stated.

**_“Well, if that’s the case, it may be possible for me to help you in your fights. You already use my sealed abilities as a mock shikai, so it’s possible that by releasing me, you can use that as a mock bankai.”_** she finished.

Even though he didn’t like the idea and thought it was far too risky, he did have to admit that it was entirely possible. And it would give him an excuse in case he ever had to release her in an emergency.

_“Ok, say that we do use your release as a mock bankai, how would you explain having to reseal you again? If someone hears the incantation, they’ll know that it’s a seal.”_ he pointed out.

**_“Just tell them I’m arrogant and tend to refuse to return to sword form, and that you usually have to force me back.”_** she answered.

He scoffed at her answer. _“You ‘are’ arrogant!”_ he insulted.

**_“I am not!”_** she fought back.

Timothy gave a slight chuckle. _“Oh, yes you are! Even more than I am! And I am not going to argue with you about it!”_ he returned flatly.

**_“Whatever…anyway, do you think that the idea would work? At least to give you an edge if things don’t turn out.”_** she said as he turned back to the branch.

_“I’ll think about it, and don’t ask me about it again.”_ he instructed, then stepped.

**_“Alright, I won’t. Anyway, thanks for letting me have my fun. I’m sure the Captain and Lieutenant enjoyed it too.”_** she stated.

Timothy flinched and sweated. _“Please don’t say it like that…you make it sound like you’re implying…something.”_

**_“Oh? So that’s where your mind is, huh? My, how dirty you are.”_** she teased in a flirty tone.

Timothy slightly blushed. _“I am not! You made it sound dirty!”_ he returned.

**_“No, I was making a simple statement. ‘You’ turned it into something dirty. Such a bad boy~.”_** she hummed.

Timothy balled his fists and growled. _“Shut up!”_ he demanded.

**_“Awww…did I make the bad boy angry~?”_** she mocked.

Timothy was now mad. _“I said to shut up!”_

**_“Would you like a kiss to make you feel better?”_** she continued.

“Shut up!” he yelled, then quickly slapped a hand over his mouth.

He became furious after he fell for her taunts again, resulting in losing himself and yelling out loud to his embarrassment.

_“I can’t believe I keep falling for that.”_ he deadpanned. She started snickering and he growled more. _“I hate you.”_

**_“Really! But I thought you loved your wife!”_** she stated in a mock ‘shocked’ tone.

_“Not right now I don’t, you witch.”_ he retorted.

She growled back at him. **_“I am not a witch!”_** she yelled back.

Now it was Timothy’s turn to snicker. _“Awww…is the big bad wolf angry?”_ he taunted.

**_“‘Flaming’ big bad ‘fox’, and touché. Fine, a tie then?”_** she offered.

_“A tie. Now, let me get back to my practice.”_ he returned.

**_“Yes…master.”_** she mocked, causing him to flinch.

_“I am not…you know what, whatever. Just shut up for now.”_ he pleaded.

**_“Ok, fine. Killjoy.”_** she finished and went silent.

Timothy shook his head at her final comment, then flashed back to the tree.

** Squad 7 Headquarters, Seireitei, 3 hours later **

Sajin lifted his head from his paperwork at the sound of a knock on his office door. He leveled out the papers in his hand on the desk and set them to the side.

“You may enter.” he answered.

The door slowly opened, and Timothy walked in, closing the door behind him. He turned to face the Captain and gave a low bow, then rose.

“Good evening Captain. Is now a good time to discuss our earlier conversation?” Timothy asked.

Sajin gave a quick nod and gestured for him to sit down before turning around to pour them some tea. Timothy walked up to the desk before sitting down and accepting a cup of tea from the Captain.

“Thank you, sir.” he stated.

“You’re welcome. So, this is about your conversation with your zanpakutō’s spirit, correct?” Sajin asked, then took a sip.

Timothy nodded. “Yes sir.”

Sajin set his cup back down and set his hands in his lap. “Very well, go ahead.”

Timothy took a sip, then set his cup down before sighing.

“Well sir, it will take a moment to tell you the whole thing, but I’ll give you the short version. My zanpakutō’s spirit said that I would never be able to hear its name because my heart and soul are filled with negative emotions.” Timothy started, then took a sip of tea.

“I see. Go on.” Sajin stated as he took a sip as well.

“He said that my heart was filled with anger, despair, and hatred. That I’m angry with myself because I feel that I failed those that I have lost. Susan…Hetoku.”

Sajin held a hand up to stop him. “I understand what you’re saying, Tim. But you need to keep this in mind. What happened to 5th seat Hetoku was not, in any way, your fault. He was sent there under orders, my orders. Not yours. He died doing his duty, keeping his honor intact. I will say it again, in no way was his death your fault. And I will not tolerate you feeling that it is. Is that understood?” he stated in a serious tone.

Timothy let out a deep sigh, but finally nodded. “Yes sir.”

“Very good. You may continue.” Sajin stated.

“Yes sir. The spirit said that my heart was filled with despair for the ones that I’ve lost.” he continued.

“I understand this as well. Before you go beating yourself up for it, you should know that I also feel pain and grief at the loss of a friend and comrade. These feelings are natural, and unavoidable. It’s fine to feel sorrow after you lose someone, it shows that your cared about them. But, you shouldn’t keep these feelings holed up inside you. It’s painful to let them go, but it is something that you have to do. If you keep dwelling on them, it’s only going to hurt you more. Do you understand?” Sajin asked, now with comforting eyes.

Timothy lowered his head and nodded. “I do, sir.”

Sajin and Timothy both took a sip of their tea.

“Before you go on, I assume I know what you are about to say about the hatred you feel. It’s towards Aizen, isn’t it?” Sajin asked in a serious manner.

Timothy gritted his teeth and nodded. “Yes, it is.” He looked back up at the Captain. “And this is where I am the most lost.” He held his arms out. “How the hell can I not hate the man who did what he did to my wife? And please allow me to ask this, do you not hate him after what he did here?” Timothy asked as he pointed at Sajin.

Sajin closed his eyes in thought a moment. “This may surprise you Tim, but although I dislike the man for the crimes he has committed, I do not outright ‘hate’ the man. I can never forgive him for what he has done, but I do not possess any hatred towards him. There is a saying that I am sure you have heard before; ‘Hatred brings more hatred’?” he asked.

Timothy sighed and nodded. “I have.”

Sajin took a sip of tea, keeping the cup in his hand. “Although what he did to Susan is disgraceful, you shouldn’t hate the man, Tim. Dislike him, tell him you’ll never forgive him, but don’t show him hate. Hatred tears the soul apart, turning us into the monsters that we fight against. How can you fight hatred, if you yourself possess it as well? You can’t. You have to fight the hatred within yourself and learn to let go of the past. Only then can you truly call yourself a soul reaper.”

Sajin finished as he took a last sip of his tea and set the cup down.

“Now, with that out of the way, was there something else you wished to discuss?” Sajin inquired as he poured more tea for them.

Timothy looked back to him. “Actually...there is something that Susan brought up a while ago while I was practicing.” he confirmed. Sajin nodded for him to continue. “Susan tossed an idea about releasing her on certain occasions, such as difficult fights.”

Sajin rose a brow. “I don’t see how that would be possible without raising questions about her.” he stated.

Timothy started rubbing the back of his head. “Well, as it is right now, I pretend that her sealed abilities are a shikai. I even managed to fool you and the Lieutenant if you recall, sir.”

Sajin lightly chuckled. “Yes, you did. Though, I never expected such a thing as this to be possible.” he admitted.

“Well, that’s her point sir. If you and the Lieutenant didn’t think about that possibility, neither will anyone else. She also remembered when you two were fighting earlier, when you released your bankai and that giant appeared.”

“You mean Kokujō Tengen Myō?” Sajin inquired, getting a nod.

“Yes. She saw that the spirit of your zanpakutō took on an actual form. Her thinking is that by releasing her, and calling it out as a ‘bankai’, we could play it off as similar situation. The bankai’s ability is for her to ‘manifest’ and fight alongside me, like yours does. That way, if I ever had to release her in an emergency or something, I would have a good excuse.” Timothy clarified.

Sajin rested his chin in his hand and stroked his fur. “I see.”

“So, I guess what I’m asking is what your opinion of the idea is?” Timothy finished.

Sajin closed his eyes and thought the question over for a moment before looking back at him.

“I’m sure you see that as very risky, but I think that is a good plan. But what will you do when it comes time to seal her back?” Sajin asked.

“Another idea of hers…she says for her to play ‘arrogant’ and always refuse to return to sword form, causing me to have to ‘force’ her back.” Timothy answered.

Sajin thought on the matter again and nodded.

“It sounds good to me, but try to avoid releasing her if you can. If people discover your ‘bankai’, you would most likely get more attention than you would want. Achieving bankai is not taken lightly, most especially with you being a 5th seat. It’s rare enough to see a Lieutenant possess one. Do you understand what I am saying?” Sajin asked.

Timothy nodded. He actually didn’t think about that, and he doubted that Susan had thought of that too. This caused him to dislike the idea even further.

“Out of curiosity, what would happen if I was to possess a bankai?” Timothy inquired taking a sip.

Sajin took a sip as well and held the cup in his hand. “It will allow you to take the Captain’s Proficiency Test, or more known as the Captain’s exam. Once a person attains bankai, and studies for the exam, that person’s Captain can recommend him to take the test, provided that there is an empty position. The exam is given by three other Captains, not including the recommending Captain, and it must include the Head Captain.” he finished and took another sip.

“I see. So, you’re saying that if I study, you could recommend me for it?” Timothy inquired.

Sajin rose a brow. “Tim, don’t even think about it. You may have a very good fighting ability, and even though you have defeated me once in a duel, you are by no means ready for the position of Captain. There is far more than you think that is involved in being a Captain. And besides, even if I was to recommend you, with the short amount of time that you have been here, no Captain would accept administering the test to you.” Sajin answered in a serious manner.

Timothy held up his hands in surrender. “I’m just fooling with you sir, my apologies.” he said with a grin.

Sajin stare got more serious. “And why is it I find that hard to believe?” Sajin half asked.

Timothy mildly chuckled. “I guess you got me. I was just curious, Captain. Anyway, that was all I had to talk about, unless you had something for me.”

Sajin finished his tea and nodded. “As a matter of fact, I do. Tetsuzaemon told me you two managed to talk out your differences.”

Timothy shrugged his shoulders. “For the most part. It will probably take a little more time for us to see eye to eye perfectly, but we managed to clear some things up. I’ll admit, my first impression of him was very poor. I thought he was just a grumpy man at first.” Sajin chuckled at his remark. “But now that we’ve talked it over, it’s a whole lot better, and I actually have a newfound respect for him now.” Timothy finished and drank the rest of his tea.

“I see. Well I’m glad you two have sorted things out. Besides that, I have nothing further for you. You are dismissed.” Sajin finished.

Timothy stood up and gave the man a bow. “Thank you, sir.” he stated as he rose.

“Good night, Tim.” Sajin bid.

“Good night, sir.” Timothy returned and began walking to the door.

He continued until he was out of the office and closed the doors behind him. He stood there for a moment to think about what the Captain told him about his emotions. Everything he said was true, as expected, but what he faced now was going through with the Captain’s suggestions.

He took a breath, then continued walking through the halls to return to the barracks. As he came out of the stairwell, he turned right in the hallway to see Tetsuzaemon heading his way. He walked forward until the men were a few feet from each other.

“Good evening Lieutenant.” he greeted.

“Evening Durn. What brings you here?” the Lieutenant asked.

“I just got done speaking with the Captain about this morning’s conversation. I’m on my way back to the barracks now.” Timothy answered.

Tetsuzaemon nodded and crossed his arms.

“Well, are you ready for tomorrow? We’re gonna get you working on more paperwork so you can figure out how everything works here in the headquarters.” he stated.

Timothy shrugged his shoulders. “Yeah, I guess. I would like some time tomorrow to work on my flash step though.”

“Don’t worry your pretty head about it. You’ll get plenty of time to train, and also conduct some training.” Tetsuzaemon cleared.

Timothy rose a brow, confused. “What do you mean?”

“You’re an officer, so you need to be part of training some of the members. I know you’re pretty proficient in kidō, so you can work on that.” the Lieutenant clarified.

“Alright, though I’m not sure I’d make a very good teacher, but I’ll try.” Timothy answered.

Tetsuzaemon grunted and nodded back. “Good. See ya tomorrow, Durn.”

Timothy gave him a slight bow. “Good night sir.” he returned.

Tetsuzaemon nodded as Timothy rose, then walked by him towards one of the offices while Timothy continued towards the barracks.

As Timothy stepped out the rear doors of the building, he paused in place for a moment to look out at the training grounds. He slipped his arms into his sleeves and took a shallow breath while he turned back to his conversation with the Captain.

He knew that Hetoku’s death wasn’t his fault, but he still felt guilty about it. The Captain told him that nothing he did would have changed the outcome, but he felt that he could at least have done something.

_“Susan…”_ he called inwardly.

**_“Yes?”_** she answered.

Timothy closed his eyes and sighed. _“Be honest with me…do you blame me for what happened?”_ he asked lowly.

**_“No Tim, I don’t. You tried to protect me, but there was nothing we could have done. That man was too powerful, and regardless of what we did, I feel that it would have happened anyway. Is this why you’ve been distant from me all these years?”_** she returned in a sad voice.

Timothy slowly nodded. _“I’ve always felt…that I’ve failed you, that I caused you to be like this. I felt ashamed for it…that you…were mad at me for it.”_ His eyes began to tear up.

**_“Tim…it wasn’t your fault. How could I be mad at you for something you didn’t do? You did your best to save me, and I’ve always loved you for it. You need to stop tearing yourself up about it.”_** she advised.

Timothy took a deep breath and looked back at the field.

_“So, you’re not mad at me?”_ he pressed.

**_“No, I’m not. I’m glad you did what you could. Now you should go get some rest. Judging by the Lieutenant’s remarks, you’ve got a busy day tomorrow.”_** she joked.

Timothy scoffed back at her. _“Don’t remind me. Thanks Susan.”_

**_“You’re welcome.”_** she answered and went silent.

Timothy turned and began walking towards the barracks slowly while he continued to think on his emotions. He was just about to walk in the doors when he saw Hinata and Issei walking up behind him.

He stopped and turned to face them. “Evening guys.” he greeted.

They both waved to him as they stopped next to him.

“How did your practicing go?” Timothy added.

“It was fine. We practiced your barrier a few times, until Issei made his too thick and couldn’t move.” Hinata answer with a chuckle.

Issei rubbed the back of his head as Timothy chuckled as well.

“Don’t worry about it, just need to practice is all. You guys heading to your rooms?” Timothy asked.

Issei nodded. “Yeah, you?”

“Yeah, I’ve had a busy day and tomorrows going to be worse, so I need to get some rest. By the way, how often does the squad get rest days?” Timothy inquired.

“Oh, about once, maybe twice a month. The one before today was given to us to try and improve moral, so it will probably be a few weeks before we get another one.” Hinata answered.

“Really? And here I was hoping you guys had weekends off.” Timothy joked.

“Yeah, I wish.” Issei returned.

Timothy nodded, then gestured for them to go inside. The two friends nodded and walked past Timothy with him following behind. As they walked through the common area, Issei glanced back at him.

“By the way Tim, how old are you, if you don’t mind me asking?” he asked.

Timothy gave a slight snort. “Are you asking how old I was when I died, or how old I am now?” Timothy asked rhetorically.

“Both I guess.” Issei returned.

“I was born in 1961, and died when I was twenty-eight, so I guess I’m technically forty now.” Timothy answered in a comical tone. “What about you?”

“I don’t remember anything about my previous life, and I can’t really remember what year I was born in, but I’ve been here for thirty-three years. I do know that I died at an old age though, so I’m at least a hundred combined.” Issei answered as he turned towards the staircase.

Timothy rose a brow. “How do you not remember what year you were born in?” he asked, surprised.

“When you die and come to the soul society, you’ll usually lose all memories of your life before coming here. It’s rare that someone will remember their life from before. The only thing I can remember is that I lived on one of the southern islands of Japan. Nothing else really.” Issei clarified.

They came to the second floor and started down the hallway as Timothy turned to Hinata.

“And what about you, Hinata?”

She gave him a chuckle. “Don’t you know it’s impolite to ask a woman’s age?” she teased.

Timothy grinned at her comment. “Well, that is true, but whoever said you were a woman? You act more like a tomboy to me.” he teased.

Issei snickered while she turned and lightly hit Timothy in the chest.

“I may act like a tomboy, but I’m still a woman, asshole.” she retorted and turned back.

Timothy held a hand up in surrender. “Alright, fine. So, I guess you’re not going to tell me?” he pressed.

“Nope. I’ll leave you to try and guess it out.” she closed with a smirk.

Timothy chuckled and shook his head. A moment later, the group found themselves outside Timothy’s room and stopped.

“Well, I guess I’ll see you guys tomorrow. Have a good night.” Timothy stated.

They both nodded and waved before turning and continuing down the hall.

Timothy slid open his door and walked inside before sliding it back closed. He walked over to the bed and set his two swords down on top of it before turning to the dresser. He then let out a shallow yawn as he pulled off his top robe and set it to the side. After he finished getting ready, he returned to his bed and climbed in to lay down and let sleep take him.

** Squad 7 Headquarters, Seireitei, The Next Afternoon **

It was somewhat of a rough start for Timothy. All morning, and leading up to the early afternoon, he found himself plagued with a never-ending supply of paperwork.

He was relieved when it was finally time for him to head out to the grounds to start training with the other members. All of the paperwork had left him with a headache, although he wasn’t sure if it was the paperwork that had done it, or the numerous times he slammed his head onto the table.

As he left the headquarters, he looked out to the training grounds to see that there were around thirty to forty members either practicing kidō, sharpening their sword skills, or doing general exorcises.

_‘I wonder if Hinata and the others are out there as well.’_ he thought as he continued his walk.

As he came closer to the grounds, he saw 7th seat Minato talking with a few other members, so thought it best to speak with him before he got started working with the other members. He continued walking until he was now a short distance from the man.

“Hey Minato.” he greeted.

The officer turned towards him and held up a hand. “Morning Timothy. Here to train with us today?” he asked.

Timothy stopped next to him and nodded. “Yeah, the Lieutenant wants me to help work on the guys’ kidō skills and anything else I can help with.” Timothy answered.

“Alright, then let’s get the men together so you can introduce yourself. Most of them are not yet aware that you’re the new 5th seat.” Minato advised.

Timothy nodded and both men walked to the center of the field.

“Alright everyone, gather around for a minute.” Minato yelled out, getting everyone’s attention.

Both men waited as the members on the grounds walked over to listen to what Minato had to say. After a few minutes, everyone had their eyes and ears focused on the two officers, then Minato turned to Timothy.

“All yours.” he stated.

Timothy nodded, then cleared his throat.

“Alright, most of you don’t know me. My name is Timothy Durn, the new 5th seat, but I ask that you please just call me Tim. Honestly, hearing the full name over and over does get tiring, so please try not to call me by the whole name all the time.” he paused, getting nods of understanding.

“I’ll put this simply, I’m not much of a hard ass, and I’m pretty laid back. So as long as you do what you’re supposed to and don’t cause any problems, I won’t jump down your throats. Now, I know some of you are wondering how I became the 5th seat after only a little over a week here, but I know some of you witnessed the duel between me and the Captain. The simple answer is that he was impressed with me and said that I was worthy of the position. I’m still getting used to it, so I hope you all will bear with me.”

Timothy looked around and got nods back in understanding. He could see that most of the members accepted his assignment, but he could also see a few members that didn’t appear to be pleased.

“With that being said, I’ve been instructed to help you guys with your kidō skills, and anything else that I could help you improve. So, by a show of hands, who here can perform bakudō at the 50s level?” he asked.

He looked to see that roughly a fifth of the members had raised their hands.

“Alright, who can use the 60s level?” he pressed.

All but a few of the members dropped their hands. He counted the hands to see that only four of them could use the kidō.

“Alright, Minato with help the ones that can perform 50s and below. If you can use 60s level, I’ll be working with you. Later on, we’ll all get back together so I can teach you all a helpful barrier that you can use for defense. Anyone got any questions?”

A couple of the members rose their hands, so Timothy pointed to the first one.

“Sir, you said you fought the Captain in a duel, how did you defeat him?” the member asked.

“I managed to beat him with a combination of my zanpakutō’s abilities and psychological warfare.” Timothy answered.

“Psychological warfare?” the member returned.

Timothy nodded. “Yes, instead of fighting him physically, which is obviously impossible, I fought him mentally. Sometimes, if you can’t beat an opponent with your sword, it might be better to fight him with your mind. But that’s something we’ll go over another time.”

The member nodded, and Timothy pointed to the next member, a female.

“Excuse me, but if you’ve only been here a week, how did you learn higher level kidō so fast? I thought the academy will only teach you up to #49.” she asked with a bit of confusion.

“Well first, I didn’t go to the academy. The Captain gave me a test through combat and determined I was good enough to become a member. But I studied kidō while I was still a resident in Rukongai. It’s a long story, and one that I don’t plan on telling for a while.” Timothy answered.

The member nodded, and Timothy saw no more hands were raised.

“Well, with that out of the way, lets break up into our groups.” Timothy announced, then turned to Minato. “Take your group over towards the kidō range, I’ll take mine over to the tree over there.” he stated as he pointed to the tree.

Minato nodded and began walking, his group of members following behind him. Timothy turned to see that he had five members with him, three men and two women.

“I thought only four of you raised your hands?” he observed.

The shortest member, a few inches shorter than Timothy, stepped forward.

“I did, but I guess I was too short for you to see me, sir.” the man answered.

Timothy waved him off politely. “As I said, just call me Tim. And trust me, you’re not the only one with that problem.” He said, earning a series of chuckles. “Anyway, who here can use bakudō #63?”

The two women and two of the men raised their hands, leaving the one man who was almost a foot taller than Timothy. He turned to the man.

“What can you use?” he asked him.

“I can use #61, but it occasionally fails.” he answered.

Timothy saw the rest of them nod.

“It’s the same for most of us.” one of the women added.

Timothy nodded back. “Alright, then that’s what we’ll work with for now. But we’re not going to be using practice targets today. I’ll be your target.”

The members looked at him worried.

“Are you sure that’s a good idea? What if one of us messes up? You know it could hurt you.” the woman from before asked concerned.

“It’s fine, I’ve got a method I can use to help me. You’ll see. I’m going to get a little distance from you guys and I want you guys to use Rikujōkōrō on me, one at a time. Questions?” Timothy finished.

Everyone shook their heads, so Timothy turned and walked about twenty feet from the tree before turning back towards them. He then held hinds out in front of him and created his protective barrier, much to the surprise of the members.

“Alright, first one go ahead and hit me, but don’t use the full incantation.” he instructed.

One of the men stepped forward and held his hand out to Timothy, his index and middle fingers pointing at him.

“Bakudō #61, Rikujōkōrō.” he chanted.

Instantly, a yellow pulse emitted from his fingertips, then six wide, yellow blades appeared around Timothy and stabbed into his torso. Timothy was completely unable to move but could still speak.

“Good.” he stated, then shattered his barrier and the kidō, shocking the members.

“H…how the hell did you do that?!” the man who used the kidō asked.

Timothy gave a light chuckle. “It’s a barrier that I came up with. I’ll teach it to you guys later today and explain how it works then. But, the short story is that it sheds the binding kidō off of you. Alright, next person.”

One of the women stepped up as the man fell back. Timothy put his barrier back up, then nodded. The woman pointed at him.

“Bakudō #61, Rikujōkōrō.” she chanted, causing the same yellow blades to hit Timothy again.

“Alright, good. Next.” he complemented as he dropped the barrier again.

For the next couple of hours, all five members took turns using Rikujōkōrō against Timothy, each time being dropped by his barrier. One of the women and two of the men had their kidōs fail a few times, but it luckily didn’t cause any injuries.

After a while, Timothy was starting to feel the effects of constantly using his barrier over and over again, so he determined that it was a good time for a break.

“Alright guys, take a break for a bit.” he instructed as he walked towards them. “Everyone feel better at using this kidō?” he asked.

They all nodded back.

Timothy walked up to the tree and sat down next to it leaning against it. He let out a relaxing breath as he leaned his head back.

“5th seat.” one of the men started.

“It’s Tim, and yes?” he answered as he closed his eyes.

“Is it true that you talked back at Captain Zaraki from Squad 11?” the man asked.

Timothy opened one eye and looked at him. “Where did you hear that?” he asked back.

“I overheard 7th seat Minato talking about it.”

Timothy closed his eye and moaned. “I’m gonna have to have a talk with him about keeping his mouth shut. And to answer your question, yes, I’d did have a little…chat with him.” he admitted.

The members were shocked as they all thought it was just a simple rumor.

“Forgive me for saying this sir, but were you drunk or something?” one of the women asked.

Timothy chuckled at the remark. “No, I wasn’t. That’s something that you’ll figure out about me after a while is that I don’t tolerate stupid shit. I have no patience for it. Captain Zaraki and his squad were the cause of a great deal of problems for the residents of South Rukongai, and I called him out on it.” he answered in a carefree tone.

“Aren’t you afraid of him?” the woman asked concerned.

“Not really. To be honest, I’m not afraid of dying. I’ve come to accept that death is inevitable, so as long as I get my job done, I’m not afraid to die.” Timothy admitted.

The woman nodded and sat down on the ground, leaning back onto her hands. The other members sat down as well with two of the men lying flat on the ground.

“Squad 11 causes a lot of problems for us.” one of the men lying down stated.

Timothy opened his eyes and turned to him. “What do you mean?”

The man sighed and sat up to him.

“They’re always making fun of us and talking down on us. It gets really annoying.” he admitted.

Timothy sighed and turned to him. “Don’t take this the wrong way, but to be frank about it, you’re the ones who let them.” Timothy accused.

The members all looked at him with surprise.

“When I was living in Fallen Tree, we were always harassed by the endless criminals, and even the Squad 11 members. Naturally, the residents would give in through fear of being hurt or killed. I, however, chose not to back down. I chose to stand against them and fight if necessary. After a while, most of them left me alone, not wanting to go through the trouble of having to deal with me. That’s the kind of attitude you guys you to have. If you keep backing down every time those Squad 11 guys harass you, they’re only going to do it more.” Timothy assured.

The members looked at one another, then back to him.

“Trust me, I know how it feels to be bullied around. I was one of the kids that got picked on at school, and never once stood up for myself. All the way through graduation, the same kids kept picking on me and torturing me. Do you guys want the same treatment?” he asked.

They all shook their heads.

“Then stand up for yourself, fight em if you have to. You might win, you might lose. Either way, eventually they will get the point that it’s not worth it to mess with you and will leave you alone. Don’t be afraid to stand up and be proud that you are a member of Squad 7.” he encouraged.

“Perhaps you could give us a hand?” the woman leaning on her hands asked.

Timothy shook his head. “Nope, this is your battle, not mine. If they see that you have to resort to calling for help, it will only get worse and they’ll just wait until you’re alone. This is something you have to do for yourselves. The next time they give you problems, just stand up and show them that you are not going to back down, no matter what they do. Got it?” Timothy finished.

The members all nodded in understanding.

“Good. Now, that’s enough rest for the moment. Let’s get back to practice.” he instructed.

All six of them stood up and dusted themselves off before Timothy returned to his previous position.

“Alright, who’s next?” he asked as he turned back to the members.

They continued practicing using Rikujōkōrō for another hour with Timothy elevating them to using #62, Hyapporankan towards the end, using the tree as a base to pin him against.

After a while, Timothy and Minato brought their groups back together in the arena, facing him. Some were a little short on breath, with the rest just a little tired.

“Alright, now I’m going to show you a little trick I came up with. Who here is experienced in using seals and barriers?” Timothy asked.

A little over half of the group raised their hands.

“Ok, well what I’m going to show you is a barrier. It’s easy to use but takes a bit of practice to perfect it. Those of you who were training with me have already seen this and have an idea as to how it works. Now just watch me.” Timothy instructed.

He positioned his hands and the members were surprised to see a thin barrier surround him. They grew confused as the barrier slowly closed around him, then were surprised even more when he uttered a chant and the barrier became clear.

Timothy released his hands and placed them on his hips.

“This is a protective, one time use barrier that I designed. I call it Datsuraku Shōheki. To put it simple, it’s a very thin barrier that surrounds your body, like a second skin. What it does is create a bondable surface against an enemy’s binding kidō. When you are attacked, the kidō will bind to the barrier instead of your actual body. All you have to do is release the barrier and the kidō will fall apart with it. Follow me so far?” he paused, getting nods back.

“Alright. Now, keep in mind that it’s only effective against binding kidōs, not offensive ones. It won’t even hold up against physical attacks either. The barrier is too thin for such attacks and will only cause the barrier to shatter and before hitting you. But like I said, it’s easy to cast and requires very little energy to maintain. It’s good for catching your opponents off guard when they think they have you.” he paused again.

The members all nodded back to him.

“Ok, now I’ll show you how to do it. Just do what I do, and I’ll talk you through it.” he stated and turned to Minato. “You should try as well, Minato.” he advised, getting a nod.

Timothy turned back to the group and held his hands out in position.

“Alright. First, position your hands in front of you and interlace you thumbs, index and middle fingers. Keep your ring and little fingers together and extended., like so.” he began.

The members did as instructed, then Timothy walked through the group to make sure they all had their hands positioned the right way. Once he was satisfied, he returned to the front.

“Alright, the next step is to channel some of your energy into your hands and visualize a thin barrier around you. Those of you who have used barriers before should have no problem with this part.” he continued.

He watched as one by one barriers began to appear around the different members. By now, most of them, especially the ones with experience, now had barriers around them, but some were having some trouble.

“Those of you who are having trouble, look at some of the others who have made a barrier. Look at that barrier and use that as an example to visualize your own.” Timothy advised.

They members in question did as such, then tried again. After a few moments, Timothy could see that everyone had their own barriers. But now came the tricky part.

“Alright. Now, I want you all to slowly pull the barrier in on yourself, making sure to keep it thin, until it is encasing your body.” he instructed.

For the next few moments, everyone’s barriers slowly got smaller and smaller until most of them were against the user’s bodies. A few of the member’s barriers suddenly shattered and they sighed in defeat.  
  


“Alright, just try again.” he instructed.

The members nodded and tried their barriers again. A minute later, all of the members were now encased in their own barriers.

“Now, repeat after me, Datsuraku Shōheki.” he stated.

The members followed suit and chanted the name in near unison. Thankfully, all of them managed to succeed in the chant, with everyone’s barriers now invisible, but Timothy quickly yelled out.

“Keep feeding your spirit energy into it. Don’t stop feeding the barrier. It takes hardly anything to keep it up, but you still have to keep it going.”

Timothy looked around and was surprised to see that no one’s barriers had shattered yet.

“At first, you have to consciously put your energy into it at a steady pace. After a while of using it over and over, your mind will subconsciously do it on its own. It’s similar to the concept behind shunpo; once you’ve practiced enough, your body automatically knows how much energy to put behind the step. The same thing applies here, just keep practicing and your body will do the work for you.” Timothy finished.

He turned and pointed at Minato.

“Minato, could you step forward for us.” Timothy asked.

The officer nodded and walked forward to him. Timothy then noticed, to his embarrassment, that all of the members still had their hands in position.

“Oops. Sorry, you can let your hands go now. Sorry bout that.” he stated.

The members all dropped their hands and Timothy turned to Minato.

Alright, now everyone watch this.” he instructed. “Minato, no matter what, don’t stop feeding your barrier.” he added.

Minato nodded, and Timothy held out his hand towards him, palm out.

“Bakudō #63, Sajō Sabaku.” he chanted.

From behind him, a long, yellow chain made of energy flew pat him and wrapped itself around Minato tightly, trapping his arms against his body. Minato managed to keep his balance, but otherwise couldn’t move.

“Alright, now keep an eye on 7th seat Minato.” He instructed to the members, then turned back to him. “Go ahead and stop feeding the barrier, letting it drop.”

Minato nodded, then cut off his supply of energy to the barrier. The barrier around him cracked, then shattered with the kidō falling off. Most of the members gasped, but all of them had wide eyes.

Timothy turned back to them. “As you can see, my Sajō Sabaku bonded itself to his barrier, rather than his body. When he dropped the barrier, it took the kidō with it. Now, if you all look at your fellow members, you’ll notice that you can’t see the barriers around them, nor can you detect them. This is something that your enemies won’t be expecting and is a great use as a trump card if the opponent starts tossing kidō at you.”

The members started looking around at their comrades to try and see their barriers, with no success. After a moment, they all turn back to Timothy.

“Now, we have about another hour or so left to train, so I want all of you to pick a partner and find a piece of real estate.” Timothy instructed.

The members looked at him oddly.

“Real estate?” one asked and Timothy deadpanned.

“Nevermind. Just…find a spot where you and your partner can practice without getting in anyone’s way. One of you puts up the barrier, the other is to hit him, or her with the highest level bakudō you can safely use. But do not use any bakudō above 50s level. After you have done this, switch out and the other use the barrier. You all are to keep practicing until training is over.” Timothy furthered, then turned to Minato.

“Minato, you’ll be with me. Since you’re already proficient with kidō, and I’m proficient with my barrier, you’ll be the only one putting up a barrier between us.” Timothy advised.

Minato nodded, and Timothy turned back to the crowd. “You’ve got five minutes to find a partner. That’s all.” he finished.

The group broke up and they all started finding partners while Timothy and Minato watched. After a few minutes, all of the members were paired up and had their own spots to practice.

“Alright, put your barrier up Minato.” Timothy ordered.

The man nodded and began putting his barrier around him before turning back to Timothy.

“I’m just wondering, but why do you make the barrier so thin? Wouldn’t it be better to make it a little thicker to help against other attacks?” Minato asked.

“It would, but then you wouldn’t be able to move. The barrier, although thin, is solid. It’s just thin enough to allow you to move. I designed it because I’ve always found it difficult to fight against kidō.” Timothy answered, getting a nod back.

“Alright, I’m ready.” Minato announced.

Timothy held up two fingers towards him. “Bakudō #61, Rikujōkōrō.”

A yellow pulse flashed from Timothy’s fingers, then Minato’s body was stabbed with six wide, yellow blades. Timothy lowered his hand and nodded.

“Go ahead and drop the barrier.” he instructed.

Minato did as told and drop his barrier, breaking the kidō on him. The officer moved his arms around a bit and turned back to Timothy.

“I’ll admit, it’s a pretty cool trick. I think it would come in handy.” Minato complemented.

“Thanks.” Timothy answered as Minato put up another barrier.

The two officers and the rest of the members continued practicing for the rest of the day until it was time to stop. Timothy called everyone back to the arena before they left for the night. After a few minutes, all of the members were in a circle with Timothy in the center.

“Alright, you all did pretty good today. I saw that some of you guys were having a little trouble with the barrier, but that’s to be expected. Some people will simply take a little longer than others to get it right. Just keep practicing it and you’ll have it down in no time. You guys are released for the night and we’ll meet back up here tomorrow around the same time. Go ahead and head back to the barracks and rest.” Timothy stated.

Everyone bowed swiftly, then began returning to the barracks while Timothy and Minato remained at the arena. Once the members were out of earshot, Timothy turned to Minato.

“Good work today, Minato.” Timothy said.

“Thanks, you too. You make a good teacher.” The man returned.

Timothy rubbed the back of his neck. “Yeah, I guess.”

“You up for a drink?” Minato offered.

Timothy turned his eyes to him. “Got anything other than sake?” he asked.

“No, sorry. Don’t like it?” the man asked in return.

“Not really my cup of tea, if you get what I mean. I’m more of a whiskey person.” Timothy admitted.

“Never had whiskey before.” Minato stated.

“Well, everyone has their own preference.” Timothy concluded.

“Alright, well, I’ll see ya tomorrow, Tim.”

Timothy nodded, and the man turned towards the barracks. Timothy decided to stay behind so he could practice his flash step for a bit before heading back himself.

The branch he used before was gone, so he found a new one and put it in the same area as the last one. Once the branch was in place, he turned towards the tree and began practicing.

** Squad 7 Barracks, Seireitei, Present **

Minato entered the barracks and began to walk towards the hallway, since his room was on the first floor. As he was about to turn into the hallway, Tetsuzaemon stopped him.

“Evening Minato, got a minute?” he asked.

Minato turned to him and gave him a quick bow. “Good evening, Lieutenant. How can I help you?” he responded.

“How did Durn do today?” the Lieutenant asked in his usual voice, arms crossed.

“He did pretty good. From what I saw, everyone that he was working with got better with their kidō. He took the members with the higher skills while he had me take the less skilled members. He even taught us a pretty useful barrier against binding kidōs.” Minato answered.

Tetsuzaemon raised a brow. “A barrier? What do you mean?” he asked confused.

“It’s a little long to explain, but it’s a barrier that wraps around you and protects you against an enemy’s kidō. It seems easy to use, and even I have to admit that I think it could come in really handy.” the younger officer explained.

“I see. I’ll have to ask him about it. So, what is your opinion of him as an officer?” the Lieutenant asked.

“He’s ok. He’s still a little hesitant, but that’s to be expected for your first day on the job, and as a new guy too.” Minato admitted.

“Yeah. Thanks for your time.” Tetsuzaemon finished, then walked into the common area.

Minato gave him a quick bow, then continued his walk back to his room.

** Squad 7 Training Grounds, Seireitei, 2 hours later **

The sun had just set, and night was settling in when Timothy decided to call it a night. He guessed that he had flashed back and forth at least a hundred times and his calves were on the verge of cramping up.

He sat down on the ground and bent forward to start rubbing them as he took a deep breath. He was starting to get the feel of using shunpo, and over the past hour he managed to miss his target only a few times.

Now that he had a fixed distance down, he needed to work on various distances, so he could get used to adjusting the power to those distances.

Now that he had finished rubbing his legs, he stood back up and stretched his arms out for a moment before starting his walk back to the barracks.

It had been a busy day, and Timothy, for once, was looking forward to just laying down on his bed and passing out. Spending half of the day using his spirit energy with shunpo, and to constantly create his barriers had really taken a toll on him.

Once he had walked through the doors and into the common area, he noticed Kenta and Issei sitting down and talking. He continued walking and gave them a simple wave once they noticed him, with them returning the gesture.

When he finally returned to his room and closed his door, he walked over to the bed and sat down with a heavy sigh. He sat there with his head held low while he relaxed a minute to clear his mind.

After a moment, he pulled his swords from his sash and set them on the bed behind him and reached over to his table to grab the book he borrowed. With the book in hand, he let out another sigh before turning, laying back, and opening the book to where he left off.

Over the past week he had managed to read about a quarter of the way through the book and found that he actually liked it. Granted that he sometimes got lost at certain points, but a simple re-read of the text would put him back on track.

He read the book for almost an hour before he closed it and set it back on his table. Standing up and walking over, he took off his outer garments at the dresser. Down to only his night wear, he returned to, and climbed into bed. Normally it would take a few minutes for him to fall asleep, but he was so worn out that by the time he had his covers over him he was already dozing off.

** Squad 7 Headquarters, Seireitei, The following morning **

Sajin and Tetsuzaemon relaxed in the Captain’s office enjoying some tea and discussing the tasks for the squad that day. Both men paused when they heard a knock on the door, then Sajin set down his tea.

“You may enter.” he announced.

Timothy entered the office, giving a quick bow before approaching the desk with some paperwork in his hands.

“Morning Captain, Lieutenant.” he greeted.

“Good morning, Tim.” Sajin replied while Tetsuzaemon simply nodded.

Timothy came up to the desk and set the paperwork down.

“I’ve brought the first batch of paperwork for you sir.” Timothy stated and was about to turn and leave when Sajin stopped him.

“Thank you. Could you take these finished reports and deliver them to Squad 1?” Sajin asked.

Timothy nodded and took the mentioned papers off the desk.

“Anything else sir?” he asked.

“Do you know how to get there?” the Lieutenant asked.

Timothy turned to him. “Not really, but I’ll figure it out Lieutenant.” he admitted.

“Very well, you are dismissed.” Sajin closed.

Timothy gave him a quick bow and left the office.

Tetsuzaemon turned to Sajin with a raised brow.

“Aren’t you worried he’ll get lost, Captain?” he asked with a bit of worry.

“No, Tim is a smart person. If he does get lost, he’ll ask someone. We need to have some trust in him, or he will never grow into a better person.” Sajin answered and began looking through the new paperwork.

“Yes sir.” Tetsuzaemon answered and began assisting Sajin with the papers.

** Streets of the Seireitei, 30 Minutes Later **

Timothy found himself walking a narrow side path after turning off the main street. He had been walking for a while, and he knew that Squad 1’s Headquarters were in the center of the Seireitei, but now he had finally come to a conclusion.

He was completely lost.

He was hoping that he would be able to find the way without having to resort to asking for directions, but now that hope had gone out the window. Now he needed to find someone to point him in the right direction.

Fortunately, luck was with him as he turned the corner to see a group a of soul reapers standing in the street talking.

_‘I guess I’ll ask them.’_ he concluded and started walking towards the group.

Once he was within earshot, he tried to get their attention.

“Excuse me.” he called to them.

The men turned their heads to him and gave him a smug look.

“What do you want?” one of the men asked.

Timothy was still a few yards away when he answered.

“I’m sorry, but I’ve gotten a bit lost. I’m trying to find the Squad 1 Headquarters.” Timothy answered.

The man scoffed at him. “And why should I help…” the man paused.

Timothy rose a brow at his pause and kept walking closer, soon realizing why the man had stopped talking.

“Oh, you have got to be kidding me…” Timothy moaned.

It turned out that luck was ‘not’ with him that day, because the man in front of him was none other than Tetzuma Ōnaido, the officer from Squad 11.

Timothy stopped his walk and stood there in front of him while the man pointed at him accusingly.

“Hey! You’re that guy from Rukongai!” the man yelled.

Timothy slapped his hand to his face and sighed. “Of all the people in the Seireitei, why did it have to be him that I run into?” he mumbled.

The man, with his group in tow, walked up to Timothy.

“What the hell are you doing here?! And why are you wearing a shihakusho?!” Tetzuma demanded.

Timothy pulled his hand down his face and dropped it with an annoyed moan.

“Isn’t it obvious? I’m a soul reaper.” Timothy answered with a hint of a whine.

The man scrunched his face in anger and growled.

“Don’t you get smart with me, you bastard! I still owe you for that day!” the man yelled.

Timothy was not in the mood to deal with the man and wanted to settle this as peacefully as possible. He took a deep breath and tried to calm his nerves.

“Look, I have no quarrel with you, I’m just trying to do my job. So, if you don’t mind, would you please just let me by?” Timothy pleaded as politely as he could.

The man balled his fists and growled even more.

“Who do you think you are?! You may be a soul reaper now, but I’m still an officer, and you will obey me!” he demanded.

Timothy rose a brow. “Forgive me, but could I ask what seat you were again?”

The man briefly laughed then pointed at himself with his thumb.

“I’m the 7th seat of Squad 11!” he answered in a proud and stern voice.

Timothy lightly grinned at him. “I see. Well then I guess it would surprise you that I am the 5th seat of Squad 7, so I guess that means I outrank you, ‘7th’ seat.” Timothy stated in a mocking tone.

The man and his group’s eyes went wide, the man was clearly furious with being mocked.

“What did you say you bastard?!” he demanded.

“You heard me.” Timothy flatly replied.

The man’s face turned beet red with fury and Timothy swore he could see steam blowing out the man’s ears.

“I’ll kill you for that!” he growled and quickly set his hand on the hilt of his zanpakutō. The group behind him did the same and got into a ready stance.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you.” Timothy advised.

Tetzuma rose a brow. “Oh really?! And why not?!” he hissed.

Timothy lightly snorted. “Simple. I kicked your ass last time, and I wasn’t even being serious. Every one of you managed to make it out alive with only headaches and scratches. But now that I’m an officer, that all changes. As I’m sure you’re aware, it’s a crime to assault a higher-ranking officer when he hasn’t even drawn his sword. Should you do so, I have every right to defend myself, even if it means killing you.” Timothy stated in a nonchalant tone.

Tetzuma’s eyes widened.

“So, allow me to warn you, if you attack me now, I can personally guarantee that you won’t make it out of this in a good condition, if you even make it out at all.” Timothy added with a grin.

The group turned to Tetzuma for guidance, but the man was frozen in shock and anger. The man gritted his teeth and growled, but after a moment slowly released the grip on his zanpakutō and let his arms fall to his sides.

“You better watch your back, you bastard!” Tetzuma warned.

Timothy gave him a quick bow. “Your warning is noted.” he flatly answered.

The man growled once more, then quickly turned and started walking away. The group released their swords and followed him swiftly. Timothy let out a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding and slightly lowered his head.

“There must be some higher force that just outright hates me.” Timothy mumbled.

He was brought back to his senses when he felt someone flash step up to him, now behind him. He turned back to see Tetsuzaemon standing there with his arms in his sleeves.

“You handled that fairly well, Durn.” he complemented.

Timothy rose a brow. “You were watching? For how long?” he asked in surprise.

“I showed up just as your…discussion with them started. So, can I assume that he was one of the Squad 11 guys that were causing trouble for you in Rukongai?” the Lieutenant asked.

Timothy sighed and nodded. “Yeah, obviously he’s pissed that I beat him last time.” Timothy answered.

“Well, now that we know he was one of the troublemakers, we can file a report on him.” Tetsuzaemon stated in a slightly happy tone.

Timothy shook his head. “No need, I think he learned his lesson with his embarrassment. Besides, I think he’ll get enough of a punishment when Zaraki finds out that the man just backed down from a fight, especially when it was at least seven to one in their favor.” he remarked.

Tetsuzaemon lightly snickered. “Yeah, I guess that’s true. Now come on, the Captain sent me to find you and help you find your way.” he stated as he walked by Timothy.

“One question sir.” Timothy started as he started walking next to him.

“What is it?” the man replied.

Timothy glanced at him. “Why didn’t you interfere? Seeing as how it was seven to one, wouldn’t you have given me a hand?”

Tetsuzaemon grunted. “I wanted to see how you would handle it. Once in a while you’ll get confrontations like that, and you need to stand up for yourself.” he answered.

“Yeah, that’s what I told some of the members yesterday. They told me that Squad 11 has been giving our squad a hard time.”

Tetsuzaemon turned to him. “Yeah, they like to mouth off and act like they’re better than everyone. But since they’re not causing harm to anything or anyone, nothing is done about it.” he admitted.

Timothy turned back front and nodded. He found it hard to believe that the soul reapers were supposed to be comrades, yet there was such discrimination between the squads. How were the 13 Court Guard Squads supposed to do their jobs when some of them can’t even work together or get along?

“Hey Lieutenant…” Timothy started. The man turned to him slightly as he did the same. “Weren’t you in Squad 11 at one point?” he asked.

Tetsuzaemon turned back front and grunted.

“I was, a while ago. I was the squad’s 4th seat, until I got promoted to Lieutenant and transferred to Squad 7. I’ll be honest with you, the squad wasn’t as bad then as it is today, though it still had a few problems. Back then they had far better officers, but now it’s just a matter of how strong you are in combat. But you should know something about Squad 11…” he paused and turned to Timothy.

“Not all of their members are bad, just certain ones. Take Ikkaku and Yumichika, the squad’s 3rd and 5th seats as an example. They may be blunt and hard headed sometimes, but they are caring towards their squad and strive to make them better men. So, don’t go and hate the entire squad because of a few misfits.” he continued as he turned back. “Like you.” he finished.

Timothy slowly turned to him with an unamused stare.

“Ha ha ha.” he chanted mockingly, seeing a slight grin on the Lieutenant’s face.

The man turned back to him. “You’re doing fine, Durn. Minato told me you did a decent job with training yesterday. Just keep it up and you’ll be fine.” he offered.

Timothy sighed and nodded before turning back front.

“Anything else that knucklehead mentioned?” Timothy asked in a low voice.

A bell then went off in the Lieutenant’s head, so he turned to him with a serious look.

“Yeah, he mentioned something about a barrier you were teaching the men. Care to elaborate?” Tetsuzaemon inquired.

Timothy shrugged his shoulders. “It’s just something I came up with to defend against most levels of bakudō. It’s simple to use, and if used right, could be an effective aid in battle. We’re going to be practicing more on it today, so if you want you can swing by and see for yourself.”

The Lieutenant gave a swift nod. “I’ll be sure to do that. For now, let’s get this paperwork turned in.” he advised.

Timothy gave the Lieutenant another nod as the two men continued walking down the street; turning around a corner to see the Squad 1 Headquarters in the distance.


	9. Forming a Team

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 9

**(Forming a Team)**

** Squad 7 Headquarters, Seireitei, 3 hours later **

It was now almost noon and Timothy had found himself back in the squad’s headquarters filling out papers and cross-referencing information.

He was still having to take his time and closely look over certain forms, as he was still familiarizing himself with them; although he had gotten the financial and supply forms down quickly.

After getting Tetsuzaemon’s permission, he did do as he had suggested to Minato the day before about rearranging the orders of statements and items on the forms. Even after only a day, he could already see the differences in his working speed since he didn’t have to go ‘searching’ for the information that he needed.

He had just finished a form regarding changes in the squad’s inventories over the past couple of days and was about to sign it when he heard footsteps enter the room. He glanced up from the form to see Minato walking up to him with a small bundle of papers in the crook of his arm.

“I hope those aren’t for me.” Timothy stated in a worried tone.

Minato chuckled and waved him off, telling him that they weren’t. Timothy returned to the form in front of him and finished signing it before setting the form on the ‘completed’ stack.

He then sighed and leaned back as he held his arms high above him to stretch them out. He had been sitting in that spot for about two hours staring at his never-ending stack of papers and his arms were a bit stiff.

“So, what’s going on with you Minato?” he asked mid-stretch.

Minato lightly and swiftly shrugged his right shoulder as he tilted his head in that direction before going back level.

“Eh, not too much. Just got my set of work done for the day, so I thought I’d give you a hand.” he offered.

Timothy finished his stretch and let out a relaxed breath as he grabbed his next form. He looked to the uncompleted stack and saw he only had about four or five more to go.

“Nah, I got it. But I’ll take the company though if you want. The stone quiet of this office is wreaking havoc on my nerves.” Timothy returned.

Minato chuckled again as he set his papers down and sat in front of him. He picked up one of Timothy’s completed forms and briefly looked it over, noticing the changes that Timothy had made.

“I see you’ve put your idea to work, this actually does look a little bit better and easier to read. Good job.” Minato complemented.

“Thanks.” Timothy answered as he finished the form in front of him and set it on top of his pile. “Question though.” he started.

“Sure.” Minato returned as Timothy grabbed his next form.

Timothy stopped and looked at the man.

“The thought came to me earlier and left me curious. Who are the 3rd and 4th seats for our squad? I don’t remember meeting them yet.” Timothy inquired.

“And you won’t, as we don’t currently have a 3rd and 4th seat. The 3rd seat has been vacant for about…four months now? And our 4th seat was Jirōbō Ikkanzaka, but he was discharged after sustaining…unrecoverable injuries during the ryoka incident.” Minato answered.

“Ryoka incident?” Timothy asked with a raised brow.

Minato nodded. “Yeah, it was a month ago now. Long story short, five humans managed to break into the Seireitei trying to stop an execution. Jirōbō fought with one of the ryoka and lost, resulting in his binding chain and soul sleep to be destroyed. Because of that, he is no longer a soul reaper and had to be discharged.” he answered.

Timothy nodded and started back on the form in front of him.

“So why doesn’t the Captain reassign someone to those positions?” he asked as he looked down the form.

“Not sure, to be honest. Personally, I think it’s because the Captain hasn’t found anyone worthy of the position yet.” Minato answered as he stretched out his feet.

“Well, I hope he finds someone soon, cause if I’m not mistaken, with there not being a 3rd or 4th seat, I’m guessing that means I’m the third highest ranking person in the squad.” Timothy observed.

Minato slightly flinched and stared at him as he suddenly realized it as well. In truth, the thought had never even occurred to him.

“Uh, now that you mention it, I guess it does” he half mumbled as Timothy set a form aside.

“Yeah, I’m not too happy with it myself.” Timothy remarked as he grabbed the next form.

“Why not? I thought you would be happy to be that high up the chain already.” Minato inquired, getting Timothy’s attention.

“Well, I guess I take that back. I’m not exactly ‘unhappy’ about it, but it’s not really something I was trying to go for, if that makes sense.” Timothy offered as he turned back to his form.

“I see what you’re saying. Don’t worry about it. To be honest, I felt the same way when I was offered my position, didn’t feel like I was ready for it. And while we’re being honest, the Captain offered me the position because of my leadership abilities. I’m not exactly among the best of fighters.” the man stated as he rubbed the back of his neck.

Timothy sighed and set his brush down.

“No, you’re not…not when you think like that.” Timothy said with closed eyes.

Minato became confused. “Huh?”

Timothy sighed again and looked at him.

“It’s simple, the only way you’re going to be an effective fighter is if you believe you’re an effective fighter. If you start doubting yourself, your skills and knowledge will fail you. When I was first learning kidō, it took weeks for me to finally manage to perform Shō, the lowest hadō. After a couple of weeks, I almost wanted to give up on it. But instead I kept trying over and over. Finally, one day I tried it and I managed to do it. Just because you’re not on par with most, you shouldn’t give up, just try harder.” Timothy concluded as he picked his brush back up and started signing the form.

“Yeah, I know. It’s just hard is all.” Minato admitted.

Timothy froze and turned his eyes to the man without moving.

“Stop worrying about it and ‘do’ it!” Timothy stated in a stern voice before returning to the form.

Minato sighed and slumped in his chair.

“Great, you’re starting to turn into another Lieutenant Iba.” he moaned.

Timothy looked at him seriously as he placed the last form in front of him.

“At least I don’t drink fifty pounds of coffee every day. Good god that guy is so uptight.” Timothy remarked.

Minato lightly laughed at his statement and sat up straight.

“Yeah, he’s a bit on the tight end, but the whole squad respects and loves him. Things have definitely improved since he came to be our Lieutenant.” he stated.

Timothy finished his last form, setting it on the stack and nodded.

“Yeah, I have to agree with you there. It’s just that our two personalities simply don’t mesh together perfectly is all. That’s why we didn’t get along at first, but it was mostly my fault. I’ll admit that I was a bit of an arrogant ass when I first came to the squad, but after our little talk together, he set me straight. He’s a rough character, but he’s fair.” Timothy returned as he stood up.

He stretched his arms and back out as Minato stood up as well. After a few seconds, Timothy relaxed and picked up his stack, Minato following suit.

“Here, give me your set and I’ll turn everything in. I’ll meet you on the grounds in a bit.” Timothy stated.

Minato set his forms in Timothy’s arms and swiftly bowed before turning and leaving the office. Timothy then walked out of the office and up the stairs to the Captain’s office doors and knocked. After a moment, he got no answer. He knocked once again, but still got no answer.

“He’s not in at the moment, Durn.” a gruff voice stated.

Timothy turned and saw Tetsuzaemon walking up to him.

“Oh, hello Lieutenant. I was just dropping off these forms for the Captain.” Timothy notified.

The Lieutenant nodded. “I see that. Give them to me and I’ll set them in his office.” he instructed.

Timothy smoothly transferred the paperwork into Tetsuzaemon’s hands and bowed.

“Will that be all?” he asked as he rose.

“Yeah, you can go ahead and start training with the squad. You’ll have a bit less members present today as some were sent on assignment. I’ll be down later to see your new ‘barrier’.” he answered.

Timothy nodded and walked past the man towards the training grounds.

** Squad 10 Headquarters, Seireitei, Present **

Sitting at his desk that was on the brink of overflowing with paperwork, the short, white haired Captain of Squad 10 was busy signing a form, highly agitated at the scene in front of him.

As was common, the front of his office was nearly littered with empty sake bottles and a single female officer that was the cause of the empty bottles, and the many anguishes of his life.

The woman was none other than his Lieutenant, Rangiku Matsumoto. A woman of average height, she possessed blue eyes with long, flowing blonde hair that reached to her mid back.

But the most noticeable trait she possessed was her excessively pronounced chest, that turned out to be the most pleasant/agonizing death a man could hope for when she embraced anyone, rendering most of her ‘victims’ unconscious.

Although she was a very caring person and would do anything for her squad, she was also, to Captain Hitsugaya’s dismay, very lazy.

It was exceedingly rare that she did her share of the paperwork, resulting in Hitsugaya having to do it for her most of the time. If this wasn’t bad enough, she had a tendency to go drinking with her friends and end up waisted; sometimes, like today, passing out on the floor of the main office.

Captain Hitsugaya’s eye twitched as he looked at his Lieutenant who was currently out cold and sprawled out face down on the floor in front of the couch. He gritted his teeth and got ready to stand up and berate her for the umpteenth time when he was stopped by a knock on his door.

_‘What now?!’_ he inwardly asked in anger.

“Come in.” he answered as calmly as he could manage.

The door opened to reveal Captain Komamura as he stepped in, closing the door behind him. The man took a step forward, but stopped when he noticed Rangiku passed out on the floor.

It wasn’t the first time that Sajin had witnessed this scene, and he knew that it would most likely ‘not’ be the last. The man slowly turned to Hitsugaya with a concerned look to see that he was very clearly annoyed.

“I see that it’s been a normal morning for you, Captain Hitsugaya.” the furry Captain observed.

Hitsugaya lowered his gaze at the man to stare with anger at his useless Lieutenant.

“You have no idea.” he returned with a scowl.

Sajin gave a light chuckle and continued walking towards the desk, bypassing the slumbering blonde. Once he was in front of the desk he took a seat in front of Hitsugaya as the short Captain finished the form he was working on.

“How can I help you this morning, Sajin?” he asked in a slightly calmer tone.

“I came to notify you that my replacements are ready to leave today. They are scheduled to leave by midafternoon, so I wanted to ask if your men are ready as well.” Sajin answered.

“I see. My team is also ready, I will have them at your headquarters within the hour, so that you may brief them. In total, there are six members of the team. Will that be alright with you, Captain?” Hitsugaya followed.

Sajin nodded. “Yes, that will be fine. Have you heard anything further on this…energy absorbing hollow?”

Hitsugaya sighed and shook his head.

“No, and that worries me. I’ve even spoken with Captain Sui-Fēng and asked if she has received any reports, but she hasn’t gotten anything either. She withdrew her team yesterday, saying that they were needed for other matters.” the short man fretted.

“I see. And has there been any word from Captain Kurotsuchi?” Sajin pressed.

“Tsk…I’m not going to talk to that pompous fool. Besides, it’s not like he would reveal anything anyway.” Hitsugaya stated as he threw his hand out to the side.

Sajin moaned and nodded in agreeance. It was true that, although respected for his ability to get just about any information that was needed, Captain Kurotsuchi was extremely anti-social and would very rarely ever give out information, unless the Head Captain demanded it. Even then he would still try to withhold it.

“I agree, going to him would be pointless. Anyway, I don’t believe that I will need to brief your men. As long as they understand not to interfere with my men’s duties, and to be ready in case of an emergency, there is nothing special to mention.” Sajin clarified.

Hitsugaya nodded in understanding.

“Alright, as I said, they’ll be there within the hour. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a mountain of paperwork that needs to be finished, since a particular ‘Lieutenant’ is too ‘incapacitated’ to assist.” Hitsugaya growled as he turned to the said Lieutenant laying prone on the floor.

Sajin chuckled and gave a swift bow before standing back up.

“Good day to you, Captain Hitsugaya.” he finished.

The man turned and left the office just as his Lieutenant turned over and slowly sat up, her cheeks with a hint of red to them, woken by the closing of the office door.

“Good morning Captain.” she greeted in a cheery voice.

Hitsugaya’s patience suddenly ran out as he slammed his fists on the desk and quickly stood up with a look of fury.

“Rangiku!”

** Squad 7 Training Grounds, Seireitei, Present **

Timothy and Minato stood by the arena talking as they waited for the last of the members to arrive at the grounds for the afternoon training session. He was discussing with him what his plans for the training were for the day and what he wanted him to help with.

He looked from the man when he noticed Tetsuzaemon walking in their direction. Both men turned to face him and gave a quick bow as the Lieutenant stopped in front of them.

“Good afternoon Lieutenant.” Minato greeted.

Tetsuzaemon nodded to them both and turned to the members standing in the arena.

“So, what have you got planned for em today, Durn?” he asked in his usual voice.

“Little bit of endurance training and practice with kidō. Maybe work on a barrier or two if there’s time.” Timothy answered.

Tetsuzaemon nodded. “Good. I’ll join ya and watch how you do things.” he notified.

Timothy nodded back. “Yes sir.” he returned, then turned back to Minato. “Alright, looks like everyone’s here, let’s get started.”

Minato swiftly nodded, and the three men started walking towards the front of the group.

“Alright everyone, let’s get started for today.” Timothy announced, getting everyone’s attention. He stopped in front of the group and set his hands on his hips. “By show of hands, who was not here for training yesterday?” he asked.

A few of the members rose their hands as Timothy made a mental estimation of how many members were there. Overall, he saw that he only had twenty-five to thirty members today, just a little less than yesterday as Tetsuzaemon had stated.

Timothy counted the hands to see that there were only four new people.

“Ok, those that raised their hands, you’ll be working with 7th seat Minato and he’ll show you how to use the new barrier I taught yesterday.” Timothy announced.

He turned to the man and was given a brief nod before turning to the Lieutenant.

“Lieutenant, you said you wanted to see the new barrier, so if you don’t mind, would you stick with Minato and he’ll show it to you?” Timothy asked.

Tetsuzaemon lightly nodded, then Timothy turned back to the group.

“The rest of you, we’re going to be working a bit on your endurance and practice maintaining the barrier from yesterday. Questions?” Timothy finished.

He waited a few seconds, but saw no hands raised.

“Alright, those of you I mentioned, please step out and join Minato. The rest, I want you to put up your barriers when I tell you.”

He saw everyone nod in understanding as the four members who raised their hands before left the group to join Minato and the Lieutenant. Timothy turned back to Minato.

“I guess go over by the tree. Just teach them the barrier, then split them into teams and have em send the highest bakudō they can manage at each other. But nothing higher than #61.” Timothy instructed.

Minato nodded and left with the group and the Lieutenant towards their spot. Timothy turned back to his group.

“Now, all of you put up your barriers now.” he ordered.

He watched as one by one the members put up their barriers with only two first-time failures. After trying a second time, he saw that everyone now had their barriers up and ready.

“Alright, now I want you all to run twenty laps on the track. Judging by the length of the track, that should be close to two and a half miles.” Timothy instructed.

“Miles?” a member asked confused.

Timothy sighed as he mentally facepalmed.

“Sorry, somehow I forgot that use a different system here. When I was alive, I didn’t use the metric system like you do. So, I guess it’s about…4 kilometers.” he reiterated.

Some of the members moaned, but everyone nodded back before Timothy continued.

“Now, during this run, you need to keep your barriers up. Do not let them drop. If you drop it, just stop, put it back up, and keep going. Now, to make sure that no one cheats, I’ll be hitting random people with Rikujōkōrō. If you are hit, drop your barrier like you were taught, then put it back up and keep going.” Timothy paused, getting nods back.

“You will have twenty minutes to complete this run. If you are hit with my kidō and didn’t have your barrier up, your run will restart and you with have to keep going. If you don’t finish the run in time, you will have to run another five laps. Questions?” Timothy paused again, getting another round of nods.

“Once you have finished your run, find a partner who has finished as well, find a vacant spot and start practicing your barriers by hitting each other with your strongest bakudō, #61 and below. Once everyone is finished, we’ll take a short break. Any final questions?” Timothy asked once more.

After seeing no one had any, he nodded and sent the members to the track to get ready to start.

“As I said, this will help improve your endurance, as well as help you learn to maintain your barrier while under stress. Everyone ready?” he asked, getting nods back. “Go.”

At once, everyone started running at their own paces around the track. It was a little too soon for Timothy to see who the stronger runners were as some people tend to burn all their energy out in the first couple of laps of a run, trying to be the one in front.

Timothy decided to wait until most of the group had finished their first two laps before he started throwing kidō at them. He looked at the group and picked one of the members who was clearly one of the beginning sprinters, seeing that he was already tired.

Timothy pointed at the member with his two fingers.

“Bakudō #61, Rikujōkōrō.” He chanted.

The six yellow energy blades hit the member, freezing him in place. The man stood there for a second, then Timothy watched as the kidō broke off of the man as he dropped his barrier. The member brought up a new barrier, then continued running.

Timothy nodded in acceptance and slightly smiled. He looked around for his next target, and saw one of the women towards the middle pacing herself next to another woman.

He pointed at her. “Bakudō #61, Rikujōkōrō.”

The woman, like the man before, froze suddenly, then dropped her barrier with the kidō and brought up another before returning to her run.

Timothy scanned the crowd again and chose another member towards the middle of the group.

“Bakudō #61, Rikujōkōrō.”

The man stopped in place, dropping his barrier and pulling up another before continuing on.

Over and over Timothy selected his targets, each one being hit and refreshing their barriers before they would continue the run. Once in a while Timothy would strike the same person twice in a row to see if they would relax once they had been hit.

Overall, he was very pleased to see that everyone had managed to keep their barriers up as they ran. He could see that some of the members in the back were exhausted and having trouble.

“Quit goofing off and run! If a hollow was chasing you I’m sure you’d be running faster than that!” he yelled, getting the said members to push a little harder.

Unknown to him and the rest of the squad members on the field, Captain Komamura stood behind the squad headquarters watching the whole ordeal. He was keeping his spiritual pressure heavily suppressed so that no one on the field would notice him watching, especially Timothy.

It slightly confused him when Timothy kept hitting the members with kidō, just for them to quickly get right back up, then a few seconds later continue running.

The man crossed his arms and gave a slight grin, content with how his new officer was handling the training with the squad members. He then gave a slight chuckle before he turned and walked back into the headquarters to return to his office for the morning paperwork.

Back on the grounds, one by one the members would finish their run, then quickly find a partner and begin practicing kidō against each other. Finally, the last member finished the run and Timothy gave him a quick pat on the shoulder before turning back to the rest of the members.

“Alright everyone, take a short break. Group up in the arena in fifteen minutes.” he hollered.

Everyone nodded as Timothy walked over to where Minato was training with his group. He saw that he and the Lieutenant were partners against each other while they practiced sending kidō at each other’s barrier.

“Yo, Minato.” Timothy addressed, getting the man’s attention. “Have em take a break.” he followed.

The man nodded and passed the instructions to his group while Tetsuzaemon walked towards Timothy. The man stopped next to him and turned to the members Timothy had, clearly out of breath.

“I said to train em, not kill em, Durn.” he mocked.

Timothy scoffed in amusement. “What, jealous you weren’t with my group, Lieutenant?” he teased.

The man scoffed back in a lighter tone as he turned to him.

“Either way, good job so far. So, what do you have planned next?” the man asked.

“Probably the next part of the barrier.” Timothy answered as he turned to his group.

Tetsuzaemon raised a brow to him. “Next part?”

Timothy turned back to him and nodded.

“Now that I can see that they can hold the barrier under stress, I’m gonna teach them another way to use the barrier. So, what did you think about it?” Timothy asked.

“It’s interesting, and I’ll agree that it could come in handy, and also that it’s easy to use.” he admitted.

Timothy nodded. “Thanks. I found out years ago when I was still in Fallen Tree that fighting against kidō users could end up being my biggest issue. That’s why I came up with it, just in case something happened I would still have a chance. Fighting for survival is not an easy thing to do.” he returned.

Tetsuzaemon grunted in agreeance.

“That’s true. You always have to fight to be better than the man next to you. Well, I’ll be off now, the Captain should be back by now.” the man stated.

Timothy gave him a swift bow. “Thank you for joining us Lieutenant.”

The man nodded and walked away. Timothy turned back to the members to see Minato walking up to him.

“Ready to continue?” Minato asked.

“Nah, give em a few more minutes, then we’ll get back to it. Besides, there’s something I wanted to bring up to you.” Timothy warned.

“What’s that?” the man pondered.

“It’s about your remark earlier, about how your fighting skills are a little behind.”

“Ok, what about them?” Minato asked with a raised brow.

“Well, I plan on fixing that.” Timothy stated with a grin.

Minato swallowed the lump in his throat, not liking the look on Timothy’s face.

“How?” he pressed hesitantly.

“Simple, we’re going to duel and I’m going to beat the crap outta you until you’re up to par. Can’t have our squad’s 7th seat falling behind now, can we?” Timothy teased.

“Uh…no?” Minato guessed, but Timothy simply shook his head.

“No. We’ll start after training time is over. You remember my zanpakutō, Moeru Kitsune, right?” Timothy asked as his grin turned evil.

“Why do I have a feeling that I’m going to die today?” Minato whined.

Timothy started laughing at the stressed man as he deadpanned.

“You were joking with me…weren’t you?” he asked in a low tone.

Timothy half recovered from laughing.

“Yes and no. We’re still gonna practice, but nothing serious. I was just messing with you is all. We’ll use practice swords for it. Sound good?”

Minato nodded, now a little agitated from being teased.

“Yes sir…” he replied in a moan.

“Alright, let’s get back to training.” Timothy instructed.

“Actually…I’ve been wondering something, Tim.” Minato started.

The 5th seat rose a brow a bit. “Shoot.”

The other office loosely crossed his arms. “Yesterday and today, you’ve shown that you have some skill with leadership; or at least training. So, I’m wondering, did you learn it somewhere, or is it just coming natural to you?”

Timothy chuckled. “Football.”

Minato tilted his head. “Football? Isn’t that a sport or something?” he inquired.

“Yeah, and the training for it is a bit tough. I used to play as one of my college team’s tight ends for a year. But my grades were starting to fall behind, so I had to quit. But basically, some of the methods I’m using now, although a little modified for our…unique requirements, I copied from the team’s coach. He knew what he was doing, but the guy was a bit of a drunk sometimes.”

“Ah, I see. Well, that does explain it a bit, although I can’t say I know what ‘football’ is exactly.” Minato stated.

Timothy chuckled again. “I’ll tell you about it sometime, but right now, we should get back to our murder session.”

The man nodded again and they both started walking towards the arena, gesturing for the members to gather around them. After a couple minutes they had all of the members listening intently.

“Alright, how is everyone feeling?” Timothy asked, getting a mix of nods, shrugs, and moans back.

“Good, now I’m going to teach you all another trick behind the barrier you’ve been using. While it’s good as a last defense against binding kidō, you can also use it in a semi-aggressive manner. I’ll give you a demonstration, then I’ll explain how it works. Minato?” he finished as he turned to the man.

Minato gave him a nod while Timothy began putting up his barrier. A few seconds later, Timothy had his barrier around him, then nodded to Minato to continue.

The man held two fingers to Timothy. “Bakudō #61, Rikujōkōrō.”

The crowd watched as the iconic yellow blades surrounded Timothy and close in. But before they had made contact with him, his barrier suddenly shattered, causing the kidō to fail and disappear.

Everyone, including Minato, stared at him shocked, wondering what happened. Timothy smiled and turned back to the members.

“Now, I can see that everyone is confused as to what happened. Well, the answer is simple. I dropped my barrier just before the 7th seat’s bakudō got to me. When you have your barrier over you, and although your opponent can’t ‘see’ the barrier, his kidō is actually targeting the barrier, not you. So, who wants to tell me what happens if your target disappears ‘after’ you have shot a bakudō at him?” he finished in a question towards the group.

A couple members rose their hands, then Timothy pointed at one for him to answer.

“The kidō will fail.” the man replied.

Timothy nodded. “Exactly. As I said, when your opponent attacks you with a bakudō, that spell is attacking your barrier. So, if you drop your barrier ‘after’ your opponent casts it, but ‘before’ it actually hit’s you, the kidō will dispel before it even reaches you. However…” Timothy paused as he rose a finger.

“It does have a flaw. Using this tactic requires precise timing. There’s a very short period of time between the casting of the kidō, to the moment that the kidō actually hits you. If you drop the barrier too late, the kidō will still hit the barrier. But, if you drop it too early, you just opened yourself up for the bakudō to attach to you. Remember, you are focusing the kidō onto your target ‘until’ you cast it. Once you have cast it, it will be fixated to the target of choice until either it hits the target, or the target is no longer there.” Timothy put his finger down.

“Remember, although the kidō is attacking your barrier, you will still feel the kidō’s effect ‘through’ the barrier. Although you can quickly ‘shed’ the kidō off you, it will still leave you open to attack for the few seconds it takes to drop the barrier. This tactic, if you get the timing right, will allow you to block the kidō before it reaches you, preventing you from feeling any effects. Questions?” Timothy finished.

He looked around to see no hands raised, then continued.

“Ok, split yourselves up into groups of two, just like yesterday and practice this. Try to find a different partner this time. If your partner fails at the timing, just drop the kidō on him or her and have that person try again. Go ahead and get started.” Timothy concluded and turned to Minato.

“We’ll pair up again as well.” he stated.

Minato nodded back before Timothy gestured towards his favorite tree. The pair began walking away as the other members started splitting off into their own groups and finding a spot for their practice.

** Squad 7 Headquarters **

Back in Sajin’s office, he and Tetsuzaemon were working on reviewing the morning paperwork when they heard a knock on the door.

“You may enter.” Sajin announced as he finished signing the form in front of him.

The door opened to reveal an average height man with brown hair. The man took a few steps into the office before taking a knee with his head bowed.

“Excuse me, Captain.” he man greeted.

Sajin looked up to the man. “Yes?” he answered.

The man rose his head to the Captain.

“I am Takumi Maruyama, the 6th seat for Squad 10. I’m here with the other members of my squad tasked by Captain Hitsugaya to accompany your men to the world of the living, sir.” the man addressed.

Sajin set his brush down and nodded. “Please, come in, and have the rest of your team come in as well.” he instructed.

Takumi nodded and stood up, returning to the door and making a gesture outside. A moment later, five more men walked in with the officer and stood in front of Sajin.

“I’m sure Captain Hitsugaya has already briefed you?” Sajin asked, getting nods in response. “Good. Then I don’t have anything further to add to his instructions. Though, I will give you a word of warning.” Sajin paused as he held a finger up to them and gave a serious glare.

“Do not take this hollow lightly. This creature killed four of my members, and one of my best combat officers, at the same time. If you are attacked by this hollow, fall back and get the assistance of my men before attacking. Is that understood?” he demanded.

The members all nodded. “Yes sir!” they all replied in unison.

Sajin lowered his hand and nodded. “Very good. My men are scheduled to leave in an hour, so you may make yourselves comfortable in our barracks until they leave. That is all.” Sajin finished.

The men all nodded once more, then bowed before leaving the office. Sajin gave a depressed sigh as he leaned back and pinched the top of his nose. Tetsuzaemon put his brush down and looked to him.

“Is everything alright, Captain?” he asked.

Sajin gave another, but deeper sigh as he rested his hand in his lap.

“I don’t like this one bit, Tetsuzaemon. Something about this hollow matter just doesn’t sit right with me.” he admitted.

The Lieutenant nodded in agreeance. “Neither do I. I’ve never heard of a hollow having the ability to absorb spiritual pressure like that.”

“Nether have I, Tetsuzaemon.” the Captain returned before turning to him. “I want you to assign ten members to be ready and on call at all times in case something happens. Make sure they are aware of the situation. Also, make sure they have one of our higher officers with them.” Sajin instructed.

“That may be a problem sir. As you know, our 3rd and 4th seats are empty right now. Our 6th and 9th seats are on assignment at the moment in the world of the living. And our 8th seat is part of the replacement team. That only leaves 7th seat Minato, and 5th seat Durn.” the Lieutenant warned.

Sajin turned back forward and closed his eyes. “So that means we have to pick between them. Who would you suggest, Tetsuzaemon?”

The man grunted and lowered his head. “I’m not sure, Captain. Minato is a good leader, but I hate to admit that his fighting capability is a little lacking. And Durn hasn’t been in the squad, or even a soul reaper for that matter, for more than two weeks. He can fight, but this is a whole different ballgame.” the man advised.

Sajin opened his eyes and turned back to the Lieutenant. “Do you think that either of them can do it? If not, I may have to send you, Tetsuzaemon.” he fretted.

Tetsuzaemon started scratching the side of his face as he thought about it. A moment passed before he finally looked up.

“Might I speak freely sir?” he asked.

Sajin nodded, getting a sigh from the man.

“With respect sir, I advise against sending either of them. In my opinion, if this hollow is as dangerous as we believe, you should have sent more personal until we have more information on this matter.”

Sajin shook his head. “With what happened with Aizen, we cannot afford to have that many members out at once. The best we can do at the moment is have an emergency team ready to assist.” Sajin rejected.

“Understood sir. But going back to who to send…as much as I don’t want to admit it, I believe Durn would be the better option. He’s good at training, from what I have seen so far, but he is by far a better fighter; whereas Minato is better at training than combat.” the Lieutenant hesitantly concluded.

Sajin nodded and lowered his head. “I would have to agree with you, Tetsuzaemon.”

“Chances are sir, that the team may not have to be called in. Afterall, we won’t only have our team assigned there, but also those six from Squad 10.” Tetsuzaemon attempted to reassure.

“We can only hope that’s the case, Tetsuzaemon. By the way, how is Tim’s training sessions going?” the Captain asked as he turned back to the Lieutenant.

“He’s actually doing good, even I am impressed. He managed to teach the members a new kind of barrier to protect against kidō.” Tetsuzaemon answers as he scratches his chin.

This got Sajin’s interest as he slightly rose a brow at the man. “A new barrier? Then that would explain why he was casting kidō at the members while they were running.” he said, getting a nod of confirmation.

Tetsuzaemon begins explaining the best he could about Timothy’s barrier and the training he had conducted with its use. The explanation surprised Sajin a bit, and he decided that he should ask Timothy about it sometime.

Both men were interrupted by another knock on the office door, where Sajin turns to it.

“You may enter.” he answers.

The door opens where the squad’s 8th seat walks in and bows.

“Sir, the team is ready to leave. I’m aware it’s still a bit early, but I would like to request that we leave now.” the man states as he rises.

Sajin nods back. “Very good. Have you spoken with Captain Hitsugaya’s team?”

The man nods. “Yes sir.” he replies.

“Very well, you may leave to begin your duties. However, I’ll expect reports every six hours until further notice.” Sajin instructs.

The man bows to him. “Yes sir, we will leave right away.” He replies and leaves the office.

Sajin turns back to Tetsuzaemon.

“Going back to our discussion, we’ll assign Tim as our officer for the emergency team. Have him pick out five members that he wishes to take, and you pick out five of our best fighters. I want all of them to be ready at a moment’s notice, at all times. Let him know after training has concluded for the day.” Sajin instructs.

Tetsuzaemon nods in understanding and continues with the paperwork in front of him while Sajin does the same.

** Squad 7 Training Grounds, 2 hours later **

Timothy and Minato stood in front of the group of members who found themselves, once again, out of breath after the two officers had them all run more laps on the track again. Both officers were also a little winded as they decided to join the members on their run halfway through after sending kidō at some of them.

“Alright...whew…good job everyone. You guys have gotten the hang…” Timothy stops as Tetsuzaemon walks up, but the man gestures for him to continue.

“As I was saying, you guys have gotten the hang of the barrier and it’s uses. I’d would strongly advise you to practice it on your own from time to time to make sure it become reflex. I also want you all to keep something in mind. Plan for the worst, but hope for the best. Try to imagine the worst that can happen and plan for it, while also trying to make sure that the worst don’t happen. Understood?” Timothy asks.

“Yes sir.” the members reply in unison.

“Good. You’re all dismissed. See you guys tomorrow.” Timothy concludes.

Timothy turns to Tetsuzaemon, but he holds his hand up, telling him to wait while the members leave the field. After about three minutes, the three officers are the only ones on the field and Tetsuzaemon turns to Timothy.

“Durn, the Captain is putting an emergency team together in case something happens in the world of the living, after the recent event.” The Lieutenant begins, causing Timothy to close his eyes and let out a deep breath when his thoughts turn to Hetoku. “The Captain has decided to assign you as the officer in charge of the team.” He adds, causing Timothy and Minato to look at him with wide eyes.

“Me?! Why?” Timothy asks as he points to himself.

Tetsuzaemon nods. “Yes Durn, you. As much as I hate to admit it, you’re the best combat officer that we have available at the moment. We’ll try to get one of the two officers on assignment to return and take over, but for now, you are the officer in charge of the team.”

“Ok…so what do you want me to do?” Timothy asks as he scratches the side of his head.

“Just be ready to leave within minutes of getting the call to leave. You’ll have ten members on the team with you. I’m to pick out five, and you’re to pick five of your own. I’ll need the names before tomorrow evening. As for your normal duties there ain’t no change, just go about how you normally do.”

Timothy points to Minato. “Shouldn’t Minato be going? I mean, he’s been here far longer than I have.” Timothy points out.

“That’s true, but as I said, you’re the better fighter, and that is what this team needs the most are fighters. The Captain and myself are hoping that it won’t come to having to call your team in, but we need to be ready.” Tetsuzaemon clarifies.

Timothy sighs, but nods. “Question.”

Tetsuzaemon nods to continue.

“Once the members for the team has been chosen, would it be alright if we focus on training together specifically? If we’re going to be a team, we need to train as a team, so we can know where each other’s weaknesses are. Plus, we need to get used to working together.” Timothy points out.

The lieutenant nods again. “Sounds good. Once the members are assigned, I’ll rearrange their duties to make sure that you all get training in together.”

Timothy nods back. “Thanks Lieutenant. I’ll find my five and get you the names.”

“Good. Minato…” Tetsuzaemon pauses as he turns to the man. “You’ll resume the regular training as before.”

The man swiftly nods in understanding.

“Alright, that’s all.” Tetsuzaemon finishes and begins walking away as the two men bow.

“Yes sir.” they both reply before raising and turning to each other.

“Wow, your first assignment.” Minato states with a smirk.

Timothy scoffs. “Huh, yeah…but like he said, I probably won’t be called in.” He starts rubbing the back of his head. “I can’t believe that I’m the best officer they got for this. How in the world are you guys hurting so bad on officers?”

Minato raises both his palms up as he shrugs his shoulders.

“Lately, finding officers has been a challenge. Normally, if we don’t have anyone to fill the spots within the squad, they would try to transfer someone from another squad who can fill the role. But, after what happened with Aizen, normal operations have become a real shitstorm. At least we’re not as bad off as Squad 5, they don’t have a Captain, or a Lieutenant at the moment.” The man explains.

Timothy raises a brow in surprise.

“No Captain or Lieutenant?” he asks.

Minato shakes his head. “No, Aizen was the former Captain of Squad five while Momo Hinamori was the Lieutenant. But she’s currently under extensive care at Squad 4, so that means the squad’s 3rd seat has to take over for now. Once in a while one of the Lieutenants from another squad will give him a hand if he starts falling behind.”

Timothy starts rubbing his temples in wonder.

“I knew the situation was bad, but not this bad.” He moans before dropping his hand with a sigh.

“Anyway, I should probably get back to the barracks and figure out who my team members are going to be.” He finishes.

Minato nods back before both men begin walking back towards the barracks.

** Throne Room, Los Noches, Hueco Mundo, Present **

Sōsuke Aizen relaxed in his large chair in the throne room, resting his arms on the side rests, eyes closed and deep in thought; an amused and content smile on his face.

As he had expected, everything was progressing as he had planned, but his thoughts were dwelling on a specific situation that intrigued him. In fact, he was so interested in the situation, that he was seriously contemplating altering his current plans to see what the outcome would be.

At the entrance to the room, several feet in front of him, entered a slightly under-average height, slender man wearing white trousers similar to those of the soul reapers, and a white overcoat where the back extended to his shins.

This man was Ulquiorra Cifer, the Cuatro Espada of Aizen’s Arrancar army. Being the Cuatro, he was the 4th strongest being in Aizen’s army. He was a very cold and depressing being, very rarely ever showing any form of emotion; the only exception being a slight smirk if he somehow managed to find something amusing to him.

As he walked through the throne room, his footsteps echoed throughout the room as he approached the stairs. Ulquiorra walked up the steps slowly with both of his hands in his pockets, as he usually did, until he came to a stop in front of Aizen.

“You summoned me, Lord Aizen?” he addressed in an emotionless voice.

Aizen’s smirk slowly turned into a grin before he opened his eyes to look upon the fourth Espada.

“Yes. Do you remember the task I had assigned for you, regarding the substitute soul reaper?” Aizen asked in his low and calculating voice.

“I do, Lord Aizen.” Ulquiorra responded.

Aizen smiled more and closed his eyes as he shifted his seat to where he was now supporting his cheek with his right fist as he tilted his head.

“I would like to ask that you hold off on it.” Aizen began, then opened his eyes again. “There is something that I would like to continue observing before you perform your task. I will inform you as to when you may proceed.” Aizen instructed.

“As you wish, Lord Aizen.” he responded.

“Thank you, that will be all, Ulquiorra.” Aizen finished then closed his eyes.

Ulquiorra removed his right hand from its sleeve and held his arm sideways in front of his chest as he bowed.

“Thank you, Lord Aizen.” The Espada replied as he bowed.

The Espada rose before turning around and began walking down the steps to leave the room. Aizen slightly opened his eyes once more as he gave a light and very brief chuckle.

Ulquiorra exited the room to leave the calculating man to his thoughts.

** Squad 7 Barracks, Seireitei, Present **

Timothy sat in the common room on the first floor of the barracks, enjoying a light dinner while he contemplated on who he should assign to his team.

He hadn’t been in the squad but a little over a week and still didn’t know many of the members. If he had at least a couple more days, he would be able to get to know at least some of them, but Tetsuzaemon wanted the names by noon tomorrow.

It also didn’t help with him still being a little surprised that he was the officer chosen to lead the team. He was ok at training the members, but leading them?

Conducting training and giving guidance to the members was one thing, something he had, at least a little, experience in when he was still alive; but leading them in a combat situation was entirely another.

He was fearful of what could happen if he was to do something wrong or give a bad order. The lives of fellow members were in his hands, and that thought was giving him goosebumps.

He rested his head on his left arm and gave a deep sigh as he started thinking deeper on the situation. He sat there for a few moments and was so lost in thought that he never even heard his name being called.

He was suddenly shocked from his thoughts as a hand rested on his right shoulder. He quickly raised his head and turned to see Hinata with her hand on his shoulder and looking at him with concern.

“What?” he asked, causing her to tilt her head slightly.

“Are you ok? I called to you and you didn’t answer.” She responded with a hint of worry.

Timothy let out the breath he didn’t realize he was holding and gave a weak smile back.

“Yeah…I’m fine. Just thinking is all.” He assured.

He looked to see Kenta and Issei walking up behind her with worried looks of their own. She let out a brief sigh before walking around behind him and sitting down next to him while the two men sat across from him.

“You sure?” she asked as she sat.

Timothy turned his gaze around back to her.

“Yeah. Why?” Timothy returned with a raised brow.

“You look…worried. Something bothering you?”

Timothy lightly scoffed and shook his head.

“Not really, just got to figure out who to put on this team.” Timothy responded as he turned back to his dinner.

Kenta tilted his head. “What team?” he asked in confusion.

Timothy sighed and set his head back on his hand.

“This…emergency response team, or whatever it is.” He answered as he waved his free hand side to side before dropping it to the table.

“Response team?” Kenta inquired.

Timothy opened his eyes to him. “Yeah, the Captain is starting up this emergency team in case something happens again like with Hetoku.”

Kenta nodded as Hinata leaned over the table to stretch.

“Ok, that does make sense. But why are you worried about it?” she asked before pulling back from her stretch.

Timothy turned to her with an annoyed look.

“Because I was chosen to lead it.” He answered in a low tone.

All three friends quickly looked at him with shocked faces.

“You?!” Issei choked out, getting a nod back.

“Yeah, me.” Timothy answered.

He folded his arms on the table and dropped his head into his arms.

“I’ve got to pick out five members for the team while the Lieutenant picks the other five. There’s supposed to be eleven of us total.” He mumbled into his arms.

He raised his head and rubbed his face as he sighed.

“Problem is, who do I pick. I don’t know anyone here, except you guys.” He stated, then crossed his arms.

Hinata looked at the two men across from her, who looked at her and nodded before she turned back to Timothy.

“Well, if you’ve got no one in mind, we’ll go.” she offered.

Timothy glanced over to her with a raised brow.

“You sure you don’t have anything else you gotta do?” he asked.

She simply shook her head. “Nothing important really. Just the normal stuff.”

Timothy gave her a slight shrug. “Sure, if you guys want to go, I’ll put your names up. So that just leaves two left.”

“What about Yuka, Narumi and Junya? You know, the ones that drank with us that night.” Issei offers.

Timothy quickly turns to him. “There ain’t no way in hell that Narumi is going!” he stated.

Hinata lightly chuckles. “Yeah, she’d probably flirt with the hollow, scaring it off.” She teases.

All four friends start laughing at the statement before Timothy shakes his head.

“That woman is something else. But I think that we should keep her and Kenta away from each other.” Timothy added.

Kenta turned to him with a confused look.

“Why?” he asked.

Timothy turned to him with a smirk. “Because you would probably try to strip her, then she would be all over you flirting.” He teased again.

Hinata and Issei both about fell over laughing while Kenta gave Timothy a look that could kill a thousand hollows.

“I thought Hinata told you to never bring that up again.” He seethed.

Hinata held her sides from laughing so hard as she turned to him.

“I think…I’ll…I’ll forgive him…this time!” she blurted out between laughs.

Timothy joined in on the laughing as Kenta growled.

“I’ll get you back for that.” He threatened.

Timothy simply waved him off as he tried to calm down.

“That’s fine, I welcome a challenge.” He retorted.

The three friends continued laughing while Kenta kept giving Timothy his death glare. After a while, Kenta lowered and shook his head while the three others slowly recovered from their laughing fits; with Hinata finally turning back to Timothy after a few minutes longer.

“So, who you plan on taking?” she asked.

Timothy wiped a few tears away from his laughing and turned to her as well.

“Most likely Junya and Yuka.” He answered.

Kenta, still with a hint of evil in his face, faced Timothy.

“You do know those two are siblings, right?” he notified.

Timothy turned to him with a raised brow.

“Really?”

Kenta and Issei both nodded.

“Yeah, Yuka and Junya Sano. They make a great team together, until Junya makes fun of her hair.” Issei stated.

Timothy started scratching his head.

“Why would he make fun of her hair? It didn’t look bad to me that night.”

Hinata cut Issei off. “She has ‘really’ thick hair that is hard for her to maintain. So, whenever she’s out practicing or anything like that, her hair gets messed up, and it looks funny as hell.”

“He don’t make fun of her for long. Man, that girl will put you in the ground when she gets mad.” Issei follows.

Timothy suddenly points at Kenta with wide eyes.

“Good plan! Make fun of her hair, then send her after the hollow!” Timothy remarks.

Kenta drops his head on the table with a thud and his shoulders start jumping as he laughs while the rest laugh out loud. It takes an additional two minutes before any form of understandable language could be made.

After their bouts of laughter, Kenta had his head resting on the table while Hinata used Timothy’s shoulder for support while they all calmed down. Issei finally turned back to Timothy.

“You’re a regular comedian, aren’t you Tim?” he asked in a joking tone.

Timothy scoffed back at him. “I guess you could say that. Anyway, I’ll probably add their names to the list with yours as well.”

Timothy took a deep breath before he stood up with the remnants of his dinner.

“Well, I am heading to my room for the night. I’ll catch you guys later and let you know what the Lieutenant says tomorrow.” He states.

The two men nod back while Hinata gives him a pat on the back.

“Yeah, see you later Tim.” she returns.

He nods back, then leaves to dispose of his trash before returning to his room.

“Hey Tim…” Issei calls out.

Timothy stops his walk and glances over his shoulder back to the table where he left his friends. He saw all three of them looking at him as Issei held up an open hand towards him.

“Thanks for the invite. It’ll be nice to work with ya.” Issei sated.

Timothy lightly scoffed as he closed his eyes in humor before slightly shaking his head at him.

“Yeah, you’re welcome, clown.” Timothy jested.

Kenta shook his head as Hinata quietly chuckled and Issei gave Timothy a scowl.

“Oh, shut up!” Issei mumbled just loud enough for Timothy to hear.

Timothy shook his head again as he turned back forward and continued walking to go discard his trash.

After throwing away his trash and giving a last wave at his friends as he walked through the room, Timothy swiftly found himself walking through the doorway into his room. He casually stepped over to his bed and removed both of his swords from his sash, placing the sword that contained Susan’s soul on the bed before sitting down against the back wall.

He leaned his head back to the wall and closed his eyes as he mulled over the fact that he was in charge of a team now. Other members were going to be counting on him and looking to him for guidance and orders. Counting on him to make sure they come back alive.

He didn’t stay in thought long before he lightly slapped both hands to his face and started rubbing it while he let out a deep breath.

_‘This is all nonsense.’_ He thought before dropping his hands into his lap and sighing heavily.

“Well…” he started under his breath as he raised his head and opened his eyes. “Could be worse…somehow.” he mumbled further as he pulled his zanpakutō from its scabbard and laid the weapon down on his lap while setting the scabbard aside.

He then set his hands on his legs as he crossed them under himself and closed his eyes again. He sat there, unmoving, for a moment before taking a deep breath and slowly let it out as he cleared his mind to try and speak with his zanpakutō’s spirit.

He honestly had expected it to take a few times to succeed, if he even succeeded at all. But, to his surprise, he found that he started getting that familiar feeling of being pulled away into the darkness, deep within the back of his mind.

As before, he opened his eyes to find himself standing in the same field as he had before. But he immediately noticed something different about everything around him.

Although the buildings were still in shambles with no apparent change and still burning, the heavy downpour of water was now a steady, moderate rain. And the fires that littered the fields were gone, the weeds were not as dense, and he could see tiny patches of grass trying to grow.

When he looked up to the sky, although it was still a heavy downcast, he could occasionally see a small patch of the blue sky through the clouds. He found himself stuck trying to look for more of the blue sky as the clouds continued to pass overhead.

**“You have…come back.”** A low and deep voice sounded from in front of him.

Timothy lightly scoffed as he closed his eyes while keeping his head to the sky.

“Yeah, I guess so.” He mused back.

He took he short breath before lowering his gaze and opening his eyes to see the spirit sitting in front of him, just like he had during his last visit.

“Some things have changed here. It’s not as…gloomy.” Timothy observed with a crook of a smile.

The man stared at him with his one exposed eye with an emotionless look. After a moment of continued staring, the man finally turned his gaze towards the fields.

**“Indeed…so I see… that you have…finally understood…the feelings…in your soul.”** He remarked slowly.

Timothy followed the man’s gaze out to the fields and sighed heavily.

“I may understand them, but those feelings are still there.” Timothy said regretfully.

The man turned back to Timothy with a hardened stare.

**“Yet you…are still trying…to correct…those feelings…So tell me…”** the man paused, getting Timothy’s attention back to him. **“Why have…you returned?...What is it…that you seek?”** he asked.

“Guidance.” Timothy flatly replied.

The man’s exposed eye narrowed at him, hardening his stare further.

**“And why…should I…help you?”** the man half demanded.

Timothy tilted his head a little. “Well…aren’t we supposed to be partners? Are we not supposed to help each other?”

The man closed his eye for a moment before he returned his gaze.

**“The bond…between the zanpakutō…and it’s master…is sacred…but not everlasting…The zanpakutō…trusts…in its master…granting him…the powers…to fight…and to protect…The master…trusts…the zanpakutō…to give him…the guidance…in order to do…what is right…While your heart…is true…and your…intentions good…I have…yet to see…a reason to place…my trust in you…You must…prove to me…that your heart…your soul…cannot be corrupted…by the use…of my powers.”**

The man held a cloth covered finger out to Timothy. **“Only then…can you ask…for my guidance.”**

The man lowered his hand, but Timothy became agitated. He took a step towards the man as he held an arm out to the side.

“Can’t you see the improvements I’ve made since I was last here? Don’t you think you could at least give me some guidance? Don’t I deserve it?” he demanded.

The man narrowed his gaze a moment, then swiftly stood up and slowly started walking towards him.

**“Did you need help…to destroy…this world…in the first place?...Did you need help…to tear apart…your soul? Who all…was involved…in setting the state…of your being?...You…and only you…There may…have been…entities…that gave you…the means…but YOU…are the one…who caused…the pain within you…YOU…are the one…who has broken…the trust…”** The man was now standing feet from him, pointing at his face. **“And YOU…are the one…who must fix it!”** he finished in a growl.

The man lowered his hand as both men glared at each other. The stare down continued for a moment before Timothy finally closed his eyes and slightly lowered his head. After another minute, Timothy dropped down and sat with his knees to his chest and held his head in his hands, supported on his knees.

“I’m…sorry.” He said in a hushed tone.

The man continued to stare at him for a moment more before he closed his eye.

**“I am not…the one…you should…feel sorry for…you are.”** The man said.

Timothy looked up to him, then the man looked back at him.

**“You are…a strong one…Timothy Durn…Many underestimate you…You are stronger…than you imagine…You have…excessive potential…that you have…yet to discover…But…it is…up to you…to find it…Do not look…to the past…but instead…the future…Do not give in…Do not fret…Do not falter…”**

The man kneeled down to where he was eye level with Timothy and pointed a finger at his chest.

**“Believe.”**

Timothy watched with wide eyes as the man brought his hand to Timothy’s fore head with his index finger tucked under his thumb, then flicked him in the head.

Timothy flashed open his eyes quickly as he gasped, finding himself back in his room. He quickly looked around in a brief panic to get his bearings before he took a deep breath and calmed himself down.

He brought his hands up and started rubbing his face in quick motions. After a few seconds, he dropped his hands back down to his lap as he dropped his head back against the wall with a light thud and closed his eyes.

**_“Tim…you ok?”_** Susan whispered.

Timothy took a deep breath before opening his eyes and sheathing his zanpakutō. He took another, smaller breath before standing up and sitting back down on his bed to converse with her.

_“Yeah…I’m fine.”_ He answered, then dropped his head.

**_“You sure?”_** she pressed.

Timothy heavily sighed, not answering.

**_“You spoke with your zanpakutō again, didn’t you?”_ **

_“Yeah…still the same thing.”_

Timothy turned himself and laid back on his bed with his arms beside him.

**_“Do you want to talk about it?”_** she asked.

Timothy slowly shook his head. _“Not really. I just have a lot on my mind…like always.”_

**_“Tim…please talk to me. I know I can be a pain in the butt to you, but you know that I’m always willing to hear you out.”_** She encouraged.

Timothy lightly scoffed. _“Bain of my existence is more like it.”_ He mocked.

Susan scoffed back at him. **_“Whatever. Point is, I just want to help you out. You can’t fault me for that you know.”_** She returned in annoyance.

He sighed and nodded. _“I know. I just…I don’t want to talk about it. So, I assume you heard everything about me being the officer for this…team?”_

**_“Yeah, I heard. So, what’s your plan for it?”_** she inquired.

Timothy shrugged his shoulders at the question. _“Not sure just yet, but I can say this, you’re going to be getting a workout of your own as well for the training.”_

**_“Ooohh, sounds fun!”_** she beamed.

Timothy snorted at her remark. _“And you better be ready if we get called in. I am ‘not’ going to let what happened to Hetoku, happen to my team.”_

**_“Don’t worry. You do your part, and I will do mine._ **

Timothy nodded and took a breath before sitting back up and walking to the dresser to change. It was then that it dawned on him that he had absolutely no information regarding this hollow that had killed Hetoku.

The only thing that he knew about the matter was simply that he was killed, and it was a hollow that had done it…a single hollow.

Timothy knew that Hetoku was a decent fighter, and if they normally sent unseated officers to protect the world of the living against hollows, then this particular hollow was a tough one, especially if it called for an emergency team to be put on standby.

_‘I’ll have to talk to the Lieutenant or Captain about it tomorrow.’_ He thought, pushing the matter aside for the moment as he started to change his clothes.

** Squad 7 Headquarters, Seireitei, The next morning **

Sajin sat at his desk, finishing the last bit of paperwork that didn’t get completed the day before while Tetsuzaemon made tea for the both of them.

Normally the pair didn’t let paperwork get behind, getting everything done before the end of the day. But with having extra paperwork regarding the Squad 10 members, as well as the squad’s own team leaving for the living world, the added work prevented them from getting everything done.

Although it was preferred to have the squad’s daily paperwork in by the following morning, the Head Captain did allow a two-day grace period to turn in the work in case something happened that prevented it from being turned in at the time. Redeployment of personnel fell under one of these situations.

Sajin only had a few forms left to review by the time Tetsuzaemon returned, setting the Captain’s cup down on Sajin’s desk before proceeding to his desk.

“Thank you, Tetsuzaemon.” Sajin said without looking up.

“Yes sir.” the Lieutenant replied before blowing on his cup and taking a sip.

Tetsuzaemon set his cup back down and folded his arms into his sleeves, waiting. All of the paperwork from yesterday already had his signatures on them, and just needed Sajin’s final review. The first batch of the day’s paperwork had not been handed in yet.

While most of the squad rested for the night, most squads kept a couple members in the offices at night to handle paperwork that was turned in after hours to provide an early batch for the Lieutenant and Captain to look over.

Sajin finished signing the last form and set it aside on the completed pile before picking up his cup of tea. Both men sat in silence as they waited for the morning paperwork that should be in at any minute.

“Tetsuzaemon.” Sajin began.

The man turned to him. “Sir?” he responded.

Sajin set his cup down and set his hands in his lap. “Have you received the report from the team that was deployed yesterday?”

The Lieutenant nodded. “Yes sir. They reported in an hour ago. All members arrived safely and besides a few hollows that appeared while there was no team present, there haven’t been any incidents. No reports on this…hollow with the weird ability yet.”

Sajin nodded. “And what of the Squad 10 members?”

“Once everyone arrived, Captain Hitsugaya’s team went to the site of the incident to look around for any clues. Their officer has been checking in with our 8th seat before he reports in.”

Sajin nods once again before drinking some more tea, Tetsuzaemon doing the same. Sajin turns with his cup in hand to face the window behind him, seeing the sun just peeking over the rooftops of the buildings.

“Do you think this hollow is still in the area, Tetsuzaemon?”

The man starts scratching his chin as he thinks on the answer.

“I can’t really answer that one sir. Milan is quite a large city with plenty of souls. If it acts like regular hollows, it would more than likely still be around somewhere. But seeing that this hollow has this weird ability, that does not make it an average hollow, so it’s possible that it may have moved somewhere else, or returned to Hueco Mundo.” The Lieutenant answered.

Both men turned to the knocking on the door.

“You may enter.” Sajin answered.

Timothy walked into the office with a small stack of paperwork in his arm.

“Morning sir, Lieutenant.” He greeted.

“Morning Timothy.” Sajin returned while Tetsuzaemon simply nodded.

“I’ve brought the first bit of work for ya, sir.” Timothy said.

Sajin gestured towards Tetsuzaemon’s desk. “Please give it to Tetsuzaemon.” He instructs.

Timothy walks to the man’s desk and set the paperwork down before turning back to Sajin.

“Excuse me sir, but do you have a minute?” he asks.

Sajin nods and gestures for him to sit. Timothy walks over to the Captain’s desk and takes a seat in front of him.

“I’m sorry to bother you so early sir, but I needed to ask about this…hollow or whatever it is. If you’re going to have this team ready to move at a minute’s notice, we need to know what we would be up against, so we can prepare for it.” He states.

Sajin thinks about what to tell the man for a moment, considering that even he has very little knowledge about the hollow.

“That’s true, though there is not much I can tell you. We have no idea what this hollow looks like yet, but I can say that from what information that we do have, this hollow somehow has the capability to absorb spirit energy.” Sajin begins.

Timothy’s eyes widen a bit. “Is that normal?”

Sajin shakes his head. “No, in fact it has never been heard of before. From the information that Squad 12 has been able to acquire, former 5th seat Hetoku released a small amount of spirit energy. That energy somehow got absorbed by the hollow. But to make the matter worse, it seems to be able to heal itself by using this energy. This hollow is also a skilled fighter, causing me to believe that it’s possible that this hollow may be an Adjuchas.” Sajin adds.

“Alright, so what’s an ‘Adjuchas’?” Timothy asks as he scratches his head.

“It’s a class of menos, the second class to be exact. Unlike normal hollows that have very little combat skills, Adjuchas on the other hand are many times stronger, and more skilled. But again, our information on this hollow is minimum, so it could simply be a hollow that has been around for a long time and possibly developed this ability. My only advice is to avoid using kidō, or exerting spirit energy.”

Timothy holds a hand up quickly. “Wait a minute, it can also absorb kidō?!” he near shouts.

Sajin gives a serious nod. “Do not use kidō against this hollow Timothy, it will only make it stronger.”

Timothy places his chin in his hand as he thinks over what the Captain told him.

**“Captain, do you think that the hollow would affect my power?”** Susan asks aloud.

Timothy glances at Sajin, listening to the answer as well. But Sajin doesn’t answer right away as he is thinking about the answer himself.

“I’m not sure. When we last fought, I could feel your presence while you were visible. But as to your flames, I couldn’t feel anything from them, as if they were not there. It’s the same while you were not visible, hiding in the flames. It was also the same in Timothy’s case when I fought him. So, I really can’t give you an answer on that one.” Sajin offers.

Timothy nods and finally stands up. “Thanks for the info sir.” he says, then turns to Tetsuzaemon. “I’ve got the names for the team written down, Lieutenant.” He adds as he hands a small piece of paper to the man.

Tetsuzaemon looks at the names for a moment, then nods.

“I’ll put them down and give you the names for the other five later today. Go ahead and start training with these five for this morning. Once I give you the last five names, you can add them to your training.” The Lieutenant instructs.

Timothy nods before turning back to Sajin and bows.

“Thanks again sir.” he says as he raises.

Sajin nods back. “You’re welcome, Timothy. You’re dismissed.”

Timothy nods and leaves the office.

Sajin drinks a sip of tea before he starts on the paperwork that Tetsuzaemon had already signed and set on his desk.

Out back, Timothy was on his way from the rear doors of the headquarters to the squad barracks to find his friends that he set up for his team. Along with the Lieutenant’s instructions, he also wanted to get started on practicing with them.

Now that he had, at least some, information regarding the hollow that Hetoku fought, he had at least some understanding and idea on how to fight it. He was going to have to focus his team’s training very specifically on close quarters fighting, without the use of kidō.

But first he needed to find out what his friend’s skills were. Were they going to even be able to handle an enemy like this? On their own, more than likely not, but if they fought together, they should be able to handle it.

Issei had already mentioned that Yuka and Junya fight together on a normal basis, so those two know how each other operates. Now he needed to bring Kenta, Issei and Hinata, as well as the mystery five into the fold, into one well-oiled machine.

“Well hello there…Durn.” A violent and cheeky voice spoke behind him.

Timothy froze in place at the very sound of the voice.

_‘Oh. Dear. God. Not him!’_ he fretted.

He slightly relaxed and turned around with contempt towards the owner of the voice.

“What do you want, Captain Zaraki?” he asked with an agitated look and voice.

The bloodthirsty Captain gave Timothy his ‘happy’ grin.

“I thought I’d come by for our match. Or are you still under the leash of that wolf-faced bastard?” he mocked.

Timothy scoffed and growled at the same time as he turned fully towards the Captain.

“One, I’m under no one’s ‘leash’. Two, I’d have to ask that you respect my Captain, who has done more for me in the past two weeks than you have done for the entire Soul Society in the past millennium.” Timothy hissed back.

Zaraki deeply chuckled at the remark. “I see that the furry Captain hasn’t caused you to lose your balls. That’s good. I don’t fight those who can’t pose at least somewhat of a challenge.”

Timothy rolled his eyes at the taunt and shook his head. “Look Zaraki, I don’t have the time to screw around with you right now. I’ve got far more important things to do than entertain your desire of getting your ass whooped. Besides, my Captain instructed me not to get into it with you, and I intend to listen to him. If you’ve got nothing else to do, then take my advice and go jump in a deep hole somewhere.”

The man’s grin grew wider and he began to laugh. Timothy narrowed his gaze until the man calmed down a bit.

“That’s more like it! There’s the guts I remember you having! You may have been ‘instructed’ not to fight me, but make no mistake, I can see the bloodlust you have for me in your eyes. I can clearly see that you want to take a swing at me. Why not challenge me?” Zaraki pressed.

Timothy rose a brow at his question. “What the hell are you getting at, you god damned brute?” he asked in annoyance.

Zaraki smiled to the point where Timothy could now see every one of his teeth.

“Challenge me. No one can prevent you from challenging another, not even a Captain. Especially if the one challenged accepts. If you want to fight me so bad, then challenge me!” Zaraki demanded.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, Yachiru popped up and hung of Zaraki’s shoulder, smiling down at Timothy.

“Yeah! Fight him, Zippy! That way you and Kenny can have some fun!” she cheered.

Timothy turned to her with a deadpanned look. “Why in the hell do you call me ‘Zippy’?” he moaned.

“Cause you zip from here, to there, to there, to there, to there…” she kept saying over and over as she pointed from one spot to another as she said ‘there’.

Timothy face palmed and moaned loudly before holding his hand help to try and stop her, since she was still going on and on.

“Ok ok…I get it. Just please…knock it off.” He begged.

She stopped her rambling and turned to him with her smile.

“Ok!”

Zaraki’s face turned serious as he turned to her. “Yachiru, be quiet.” He demanded.

She simply turned to him and nodded, keeping her smile. Zaraki turned back to Timothy, his grin returning.

“So, what’s it going to be?” he pressed again.

Timothy scoffed at him. “For god’s sakes, why the hell are you so adamant about fighting me? Seriously! Do you really have nothing better to do than go looking for a fight, ‘literally’?!”

Timothy’s patience was running exceedingly thin by this point, and it was taking every bit of willpower to not start a fisticuffs match with the man.

Zaraki was correct in his statement about Timothy wanting to fight the man for all the nonsense that he allowed to happen with his squad, but Sajin had told him that he didn’t want him to fight with the man, and Timothy owed him more than that request.

“There’s nothing more pleasant than being able to fight with everything you got, a fight to the death. Ichigo’s not here right now, so you’re the next best thing, from what I’ve been told. Besides, I heard that you managed to kick wolf-face’s ass the other day. So, if you can take on a Captain, and win, you are definitely too good of an opportunity to pass up. So how about it? All you have to do is challenge me. Like I said, no one can stop you from challenging another.”

Timothy slightly lowered his head and closed his eyes in anger while balling his fists.

“I asked you nicely to show some respect for my Captain. I don’t care if you don’t like Captain Komamura, but you should at least show him the respect that he deserves.” He demanded.

Zaraki gives a loud laugh for a moment, then glares at Timothy.

“You want my respect? Then earn it! Fight me and earn it! If you can give me a fight that I’m happy with, I’ll take back all of the remarks towards that wolf-faced bastard!”

**_“I’m done with this fool, Tim! If he wants his pretty ass kicked, then give it to him!”_** Susan yelled in Timothy’s head.

Timothy’s patience finally zeroed out.

“Fine, Zaraki. I’ll play your game. What’re the rules?” he seethed.

“Rules?! Ha! Don’t make me laugh. There are no rules in battle, Durn. Fight me with everything that you’ve got! No holding back! I don’t care what you do, just give me a damn good fight!” Zaraki said with a tilted head, eye glaring at him.

Timothy narrowed his gaze. “Are you sure that’s what you want? I think you’re biting off more than you puppy dog mouth can chew.” He taunted.

Zaraki laughed again.

“Bring it to me, Durn! Show me what you’ve got!” Zaraki demanded.

Timothy nodded. “Fine. To the field then.”

Zaraki grinned as wide as possible before using shunpo to land out on the training grounds.

Timothy turned his head to the fields. “That fool wants his ass whooped, I’ll gladly oblige.”

Timothy shunpoed out to the field as well, landing a mild distance from the Captain. Zaraki turned to his Lieutenant, still on his shoulder.

“Yachiru, go find somewhere else to sit.” He growled.

The pink haired girl smiled and nodded. “Ok!” She then turned to Timothy. “Make sure to give Kenny a good time, ok Zippy?!”

Timothy gave her another deadpanned look. “Would you please stop calling me that.” He pleaded.

The girl hopped up on top of Zaraki’s shoulder before leaping off into the air and landing on the roof of a building several hundred feet away.

Timothy turned back to Zaraki with a confused stare. “How the hell did she do that?”

Zaraki simply shrugged his shoulder, giving Timothy the impression that he wasn’t going to answer. Timothy simply sighed and shook his head.

“Whatever. So, what, I have to ‘actually say’ that I challenge you?”

Zaraki grinned back. “If it makes you fight me better, go for it.”

Timothy scoffed at him. “Fine. Captain Zaraki, I challenge you.”

The man smiled back. “I accept.” He answered as he drew his zanpakutō.

Timothy took a decent look to see that the blade was very long and narrow, the edge scarred and chipped in several places giving it a serrated edge.

“If I remember correctly, the Captain said you don’t have a shikai. So that means that I just have to watch out for your sword skills.” Timothy pointed out.

Zaraki chuckled. “Even if I did have a sword release, I wouldn’t use it. I prefer to make my fights last as long as possible, and a release would only end the fight quicker. Now quit your blabbing and come at me!” he demanded.

Timothy stared the man down a moment, then finally drew Susan’s blade from its scabbard, holding it to his side.

“Tease, Moeru Kitsune.” He commanded.

The blade reformed while Susan’s signature flames started appearing at numerous locations around the field. Zaraki started looking around at a few of the flames.

“A bonfire huh? Just what we needed for this party.”

Timothy narrowed his gaze.

_“You ready for this?”_ he asked her.

**_“Oh, I’m ready for this asshole! He wanted a fight, he’s gonna get it!”_** she returned with a happy and ‘demonic’ giggle.

He lightly scoffed at her remarked and nodded.

“Then let’s do this.” He whispered, then rose his voice. “Well, bring on Zaraki! I challenged you, so you get to make the first move!” he taunted.

Zaraki smiled more. “If that’s what you want.” He stated and immediately charged at Timothy.

** Squad 7 Headquarters, 15 minutes later **

Sajin set a form he had just signed on top of the completed pile and turned to Tetsuzaemon.

“Tetsuzaemon, when you are finished with that, please send these…”

He was interrupted by a sudden burst of strong spiritual pressure resonating in the office. Both men’s eyes went wide as they knew immediately whose spiritual pressure is was. The only man whose pressure could, almost literally, slit your throat just by ‘feeling’ it.

It was Captain Zaraki’s pressure.

Tetsuzaemon quickly turned to Sajin. “Please don’t tell me…”

They both then quickly glanced towards the door.

“Timothy/Durn” they both moaned in unison.

** Squad 10 Headquarters, Present **

After, yet another, long berating session, Toshiro and a reluctant Rangiku continued working on the morning forms for the squad. Considering that, as usual, the Lieutenant was ‘unable’ to assist the Captain earlier, they were a little bit behind.

Toshiro was at his desk, while Rangiku was laying down on the couch holding a form over her head and inspecting it; with several other form scattered on the floor in front of her seat.

The captain ‘would’ have been happy, or at least content, that the woman was giving him at least ‘some’ help, but her steady, and very obnoxious out-of-tune humming was beginning to drive him, almost literally, up a wall.

Finally, he had had enough.

He instantly slammed his free hand on the desk with a loud growl as he shot to his feet.

“Rangiku!” he yelled.

But before he could berate her any further, both of their eyes shot wide open as the entire room started to vibrate from an enormous amount of spiritual pressure. But not only that, they both recognized the owner of that pressure right away.

Rangiku quickly turned around in her seat, supporting herself on her hands and knees on the couch as she started at her Captain.

“C…Captain!” she started.

His face dropped. “Just great…what the hell is going on now?” he moaned, then looked at his Lieutenant. “Rangiku, stay here and finish these forms while I go investigate this matter. And that is an order.” He said firmly. “At least this will give me a break from you.” He added in a whisper, before vanishing in shunpo.

** Squad 1 Headquarters, Office of the Head Captain, Present **

Head Captain Yamamoto sat peacefully at his desk signing a form as his Lieutenant, Chōjirō Sasakibe, walked up with some morning forms from Squad 9. The old, yet powerful man looked up to the Lieutenant.

“Thank you, Chōjirō.” He said in a deep voice.

The man bowed and turned to leave when the office suddenly roared with the power of a dense spiritual pressure. Lieutenant Sasakibe quickly glanced outside, then to Yamamoto. The old man slowly closed his eyes and gave a powerful sigh.

“Hmm…I wonder who the unfortunate soul is to have crossed paths with Captain Zaraki.” He said in a low voice.

He opened his eyes a little, then slowly stood, grabbing his cane as he did, and disappeared in a flash step.


	10. Showdown: Brute vs. Brat

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 10

**(Showdown: Brute vs. Brat)**

** Squad 7 Training Grounds, Seireitei, 15 Minutes ago **

Timothy quickly held up his blade in a guard as Zaraki swung his own in an attempt to give him a deep gash across his chest. A loud clash of metal sounded out as the two blades came into contact with each other with an impressive amount of force.

Timothy’s eyes went wide with the sheer amount of strength that the man in front of him was forcing on him. He had heard many things over the years regarding the strength of Captain Kenpachi Zaraki, but the man just proved to him that every one of those stories were highly understated.

At first Timothy was planning on using Susan’s ability to vanish and show up a distance away to send a kidō at him. But he thought it wiser to take the first strike head on to get an estimate of his opponent’s strength.

Now he was glad that he had made the right choice. Now that he had a grasp on what he was up against, he determined that he would be able to fight Zaraki much more effectively. Not only that, but that he also needed to keep his distance from the man.

Zaraki, obviously, was ‘not’ an opponent that Timothy wanted to try and take on going face-to-face. No, distance, planning, and cunning were the tactics that he was going to have to use here. In other words, ‘his’ type of fight.

Timothy was trying with every bit of strength he had to try and hold back Zaraki’s blade, small sparks flying off the blades with every millimeter of movement against each other. But even with all the strength he was using, Zaraki was steadily pushing Timothy’s blade back to him.

“What’s wrong? Is that all you got? Are you really nothing but talk?” Zaraki asked with a narrowed gaze and a wide grin.

Zaraki pushed harder against Timothy’s blade, forcing it to where it was about touching his chest.

**_“Tim, get out of there!”_** Susan yelled.

Her voice brought him back to his senses. He quickly shook his head and glared at the Captain.

“Not likely.” He hissed back.

Timothy suddenly vanished using one of Susan’s flames that were right behind him. The immediate loss of force against Zaraki’s blade caused him to slightly lurch forward, almost losing his balance.

Timothy reappeared to Zaraki’s right with his index and middle fingers of his offhand pointed at the Captain.

“Bakudō #61, Rikujōkōrō!” he chanted.

The iconic 6 yellow energy blades surrounded Zaraki for a split second before stabbing the man in his torso, freezing the man in place. Zaraki grinned more and turned his head to him.

“You think your pathetic tricks are going stop me? Don’t make me laugh.” he asked.

The man started tensing his muscles and pushing against the binding. Timothy narrowed his gaze a moment, but widened his eyes when he saw one of the yellow blades shatter, then another.

_‘He’s breaking the kidō?! How?!’_ he fretted.

Another blade shattered from the man, then a second later the last three shattered all at once, freeing the man. Zaraki turned fully to him and tilted his head with a look of disgust.

“Did you honestly think that your pathetic ‘kidō’ could stop me? Try as hard as you want, but I have yet to come across a kidō that could hold me…at least for long. I came here hoping for a good fight, but so far you’ve been nothing but a disappointment.” He stated.

Timothy narrowed his gaze once more and growled.

“Guess I’ll have to try something else then.” Timothy returned.

Using Susan’s power, he extinguished some of the surrounding flames and respawned them closer to where Zaraki was standing. This caught Zaraki’s attention as he turned to look at the newly spawned flames.

“Ah, so it seems you can move them around whenever you want, huh?” The man turned back to Timothy. “Well, go ahead and come at me. I’m ready for ya.”

Timothy pulled his head in slightly, then vanished, reappearing right in front of Zaraki ready to cut down. Zaraki swung up from in front of himself up to stop Timothy’s blade.

But the bare instant before their blades made contact, Timothy vanished again, now showing up behind Zaraki and swinging diagonally across the man’s back. The blade struck true, slicing across Zaraki’s back from his left shoulder to his right flank.

Zaraki slightly groaned and lurched forward from the sudden and unexpected strike. Using his quick reflexes, Zaraki quickly swung out and across, turning behind him to try and hit Timothy in the side.

But Timothy was not there anymore. Zaraki’s brow above his one eye rose in confusion, but his eye widened when Timothy reappeared in front of where he was facing before, cutting down.

Timothy’s blade hit the Captain in his shoulder, going down along the man’s arm, almost to his elbow. Zaraki quickly turned back to sweep up with his blade, but again Timothy was gone.

This time Timothy remained hidden, and Zaraki stood straight and unmoving, watching the area around him. His eye glanced from side to side as he waited for his prey to make his move.

“Getting tired, Zaraki?” Timothy taunted from the man’s right.

Zaraki turned his head to the voice, seeing nothing but the flames surround him.

“Ready to give up?” he added from the man’s left side.

The man glanced left, only seeing more flames. He started quickly turning his head side to side looking for Timothy.

“Is that all you’re gonna do, hide? Come on out and fight like a man.” Zaraki said.

“As you wish.” Timothy answered, now right behind him again.

Zaraki’s eye widened as he turned to block the attack, but too late. Timothy hit him in the left side, but because of the direction that Zaraki turned, his blade didn’t cut Zaraki as much.

Zaraki swung as fast as he could, managing to catch Timothy’s blade before he could vanish. Timothy managed to block, but the speed of Zaraki’s attack forced him off his feet and launched him back.

Timothy landed on his back and slid a few feet before rolling backwards onto his feet, dragging himself to a stop about twenty feet from his opponent.

He glanced up at the man, who was now running at him, from the crouched position that he landed in. Timothy held his position until Zaraki was only a couple feet from him before vanishing again.

Zaraki had learned from Timothy’s previous attacks and swung out behind him, expecting Timothy to be there. But he wasn’t

He reappeared right where he was before and stabbed Zaraki in his left flank. Timothy grinned at his successful trick, but that grin quickly faded when Zaraki turned his body back front.

With his blade stuck in the man’s gut, the momentum pulled Timothy forward as Zaraki swung down. The man’s blade caught Timothy in his flank, producing a deep gash, but luckily missing his internal organs.

Timothy yelled out in pain as his blade finally came free and he flew across the field, landing hard on the ground and rolling head over heel. Zaraki turned to him with a widened grin and stood there with his blade resting on his shoulder.

“So, that’s it?” he asked.

Timothy, as quick as he could, pulled himself back up to his feet and turned to face the man. He winced in pain and quickly held his side where Zaraki had nailed him.

_‘How the hell can he take hits like that and stand there like it was nothing?! It’s like I never even touched him once!’_ Timothy thought.

“Damn.” He whispered.

**_“Tim, you can’t fight him like this!”_** Susan panicked.

Timothy winced again and growled. _“I know that now. What the hell is wrong with this guy? I’ve cut him at least three times, and bad ones at that! But he acts like he’s not even scratched!_ he mentally observed.

**_That’s because he’s not human, he’s a god damned demon! Tim…you need to take extra care with him, or he’s gonna kill you!”_** she pointed out.

_“Yeah…like I didn’t notice that before.”_ He retorted.

**_“Tim…if things keep up like this, you may have no choice but to release me.”_** She offered.

Timothy lightly shook his head. _“Well, let’s hope it don’t come to that.”_

Timothy dropped his soothing hand, now covered in blood, and returned it to his grip before vanishing again. Zaraki dropped his blade from his shoulder to a ready stance, prepared for Timothy’s next attack.

He appeared to Zaraki’s left, but a few feet away, causing the man to turn his head to him. But a second later he also appeared to Zaraki’s front, again getting the man’s attention.

Zaraki shifted his glance from one Timothy to the other. “What the?” he started. He quickly turned around to see a third Timothy behind him. “What the hell is this?” he asked to no one in annoyance.

Two more Timothy’s appeared on either side of Zaraki, all of them in their ready stances. Zaraki narrowed his gaze as he kept an eye on the copies, waiting for a move.

“Behind you.” Timothy stated.

Zaraki turned and swung his blade across his chest, successfully hitting him. Or at least he thought he did. Timothy seemed to ‘flicker’ a brief instant as his blade went right through him, like he wasn’t even there.

“What the hell?” he said.

Timothy grinned as he slowly readied his sword to swing down and across the man’s chest. Zaraki moved to parry as Timothy swung down, but Timothy briefly flickered again as his blade went right through Zaraki’s, cutting him across his chest.

But Zaraki was surprised that the bit of pain he felt didn’t come from his front, but instead his back. He glanced over his shoulder to see Timothy behind him, holding his grin, after a successful hit.

“What the hell is this nonsense?” he asked as he turned to strike.

Timothy vanished just before the blade struck him, and with him all of the copies. Zaraki turned around from side to side, looking everywhere to see no more copies.

Zaraki narrowed his gaze a bit. “This is such a nuisance.” He moaned.

Timothy appeared in front of him as he finished, giving him a serious glare.

“You said no rules, Zaraki. You stated, ‘I don’t care what you do, just give me a damn good fight’. The fact is, I can’t fight you the conventional way, you’re way too strong for me. So, I’ll fight you the way I know best.” Timothy clarified.

“Yeah, the coward’s way.” Zaraki retorted.

Timothy shrugged his shoulders. “Say what you want, I don’t care. You wanted a fight, and now you’re gonna get it.” He finished, then vanished.

Zaraki grinned madly and chuckled. “Bring it.”

Timothy reappeared to the man’s left with his palm held out.

“Hadō #31, Shakkahō!” he chanted.

A red ball of energy formed in his palm, then shot out at the deranged Captain. Zaraki smiled as the kidō sailed towards him, but suddenly swung his blade out, causing the kidō to explode before hitting its target.

“You’re gonna have to do better than that.” He taunted.

Timothy lowered his hand and vanished, appearing to Zaraki’s rear.

“Hadō #31…” he started, getting the man’s attention.

He quickly vanished again, showing up, yet again behind Zaraki.

“Shakkahō!” he finished.

The red energy ball left his hand, heading straight for the man’s exposed back. Timothy smiled when the kidō hit the man in his upper back, but froze when he saw that it did absolutely nothing but leave a small soot mark at the point of impact on the man’s haori.

Timothy stared wide eyed as the man turned to face him, chuckling.

“What?” Timothy fretted.

“Come on, you can do better than tickling me.” The Captain stated.

Timothy continued to stare at the man, shocked that a 30’s level hadō was compared to a tickle.

**_“Tim! I told you to get serious with this guy! Stop holding back!”_** Susan demanded.

Timothy flinched a bit but nodded. _Yeah, let’s try picking it up a notch. I just hope that Captain Komamura don’t kill me for this.”_

He then vanished, along with some of his flames. Zaraki kept a close guard on his surroundings, but rose a brow to see flames respawn, now much farther than they were before.

“Keeping your distance?” he asked.

Timothy reappeared at one of the flames in front of him, several feet away.

“Gonna have to for this.” He answered.

Zaraki turned to see multiple copies of Timothy surrounding him, holding his offhand in front of his face. He watched as every one of them suddenly emitted an aura of yellow energy from their hands.

“Sprinkled on the bones of the beast. Ye lord! Mask of blood and flesh, all creation, flutter of wings, ye who bears the name of Man! Move and become the wind, stop and become the calm. On the wall of blue flame, inscribe a twin lotus. The sound of warring spears fills the empty castle! In the abyss of conflagration, wait at the far heavens!” he chanted, then held out his hand, fingers spaced out and angled in a half grip.

“Hadō #63…” he started.

All of the copies instantly vanished, except for the one behind Zaraki. The man quickly glanced over his shoulder.

“Raikōhō!”

A large bolt of lightning erupted from Timothy’s palm, hurling towards the man’s back. Zaraki turned with his zanpakutō, ready to block the incoming attack.

“Hadō #73…” Timothy started, now behind him again.

Zaraki glanced over his shoulder with a wide eye to see Timothy his both hands held out, wrist to wrist, palms open and facing at him.

“Sōren Sōkatsui!” he finishes.

A large blue storm of energy bursts from his palms, sailing right at them man, now trapped between two high levels kidōs. Both attacks closed in on the man at a high speed, causing Timothy to grin in victory.

Suddenly, a brief instant before the two attacks collided, an immense spiritual pressure erupted from the center of the attack. Timothy flinches and gasps for breath as the pressure starts pushing down hard on him, trying to choke the life from him.

“What…the…” he breathes as he shields his face with his off arm.

**_“Tim…what the hell is this?! It’s putting stress on the seal! It can’t take it!”_** Susan warns.

_“I…I don’t know. I’ve never felt spiritual pressure like this before! I feel like a damn truck is being dropped on me!”_ he mentally replies.

The density of the pressure causes both of Timothy’s kidōs to fall apart and dispel before hitting their target, shocking him. Where Zaraki used to be was a large orb of yellow energy, pulsing at a high rate like the vast amount of spiritual pressure that weighed on him.

He stood there frozen in place for a moment until he saw the mass of energy start to dissipate. His gaze narrowed as he saw something standing in the center of the mass of energy, then his eyes widened to see what he could only describe as the center of a nightmare.

Standing in the field, where he was before, was Zaraki. Timothy fretted more when he realized that ‘he’ was the source of this monstrous spiritual pressure. Upon closer examination, he could see the man’s eyes glowing with a yellow flair.

_‘Wait a minute…’eyes’?! That patch was a fake?!’_ he thought as he stared at the man.

The yellow mass of energy disappeared, but the spiritual pressured remained. Zaraki glared at Timothy with an evil, although Timothy could swear he was happy, grin, holding the patch from his eye in his hand.

“What…the hell…did you do?!” Timothy mumbled.

Zaraki chuckled at him for a second. “I’m impressed…impressed enough that I don’t have to hold back on you anymore. Even though I view the use of kidō as cowardly, I will admit that you do have some skills.” He answered, then twisted his wrist to show the patch.

“This is a little something that the research department cooked up for me…to cut back on my spiritual pressure. That way, I can make my fights last longer. The pressure you’re feeling now is my true spiritual pressure. If I hadn’t taken it off just now, I would have been rendered unable to fight you the way that I want. Now we can kick this up a notch.” He continued.

Timothy was still frozen in shock from the pressure he was feeling, trying to comprehend the strength and power of it.

**_“Tim…you have to release me! The seal is not going to last much longer! And you can’t fight him anymore with me sealed like this! Do it!”_** Susan demanded.

Timothy growled, but slightly nodded before holding his sword out in front of him.

“No choice then.”

** Squad 7 Headquarters, Present **

Sajin and Tetsuzaemon ran out the back exit of the building and stopped when they saw Timothy standing, just barely, in front of Captain Zaraki, without his eyepatch.

“Damn it! What the hell has that fool done now?! What does he think he’s doing, fighting Captain Zaraki like that?!” Tetsuzaemon yelled.

They were just about to flash down to the fields to stop them, but stopped when Head Captain Yamamoto, along with Captains Hitsugaya, Kyōraku, and Ukitake, all flashed into being a few yards to their left.

Sajin turned to the Head Captain to see that he was quite agitated, while the other Captains were switching glances between the training grounds and Sajin.

“Would you care to explain what is going on here, Captain Komamura? Who is it that Captain Zaraki is fighting, and why?” Yamamoto asked/demanded in his deep and gruff tone.

Sajin swallowed the lump in his throat, trying to find the best answer to explain the fight.

“Bankai!” a voice yelled in the distance.

The voice got the attention of everyone as they turned to see a man standing in front of Zaraki. They suddenly saw flames erupt from his zanpakutō and gather into a form next to him. This surprised the other Captains, but Yamamoto was intrigued.

_‘A bankai…who is this man?’_ Yamamoto pondered.

Yamamoto glanced to the squad’s barracks to see multiple members leaving out the back to find out what was going on.

_‘This is causing quite a ruckus.’_ The powerful man concluded mentally.

“Lieutenant Iba.” Yamamoto started.

The man turned to him and took a knee with his head bowed. “Yes, Head Captain?”

“Control your squad members. Keep them as far away from the fight as you can. I don’t want any unneeded casualties from this nonsense.” Yamamoto commanded.

Tetsuzaemon nodded. “Yes, Head Captain.” He answered, then flashed away.

The Head Captain then turned back to Sajin. “Captain Komamura, what is the meaning of this? Who is that?” Yamamoto asks again, but in a more serious tone.

Sajin glanced to the fields, then back to Yamamoto. “His name is Timothy Durn, my 5th seat, Head Captain.” Sajin answers.

Yamamoto opens his eyes only a little. “And why is your 5th seat fighting Captain Zaraki?!” he bellowed in anger.

Sajin could tell that the Head Captain was now getting angry, and he feared that the man’s anger was directed towards Timothy. He needed to answer the man’s question carefully, or this could end up very bad for his new 5th seat.

“Captain Zaraki approached 5th seat Durn a few days ago about wanting to fight him, regarding him defeating of some of his squad members in Rukongai. The squad members had been mistreating the residents for some time, so Timo…5th seat Durn fought them and defended the residents. Captain Zaraki appears to have been misled that 5th seat Durn would be an excellent opponent for him. I cannot say how this fight started, but I would assume that Captain Zaraki goaded my 5th seat to fight him, Head Captain.”

As Sajin finished, Captain Unohana flashed in, landing next to Yamamoto. Jūshirō turned to the man.

“Should we try to stop them, Head Captain?” he asks.

Unohana steps in. “Regarding the current situation, I believe it would be unwise to interrupt this fight. If we were to interfere, that would only cause Captain Zaraki to become furious. It is unlikely that he would kill his opponent, but instead render him unable to continue the fight. So, it would be best to wait until the fight ends on its own.” She advises with a bit of worry for the unfortunate opponent.

Yamamoto turns to look at the field as the two warriors stare each other down.

“We will wait, and find out the truth when those two fools have finished their quarrel. Captain Kyōraku, Captain Ukitake and Captain Hitsugaya, form a perimeter in order to prevent onlookers from getting too close. Captain Unohana and Captain Komamura, you two will wait here with me while we wait for this foolishness to end.” Yamamoto orders.

The three fore-mentioned Captains nod, then disappear in a flash step while Yamamoto, Unohana, and Sajin turn to face to bloody execution in front of them.

** Squad 7 Training Grounds,  **

Timothy and Susan, in her anthropomorphic form, stood side by side. Timothy with his unsealed sword that had returned to normal, and Susan with one of her flame converted swords, staring at Zaraki.

Zaraki tilted his head slightly as he looked Susan up and down. “And who is this? Your zanpakutō? I have to admit, you’re the only one since that wolf-faced bastard that I’ve fought like this. This should be interesting.” He said with a grin.

Timothy narrowed his gaze at him.

“Furasshu hi…Kitsune Hime. My bankai allows the spirit of my zanpakutō to literally fight with me in battle, while also increasing the effects of her abilities. If you thought my zanpakutō’s abilities were a ‘nuisance’ before, just wait till you feel them now.” Timothy answered, then turned to Susan.

“You ready?” he asked.

She turned to him and grinned, showing her pointed teeth.

“Oh…you know I am!” she answers, then turns back to Zaraki. “You ready for some real fun…Captain Zaraki?” she asks.

Zaraki grins back at her. “I’m ready for ya, bring it!” he yells.

Susan giggles at him. “As you wish. And when I’m done with you, I’ll give you a nice haircut. The way your hair is now, sorry to say, is very hideous.” She returns.

As she finishes her remark, both her and Timothy vanish. Zaraki chuckles to himself as he watches the field around him, patiently waiting for the attack to come.

But the attack doesn’t come. Instead, Zaraki turns to see one of the flames slowly moving towards him, now only a few feet away. He turns to face the flame but keeps his head to where he can see behind him in his side view.

The flame is now right in front of him, too close for his comfort, so he takes his free hand and swings it out, trying to swat the flame aside. As soon as his hand touches the flames, his skin starts burning, so he quickly pulls it back and hops back a few steps as he swings his arm side to side to pull the fire out.

“What the hell?!” he growls as he looks at his hand. The entire hand, going past his wrist a few inches now had a first degree burn coating it.

“You should watch your surroundings.” A female voice cooed.

Zaraki turned to see Susan swing her sword at his back. Although the weapon was made from one of her flames, it did not possess the ability to catch things on fire. The blade simply tore across Zaraki’s back as he turned fully to face and strike her. She held her weapon up and blocked Zaraki’s attack.

Timothy then appeared behind him and stabbed him in his side, causing the man to slightly grunt in pain. Zaraki turned and kick Susan away while bringing his sword to bare on Timothy, but the moment his foot touched her, the waraji on his foot caught fire and started burning his foot.

Although the flames surrounding Susan’s body will catch any being that comes into contact with her on fire, her physical form can still take impacts.

Zaraki’s foot makes full contact with her body, the force of the kick tossing her back to the ground. The Captain continues his swing at Timothy while his footwear burns, but Timothy blocks it, then vanishes again.

The Captain starts stomping his foot on the ground, trying to put the fire out. The fire causes too much damage to the straw sandal, so it simply falls off as he stamps. Zaraki turns to see that Susan is now gone.

He turns back around to find the pair staring him down a few yards away. Susan clearly has an annoyed look on her face.

“Come now Captain. I’ll admit you surprised us both with your little patch trick, but to me it seems like you’re no longer trying. I don’t want to beat like this, so you can come back later and give us a hard time, crying that we weren’t, ‘worth your time’.” She taunts.

Zaraki’s evil grin returns. “Not worth my time?! I had to remove my eye patch for you! You may have cut me up and burned me a few times, but this fight is far from over! Now the fun begins!”

Zaraki charges at them both as he swings, his most ‘happy’ smile on his face. Susan vanishes while Timothy shunpos to the side to swing his blade.

Zaraki blocks Timothy’s strike as Susan appears to strike with hers. Zaraki glances at her and swings his burned hand out at her, catching her shoulder and setting his hand on fire again.

Susan is forced to the side a bit as Timothy swings into the air and gives Zaraki a swift kick to the side of his head. Zaraki’s head is deflected to the side, but his overall stance remained unchanged.

The man turns back to Timothy. “That’s it! Keep it coming!” he encourages as he swings his hand to put the fire out.

Susan appears behind him to strike, but Zaraki turns quick enough and catches her sword wrist in his hand, that now has second degree burns, setting it on fire yet again. He kicks Timothy in the side the instant he appears to rescue her, tossing him back as he lifts Susan to be face level.

He stares into her eyes as he smiles, causing her to start worrying. “I’m having so much fun, I can’t get enough of it! Keep it coming and don’t stop!” he yells at her as he throws her towards Timothy.

Timothy manages to stand up in time to hold out his arms and catch her bridal style, her momentum pushing Timothy back on his feet a couple yards.

He set her down on her feet, then she vanishes while he shunpos up to Zaraki with a high attack. Zaraki blocks it and raises his leg to give him a hard kick.

Susan appears and swings down on the man’s leg, producing a deep cut and stopping the man’s attack. Instead, he slightly pivots and redirects the kick towards her instead.

She holds out her blade just in time for it to take the hit instead, the force pushing her back again. The force of the kick caused the blade to break, so Susan drops it, the blade turning back into a small flame and going out, then hops over to the nearest flame and grabs it, turning into another weapon.

Meanwhile, Timothy flashes away from Zaraki as the man brings a fist down towards his head. Unfortunately, Timothy missteps during shunpo, causing him to reappear and slide across the ground a few yards.

_‘Damn!’_ he growls internally as he gets back up and turns to Zaraki.

“What a time to trip. Guess I need more practice.” He mumbles and uses the flames near him to vanish.

Susan was being berated with strike after strike by Zaraki. She was holding her guard well enough, but was steadily being pushed back with each hit. Timothy appears between the two and starts send a flurry of attacks of his own. Susan recovers quickly and joins Timothy on his assault.

**_“Tim, I can’t keep this up much longer!”_** Susan warns in his mind.

_“Damn! Already?!”_ he frets.

**_“I’ve been giving it just about everything I’ve got! He just won’t go down! And he’s not giving me the chance to get my flames near him! I can’t focus on defending against his attacks and my flames at the same time!”_ **

_“We’ve only got one way to stop him now, we have to trap him and force him to submit!”_

**_“You think a demon like this is going to submit?! Even if we manage to ‘kill’ him, he ‘still’ won’t submit!”_ **

Inch by very slow inch the duo pushed back against Zaraki, and his smile was only getting wider and wider.

“That’s the stuff! Bring it! Bring it all!” he yells in a maniacal laugh.

_“We have no choice! It’s the only move we’ve got left with the time we have!_ ” Timothy points out.

**_“I’ll need time to prepare! He ain’t exactly just going to sit in one spot, so we’ll have to force him into it!”_ **

_“I can give you twenty seconds at the most! After this I’m not going to be able to fight, much less stand! Make em count!”_ he finishes.

The pair keeps up their barrage for almost a minute until Timothy jumps up and gives Zaraki the strongest dropkick he can muster while Susan swings her feet low to catch the man’s legs from behind. His feet catch Zaraki in the chest, having just enough power to force the man back a few yards as his feet are swept under him by Susan, causing the man to fall onto his back.

“Now Tim!” Susan yells.

Timothy holds out both hands to Zaraki.

“Bakudō #61, Rikujōkōrō!” he chanted, looking the Captain with the six yellow blades. “Bakudō #63, Sajō Sabaku!” he furthers, the bright yellow energy chain wrapping around Zaraki’s torso.

Timothy then slams his hands together and interlocks his fingers.

“Walls of iron sand, a priestly pagoda, glowing ironclad fireflies! Standing upright, silent to the end!” Timothy chants as he holds his fists into the air.

Five small yellow orbs of energy appear above his hands and started going in a circle around them.

“Bakudō #75, Gochūtekkan!” he yells as he slams his fists onto the ground.

A yellow portal suddenly appears, flashing above Zaraki. From the portal, five, very tall stone pillars, with chains attaching them to each other at the top, appears. The five pillars fall straight down, landing on top of Zaraki and pinning him down.

Timothy stands up straight, tilting side to side from exhaustion, then holds his hand out to the Captain, now locked down onto the ground, in a half grip.

“Chains of shadows, piercing and holding the skin. Stone coffin, sealing the soul for eternity. The light fades, leaving man to wander in darkness. Bakudō # 86…”

A black pulse of energy forms in the palm of his hand and quickly expands to consume his entire hand.

“Tsuin Sajō Sabaku!” he finishes as he balls his fist and twists his wrist clockwise and pulls his hand to him a bit.

Numerous black, ghostly chains appear from all directions around Zaraki; shooting forward and wrapping themselves around his limbs, torso, neck and head, before tightening and wrapping around his entire body once more. Where Zaraki’s body had once been, now resided a body wrapped in black chains, looking like an Egyptian mummy.

Timothy becomes light headed and falls to his hands and knees with his head low, gasping for breath.

“Th…that won’t…hold him for…for long!” he yells to Susan.

But he had spoken too soon. He raised his head and watched in shock and awe as the high level kidōs he put on Zaraki began buckle under the immense spiritual pressure the man was pushing out.

“Now!” he yells.

Timothy and Susan now watched as over one hundred of her flames surrounded Zaraki, still just barely in his binds. The flames got closer and closer, finally closing off any chance for Zaraki to escape.

With a last burst of pressure, Zaraki manages to break all of Timothy’s kidōs at once. He slowly stands back up, breathing heavily, to see that it was already too late, he was now trapped in a prison of fire.

“Go Susan, burn his ass! He wanted a fight, HE GOT ONE!” Timothy yells out to her.

Susan grins at the flaming prison. “With pleasure.”

Susan closed the flames in on Zaraki, leaving no room for him to move. She leaves the flames in place, slowly and painfully burning the man to a crisp. Victory, to them, had been won.

But something happened that they could never expect, even from Captain Zaraki. The man reached out with both hands and pushed the flames aside, like opening a set of curtains. Both of their eyes went wide as they watched the same man slowly walk out from his prison, dragging his sword on the ground, grinning.

“No…that’s just not possible!” Susan mumbled under her breath.

Timothy slowly stood back up and got ready to defend himself, nearly loosing his balance and falling, as Susan appears next to him, matching his stance.

Zaraki looks up at the pair, his teeth and eyes the only things not harmed by the fiery prison. He grinned as wide as possible and chuckles. He gives out a quick pulse of spiritual pressure, extinguishing the flames on his body.

Just about all of his clothes were gone, only a tattered patch of what remained of his hakama hanging on to his mid-section; his entire body was covered in second and third-degree burns.

“So…is that it? Got any more?” he asks.

Timothy narrows his gaze at the man.

“Tim…I can’t fight anymore…you need to seal me now…” Susan warns through deep pants.

Timothy flinches, but slightly nods.

“We gave it our best shot, Susan.” He reassures.

He very quietly mumbled the chant to reseal Susan within the sword in his hands. Once he finished, Susan’s form began to dissipate and pour into the sword, causing Zaraki to raise a brow.

“So, that ‘is’ it then.” He says as he rests his sword on his shoulder. “I’ll admit, that was fun. You gave me a better fight than I could have expected from someone who just came from the Rukongai. I’m impressed, and you should know, that’s not an easy thing to do.” Zaraki half comforts with a serious, but content face.

Timothy was still maintaining his stance, getting ready to go after Zaraki once again.

“I’m not done with you yet, Zaraki. It’s not over until one of us is on the damn ground.” Timothy growls as he respawns Susan’s flames.

“Enough!” a powerful voice bellows from the sidelines.

Both men turn to see Head Captain Yamamoto, flanked on either side by Captains Komamura and Unohana, standing a few yards from them.

“No.” Timothy returns, getting the man’s attention and causing Sajin’s eyes to widen.

“Don’t you talk back to me, boy! This fight is over! Now, explain yourselves at once!” he demands.

Zaraki simply turns his head away and scoffs while Timothy narrows his gaze at the Head Captain.

“Simple, I challenged Zaraki to a duel, and he accepted. Nothing more.” He returns.

Timothy is immediately forced to the ground from an unimaginable spiritual pressure, easily far more powerful than Zaraki’s, and choking him.

“You best mind your tongue, you disrespectful brat! You will show me, as well as Captain Zaraki the proper respect, or I will teach it to you!” Yamamoto orders in a roaring voice.

The Head Captain keeps the pressure on Timothy for a moment longer to make sure he understands the man’s words before finally suppressing it again. He then turns to Zaraki.

“Captain Zaraki, is this true?” he asks.

Zaraki lifts his head with eyes closed. “Tsk, yeah…he challenged me, and I accepted it. It was a fair fight, old man.” He confirms.

Yamamoto then turns back to Timothy. “Stand up, 5th seat Durn.” He commands.

Timothy slowly gathers his strength and lifts himself to one knee, finally noticing that the entire lower front part of his uniform is soaked with his blood. Captain Unohana widens her eyes a bit.

“Oh dear. Permission to take Squad 7, 5th seat Durn for medical treatment, Head Captain?” she asks.

Timothy quickly holds a hand up to her. “No need, Captain. I’m fine.” He clarifies.

He takes a deep breath and slowly, yet shakily, manages to make it to his feet, standing straight. He wobbles very slightly and gets a bit dizzy, but stays on his feet. Now that the adrenaline from the fight was wearing off, he was starting to ‘really’ feel the effects of the wounds he received.

“Yes…Head Captain?” he answered between breaths, that were starting to shallow.

Yamamoto opens his eyes more to stare down the man in front of him before closing them again.

“5th seat Durn, you have quite a disrespectful mouth, and obviously a bad temper with it; yet you seem to be quite the avid fighter. While I am displeased that you fought against Captain Zaraki, you had rightfully challenged him, and he accepted. However, I will say this; do not take this defeat lightly. There are only a few people I know who can defeat Captain Zaraki, yet you still managed to cause him a great deal of damage, and forced him to put a great deal of effort into your fight. Not only that, but you had managed to walk away with minor scratches. Well done.”

He then turns to Unohana. “Captain Unohana, take them both to Squad 4 and have them both treated. I expect a full report upon their discharge.” He concluded, then disappeared in a flash step.

The sudden disappearance of the Head Captain’s spiritual pressure caused Timothy to have a head rush, proving to be the last straw that his body could handle. His world went completely black as his mind shut down.

Timothy’s body began to fall forward, so Sajin took two wide strides forward to catch him before he fell onto the ground. His sword fell from his grasp as his body falls limply into Sajin’s arms.

Unohana steps forward and sets a hand on Sajin’s shoulder. “I’ll take him to my squad now, Captain Komamura.” She states with a bright smile. She then turns to Zaraki. “You must come with me as well, Captain Zaraki. We must tend to those burns and injuries.”

Zaraki glares at her. “I’ll go when I’m ready to.” He returns.

Unohana smiled even more, giving off an evil aura.

“I said, you must come with me as well, Captain Zaraki.” She repeated.

The two Captain’s glared at each other for a moment before Zaraki finally scoffed.

“Tsk, whatever.”

Unohana’s evil aura disappeared as she turned and picked up Timothy, bridal style, in her arms. She stands back straight and looks at Sajin.

“I will send you a report on his condition once he has been stabilized, Captain Komamura.” She offers.

Sajin slightly bows back at his senior.

“Thank you, Captain Unohana.”

He rises back to her and she nods before disappearing with Zaraki in shunpo.

Sajin drops his head back and moans as he begins to worry about the possible upcoming events. His thoughts are interrupted when Tetsuzaemon flashes in next to him.

“So, what now, Captain?” he asks.

Sajin turns his head to the Lieutenant. “For now, have our members return to their duties. We will discuss this matter in the office. I will meet you there in a moment.”

The man nods and walks away towards the members huddled around the field. He turns back to his front when Lieutenant Kusajishi appears with a smile on her face.

“Kenny had fun, Bow-wow! Please tell Zippy thanks for playing with him!” she said.

Sajin sighs, but nods. The pink haired Lieutenant smiles more, then flashes away. Sajin then drops and shakes his head.

“Why do I have a feeling that this is only the beginning of many headaches to come?” he mumbles to himself before flashing away himself.

** Squad 7 Headquarters, 10 minutes later **

Sajin was sitting on one of his couches, his head leaned back against the top of the back of the it with his eyes closed. He wanted to get a few minutes to rest his mind, so he could think about the situation that he was about to face more clearly.

He was jostled back to his senses when he heard a knock on his door.

“Come in.” he half moaned, not moving or opening his eyes.

The door opened and Captains Kyōraku, Ukitake, and Hitsugaya, and also Tetsuzaemon walked in, with the Lieutenant closing the door behind them.

“Hey Sajin. Care for a drink?” Kyōraku offered as he held up a pitcher of sake.

Sajin opened his eyes and leaned forward to him. “Considering everything that just happened, I wouldn’t be in my right mind to refuse a drink right now.” He returned, then gestured for the men to join him.

The two senior Captains joined Sajin on the couch while Tetsuzaemon brought his and Sajin’s seats from the desks for Hitsugaya and himself. Shunsui poured them all saucers as Tetsuzaemon and Hitsugaya sat down in front of them.

“So…” Shunsui started as he handed out the saucers to everyone. “Tell me what happened.” he finished and took a sip.

Sajin took a sip as well and sighed. “As of right now, I can only assume that Captain Zaraki taunted Timothy into a fight. Until he recovers, and I can ask him about it in person, that’s all we know.” He stated and took another sip.

Jūshirō leans forward to look at the furry Captain. “I’m sure he’ll be alright, Sajin.” He reassures.

Shunsui nods in agreeance. “Yeah. He was cut up pretty good, and worn out too, but he’ll pull through.” He adds and takes a sip.

“I must admit that I’m impressed, Captain Komamura.” Hitsugaya offers. “For a 5th seat to possess a bankai is rare, but to be able to take a fight to someone like Captain Zaraki is unbelievable. However, I don’t recall ever meeting him, or even seeing him before. How long has he been in your squad?” he asks and takes a sip.

“Almost two weeks.” Sajin answers.

“And before that?” Jūshirō asks further.

“Rukongai.”

Hitsugaya nearly chocks as he takes a sip as the two seniors look at Sajin in shock.

“Rukongai?! Am I correct to assume you mean that the man has only been a soul reaper for two weeks?!” Shunsui asks.

Sajin and Tetsuzaemon both nod, causing the three visitors finish what’s left of their drinks before giving them to Shunsui to refill.

Shunsui immediately drinks his entire saucer while the other two try to comprehend Sajin’s answer.

“That’s just…amazing! How could he have possibly attained a Bankai in just two weeks?! I mean…Ichigo Kurosaki managed to obtain his bankai in a matter of months…but to do it in only two weeks can’t be possible!” Jūshirō franticly pointed out.

“Not to mention that I didn’t feel any rise in his spiritual pressure when he released it. And who was that that was fighting with him?” Hitsugaya asks as he grabs his saucer from Shunsui.

Sajin was now glad that Timothy had come up with idea about faking Susan’s release as a ‘Bankai’, seeing as he wouldn’t have to explain Timothy’s powers entirely.

“It’s part of his Bankai. Just like mine, he can call upon his zanpakutō’s spirit to fight alongside him in battle. The other being you saw with him was his zanpakutō’s spirit.” He lied, trying to keep a straight face.

Unfortunately for him, Captain Kyōraku was no fool and was very adept at reading others. He had caught on immediately that Sajin was hiding something; an action that was very unusual for the furry Captain, so he chose not to voice it. He would bring the matter up later when it was just the two of them.

“That quite a unique power he has. Just like mine and Jūshirō’s zanpakutōs being duel weapons, a zanpakutō that allows its spirit to physically be a part of the battle is just as rare.” He said as he tipped his straw hat down.

Sajin finished his saucer and held it for Shunsui to refill. “Yes, it is. Now I fear what will happen once Timothy awakes.” He states. Shunsui fills the man’s saucer and Sajin takes a sip before continuing. “You know the Head Captain will take an interest in this matter. He will more than likely wonder why Timothy possesses a bankai, but only holds a 5th seat. Even more so after his fight with Captain Zaraki.”

“Not to mention when he finds out just how long the guy’s been a soul reaper. You have a difficult challenge ahead of you my friend.” Shunsui states as he finishes his third saucer and pouring a fourth.

** Squad 7 Barracks, Seireitei, Present **

Hinata, Issei, and Kenta were sitting in Junya’s room with Yuka and Narumi, telling them about the fight they saw with Timothy and Captain Zaraki.

Like everyone else in the Seireitei, they all had felt the immense spiritual pressure that Zaraki gave off when he took his eye patch off, but the three later friends were too busy handling things inside the barracks to go look.

“So…let me get this straight…Timothy fought Captain Zaraki?” Yuka asks, unable to believe her friends.

The three friends nodded back.

“And he almost beat him?” Junya asks further.

He gets another round of nods.

“Plus, he apparently has a Bankai as well.” Issei adds.

Yuka and Junya stare at each other a moment while Narumi’s jaw drops to the table. The siblings turn back to the three friends.

“No way, you’re lying!” Yuka accuses.

Hinata quickly shakes her head. “No, we’re not! He fought with Zaraki using a Bankai, I heard him call it! I even saw some…being come out from his zanpakutō and stand next to him!” she assures.

Issei and Kenta quickly nod in agreeance. “It’s true! We saw it too!” Issei enforces.

“But…how?! I mean…he’s only been here for like…two weeks?! How the hell could he ‘possibly’ have a Bankai that soon?! It’s just ‘not’ possible!” Narumi almost yells.

Yuka and Junya both nod. “I agree. It’s just not possible. You have to have seen something else. There’s just no way he could have a Bankai in two weeks.” Junya said.

Hinata raised a finger. “But don’t forget, he had that zanpakutō while he was still in Rukongai. For all we know, he could have attained it while he was still out there.” She points out and drops her hand.

Issei turns to her. “You know, now that I think about it, I don’t remember feeling any rise in spiritual pressure when he released. It was like there was no change at all.”

Kenta rests his chin in his hand. “It could have been drowned out by Captain Zaraki’s ridiculous pressure.” He offers.

Yuka holds out her hand. “Or, it might not have even been a Bankai, like we’ve been telling you. Even with the time he spent in Rukongai, it’s still too short of a time to acquire it.”

“What about that substitute soul reaper guy. Uh…Kurosaki I think it was? Rumors are that he managed to get his Bankai in only a few months.” Kenta states.

“Yeah, I heard that too.” Hinata agreed.

“I heard he managed to beat Captain Zaraki, ‘and’ Captain Kuchiki.” Narumi adds.

“Well, Tim beat ‘our’ Captain! Even you guys saw that!” Hinata presses.

Everyone nods at her statement. “Yeah, he did. And I don’t mean anything against him, but we can all agree that his spiritual pressure is not as high as the Captain’s. He just has a zanpakutō with abilities that are hard to fight against.” Yuka points out.

“Yeah, I’ll agree on that. But I know what I saw…what the three of us saw. That was a Bankai, it just had too much power to not be.” Kenta assures.

“Why don’t we just ask him when he comes back from Squad 4? See if he’ll show it to us?” Narumi offers.

“I don’t think that will happen. In fact, he may even get in trouble for releasing his Bankai during the fight.” Junya points.

“No, we’re under the emergency wartime protocol. Bankais are allowed to be released, given proper circumstances. Besides, even if we weren’t, the fight was supposedly a challenge; so that’s one of the very few exceptions to the law in releasing a Bankai.” Kenta corrects.

“I’m wondering what’s going to happen with the team he was supposed to set up. With him being gone, who’s going to take charge?” Hinata wonders aloud.

“No idea. But we’ll have to worry about that later. We’ve got to get on with our daily things.” Issei said as he stood up.

He holds out a hand to Hinata and gives her a boost to her feet as Kenta stands up as well.

“We just wanted to let you guys know what the hell happened out there.” Issei adds.

“Well, thanks for telling us.” Yuka said as she waved.

The three friends waved back and left the room to attend their duties.

** Squad 7 Headquarters, Present **

Sajin nods back at the three Captains as they give him a short bow before leaving the office. The Captain sighs and leans back into the couch as he relaxes to the warming feeling of the alcohol that he drank with his peers.

“Captain.” His Lieutenant opens.

“What is it, Tetsuzaemon?” Sajin answers without looking at him.

“Captain…what are we going to do about Durn? With respect sir…”

Sajin holds up a hand to stop him. “Just speak your mind freely, Tetsuzaemon. I don’t think right now is the time for honorifics.”

The man nods in understanding. “Sir…we need to figure out what we’re going to do with him by the time he comes back. Judging by his injuries, he won’t be in Squad 4 for long.”

Sajin sighs and leans back forward to the man. “I’m aware, Tetsuzaemon. As Captain Kyōraku stated, this is a difficult matter. He knowingly disobeyed my orders to ‘not’ fight Captain Zaraki, but I cannot punish him for issuing a legitimate challenge that was accepted. So, no action will be taken in that matter.”

Sajin pauses for a moment to think before he continues. “Now we have to take his ‘Bankai’ into consideration. You and I both know the truth about it, but now his abilities have been revealed to five Captains, and the Head Captain. You know as well as I, that that will not go unaddressed; a 5th seat possessing a Bankai. And I’m sure that by now word has spread about him defeating you, myself, and almost Captain Zaraki.”

He pauses once more for breath. “I believe it would be best to let this sit for the moment and see if the Head Captain, or any of the other Captains, say anything about it.” He finishes.

Both men were slightly shaken by a loud knock on the door.

“You may enter.” Sajin answered.

The door opened and a messenger from the Stealth Force takes a knee, facing the two officers.

“Forgive the interruption sir, but the Head Captain has ordered for you to see him.” The man reports.

Sajin nods at the man. “Thank you. I will leave immediately.” He answers.

The man nods and quickly leaves the office. Sajin gives a loud sigh as Tetsuzaemon turns to him.

“It looks like you didn’t have to wait long, Captain. Shall I come with you?” he offers as Sajin stands.

“No, that won’t be necessary Tetsuzaemon. Before I forget though, while Timothy is in Squad 4’s care, you are to take over the training for the emergency team until he returns…if I decide to keep him on the team.” He instructs before leaving the office.

He comes to a stop in the hallway as the door closes.

_‘Let’s see how much trouble you’re in, Timothy.’_ He mentally frets before disappearing in a flash step.

** Squad 1 Headquarters, 5 minutes later **

Sajin walked through the main hallway of the 1st squad’s headquarters and came to a stop in front of the monstrous doors that led to the Head Captain’s office. He lowered his head and began to prepare the answers for the questions that the Head Captain would be sure to ask him.

“Quit your dawdling and enter, Captain Komamura!” a gruff, and clearly annoyed voice bellowed from inside.

Sajin slightly flinched and took a deep breath before pushing the door open and entering the office. He turned to see Head Captain Yamamoto in the back of the office, sitting at his desk and staring at him.

“Well?! What are you waiting for?! Step forward!” he demanded.

Sajin swallowed the lump in his throat and started walking at a quick, yet respectful pace towards the powerful man, stopping a few feet from the man’s desk. He stood at a ridged attention and swallowed again.

“You wished to see…”

“Enough with the pleasantries. You know why you are here, Captain Komamura.” Yamamoto interrupted in annoyance.

Sajin bowed respectfully. “Yes, Head Captain.” He replied and rose to the man.

Yamamoto stared at the furry Captain for a moment, then reached down to his right side and pulled out a zanpakutō, setting it on his desk. Sajin looked at the weapon and froze when he saw that it was Timothy’s sword that contained Susan’s soul.

“Now, explain yourself.” Yamamoto instructed in a very slightly calmer tone.

Sajin began to panic inside as he tried to think of the best way to answer the man. He decided to take the risk and press for a clearer question.

“Forgive me, Head Captain. May I ask that you specify what…”

Sajin was suddenly burdened with a powerful amount of spiritual pressure from the man.

“Do not play dumb with me, Captain Komamura!” Yamamoto bellowed, then dropped the pressure on Sajin.

The man glared at Sajin for a moment, then looked down at the weapon.

“Speak! I know you can hear me, spirit!” he demanded.

Sajin froze again with widened eyes at the man, then glanced to the sword. Nothing was heard for a moment, then Yamamoto emitted his pressure again.

“I will not ask you again! Speak, ‘now’!” he commanded, his eyes now more open with anger.

**“Uhh…yes?”** Susan quietly answered.

“Do not get cute with me, spirit! Are you one of the Bakkōtō?!” he asked very sternly as he dropped his pressure again.

**“Uhh…a what? I’m sorry, but I have no idea what that is.”** She answered skittishly.

“I am no fool, spirit. If you are not one of those accursed weapons, then what are you?”

“Head Captain…” Sajin tried.

Yamamoto looked at him. “Silence! I will get back to you in a moment, Captain Komamura!” he interrupted, then turned back to Susan. “Answer me!”

**“That’s…a little…hard to explain sir”** she tried.

Yamamoto narrowed his gaze. “Reveal yourself.” He commanded.

**“I…I can’t sir.”**

“Nonsense! I saw you out on that field fighting with that brat against Captain Zaraki!”

**“He is not a…”** she attempted to defend.

“Silence! I can see you share the same disrespectful demeaner of your companion, and I will not allow it! Now reveal yourself! That is an order!” Yamamoto bellowed.

“She cannot do it, Head Captain.” Sajin jumped in.

Yamamoto turned to the man. “Explain.”

**“I’m sealed within this sword, sir. I can’t come out whenever I want. Tim has to release me.”** She clarified.

Yamamoto’s gaze turned back to her. “Nonsense! I know there is a seal on this sword, so if you can’t come out on your own, then I will break the seal and force you out!”

“Head Captain, she cannot remain unsealed for long, her soul with fade away. Tim…5th seat Durn has to reseal her before that happens, and he’s currently unconscious in Squad 4’s medical building.” Sajin stated.

Yamamoto glares at him. “Then perhaps you would care to explain this matter, Captain Komamura. And do not lie to me.”

Sajin closed his eyes and thought of the best way to tell the man what had happened to Timothy and Susan. He let out a deep sigh and looked back at the man.

“She is like this…because of Aizen, Head Captain.” He admitted.

Yamamoto continued his stare for a moment, then closed his eyes. “Go on.”

**“That man…Aizen, cornered me and Tim while we were still spirits in the living world sir. He knocked Tim aside, then held out some…weird…rock, or something.”** She started.

Yamamoto lightly moaned. “Hmm…the Hōgyoku.” He said.

**“Uhh…I guess so sir. But, he held that rock up to me, saying that I would be a good test subject, or whatever. There was a bright flash of light, and the next thing I knew, I was sealed in the sword. Tim would be able to explain it better, sir.”** She finished.

Yamamoto thought on her answer a moment, then glanced to his left side a second. Lieutenant Sasakibe flashed into place on his knee, looking at the man.

“Tell Captain Kurotsuchi that I want him here, now. I do not care what experiments he is working on.” He tells the man.

The Lieutenant nods, then flashes away. Yamamoto then turns back to Sajin.

“We will come back to this matter in a moment. For now, we will discuss your 5th seat, Durn. While most of his fighting abilities were from the help of this spirit, he seems to possess great skills regarding kidō, and seems to be fairly adept at sword skills. As well as managing to stand toe-to-toe with Captain Zaraki, word has reached me that your 5th seat has also managed to defeat your Lieutenant, as well as yourself. So, tell me, if this Durn is able to defeat you in combat, why is it he only holds a 5th seat, especially when you do not currently have a 3rd or 4th seat?”

Sajin takes another breath before answering. “It is because of his…unique situation, Head Captain.”

“Explain.” The man instructs.

“5th seat Durn has only been in the squad for two weeks, Head Captain. In fact…he has only been a soul reaper for that amount of time.” Sajin clarifies.

Yamamoto slightly opens his eyes to the man. “Do not lie to me, Captain Komamura. Do you honestly expect me to believe that someone, with that high amount of skills in kidō, has only been a soul reaper for that short amount of time? And how is it that he has not been to the academy?” he asks, now more annoyed.

“Due to the wartime lift of restrictions, I gave 5th seat Durn a test through combat. I deemed that that he was fit to join the squad without having to attend the academy. It was during that fight that he had defeated me. Head Captain, I ask that you please consider everything that the traitor Aizen had done to him. Durn is a good man with a good head on his shoulders. He may be a bit lax in some areas, but ever since he has come to my squad he has strived, literally, nonstop to improve himself, as well as the other members. What happened to Susan was not their fault, and I believe it would be wrong to hold that against them.” Sajin pleaded.

Yamamoto turned to Susan. “So, you have a name, do you?”

**“Yes sir, my name is Susan.”** She answered.

“And what is your relation to 5th seat Durn?” he furthers.

**“He’s…my husband.”**

Yamamoto stares at her a moment, then closes his eyes. “I see.”

The room suddenly echoed from a knock on the door and Yamamoto turned to it.

“Enter!” he commands.

The door opens and Captain Kurotsuchi walks in, stopping in front on Yamamoto, next to Sajin. It was evident that the man was clearly annoyed, more than likely from having been disturbed during his work.

“You wanted to see me, Head Captain?” he responds with an agitated look.

“Captain Kurotsuchi, everything that you are about to hear will remain in this room, is that understood?” Yamamoto demands.

“Yes, I understand. So, what is it you wanted to see me for?” the scientist asks, now interested in what the man had to say.

Yamamoto glares at the sword. “Speak.”

“Hmm?” Mayuri breathes as he turns to the weapon.

**“Um…hello sir?”** she responds.

Mayuri’s eyes slightly widen upon hearing her voice.

“Oh? And what is this? A zanpakutō that is able to communicate with others while sealed? I have never heard of such a thing. Very interesting.” He says with a grin.

“This is the result of Aizen’s work. He had used the Hōgyoku to turn this soul into something else and sealed it inside this sword. What do you make of it, Captain Kurotsuchi?” Yamamoto asks.

Mayuri steps forward and picks up the sword, drawing it from its sheath and holding it out to the light to examine it. Sajin kept a close watch on the mad scientist as he turned the blade different angles to get a good look at it.

“My, how interesting. It would seem that there is a decent strength seal on this blade. So, I assume that this seal is what keeps you locked within the sword?” Mayuri asks.

**“One, I would appreciate if you would put me down. I don’t too much care for others drawing me. And two, it is the seal that keeps me inside this blade.”** She retorts.

Yamamoto turns to her. “Mind your tongue, spirit. You are in no position to make demands.” He points out.

Mayuri turns to the Head Captain. “Without taking this sword to my lab, I’m afraid there’s not much I can tell you. Perhaps if we were to release this soul, I would be able to give you a better answer.” He tries.

Sajin turns to him. “Her soul cannot remain unsealed for long before she fades away. She must be resealed before that happens, and Timothy is the only one who knows how to do it.” He points out.

Mayuri turns to Sajin, offended. “Are you trying to tell me that I would be incapable of performing a seal as easy as this? The moment I picked this sword up, I was immediately able to determine the makeup of this seal and could very easily replicate it. So, Head Captain…” he pauses to turn to the man. “Shall I break the seal?” he asks with a toothy smile.

Yamamoto ponders on the question a minute, but nods. “Release her.”

Sajin lowers his head slightly while Mayuri chuckles. “Wonderful!” he says and turns to the sword.

He pinches the guard of the sword with his thumb and index fingers and pours some energy into it.

“Now, release.” He says with a wide, toothy smile.

All three men watch as a circular, orange energy disk appears on the guard, then shatters.

The whole weapon erupts in flames and Mayuri quickly drops it in fear of being burned. The sword falls, point down, and lands on the wooden floor, the tip digging in and holding the sword upright as the flames grow in intensity.

The flames then leave the weapon and begin gathering in a spot behind them and in front of Yamamoto’s desk. The flames slowly start to take on a form, and after a few moments, Susan was now standing in front of all three men, her flames covering her entire body with a calm blue hue; an agitated look on her face..

Sajin looks at her with worry while Mayuri smiles more and Yamamoto stares at her.

“Oh my! How very exciting! To see something like this, I simply can’t help but wonder…would you care to become one of my experiments?” Mayuri ponders.

Susan simply glares at him. **“Unless you want a hug that you’ll highly regret, I’d advise you to keep away from me.”** She threatens.

Mayuri chuckles and starts walking towards her, holding his hand out to touch her. Sajin reaches out and grabs the man’s wrist, getting his attention.

“I would heed her warnings, Captain Kurotsuchi. If you were to touch her, you would end up severely burned.” Sajin warns.

“Tsk…unhand me, you furry brute. I don’t take orders from you.” The scientist hisses.

“Enough!” Yamamoto bellows, getting everyone’s attention. “I will not allow your bickering here. Now tell me what your observations are, Captain Kurotsuchi.” He demands.

The man quickly pulls his arm away from Sajin’s grip and stands straight, looking at Susan.

“Judging by the lack of any form of spiritual pressure, it would seem that this soul has somehow been converted into the spirit of a zanpakutō, one that has not been bound to the soul of a wielder.” He observes.

Susan turns to him. **“What do you mean?”**

“The spirit of a zanpakutō is part of a soul reaper’s soul, it resides within it. What Captain Kurotsuchi is saying, is that you are similar to one of these spirits, but your soul is not bound to the soul of a soul reaper. Instead, you are like a zanpakutō spirit that is not bound and can move freely.” Sajin clarifies.

Susan raises a brow. **“If that’s the case, how is it I can talk to Tim in his mind?”**

“It would seem that when the two of you had departed the world of the living, your souls had somehow formed a bond between you two. That, or it could be a result from your exposure to the Hōgyoku.” Yamamoto observes.

Sajin sets his chin in his hand. “That would explain why Timothy is unaffected by your flames.”

Yamamoto turns to Mayuri. “Reseal her, Captain Kurotsuchi.” He instructs.

The scientist nods before reaching down and pulling the sword from the floorboards. He then turns and holds the blade out towards Susan and smiles.

“Are you sure I can’t convince you to become one of my research subjects?” he presses again.

Susan simply gives him an evil glare without answering him. Mayuri smiles more, then mumbles a chant that no one could understand.

Susan’s form begins to slowly fade away as her flames leave her body and start to be absorbed by the blade. After a few moments, she was completely sealed back within the blade, then Mayuri places the blade back in its scabbard and sets the weapon back on Yamamoto’s desk.

Yamamoto looks to his side again and Lieutenant Sasakibe appears once more.

“Return this sword to 7th squad, 5th seat Durn in Squad 4’s medical department.” He instructs.

The man nods and walks forward to pick up the sword.

**“One question sir.”** Susan said, getting Yamamoto’s attention.

“What is it?”

**“How did you know that I wasn’t a real zanpakutō?”** she asks in worry.

Yamamoto looks at her skeptically. “Do you take me for a fool? I have been the Head Captain for well over a thousand years. I have seen countless zanpakutōs, yet I have never come across something like you. I knew you were a fake the instant that brat released you. Also, you will not speak of this conversation with your companion. Is that understood?” He responds sternly.

**“Yes sir.”** she answers reluctantly.

Sasakibe flashes away, leaving the three Captains alone in the office. The Head Captain turns to Mayuri.

“Captain Kurotsuchi, you are forbidden to discuss this matter with anyone, nor are you permitted to perform any research on the subject. That is an order.” He demands.

Mayuri throws his head to the side with a scoff. “Tsk…very well.”

“You are dismissed, Captain Kurotsuchi.” Yamamoto finishes, then the scientist flashes away.

Yamamoto now turns back to Sajin.

“Captain Komamura, in light of the circumstances leading to this matter, I have decided that no negligible actions will be taken against your 5th seat. While the situation is quite unique, she is still the spirit of a zanpakutō, one that has merely not been bound to his soul. Considering the fact of what I had mentioned earlier, your 5th seat has proven to be quite a skilled soul reaper. With this in mind, I will be overriding you, and will be personally assigning him as your new Lieutenant. You are to teach him what it means to be a high-ranking officer and make sure he understands his duties.” He pauses for breath.

“He may be a disrespectful brat, but I do see potential in him. With Aizen’s betrayal, along with two other Captains, we cannot afford to let this potential go to waste. As for your current Lieutenant, I will be assigning him as a co-Lieutenant in Squad 5. With Aizen’s betrayal, and Lieutenant Hinamori in intensive care, Squad 5 does not have any senior officers, and will need his help. Keep in mind that this will be temporary, as once Lieutenant Hinamori recovers, and is fit for duty, she with return to her squad and Lieutenant Iba will return to your squad.” He finishes.

Sajin is frozen in place from the words of the Head Captain. He had expected Timothy to be punished, and more than likely Susan’s soul to be destroyed. But now the powerful man has essentially ordered that exact opposite, making Timothy Sajin’s Lieutenant.

But now he had to wonder about Timothy’s secret. Now, besides himself and Tetsuzaemon, the mad scientist Kurotsuchi, and the Head Captain knew about it. If his secret got out into the open, Timothy would more than likely be scrutinized against.

“Head Captain, what about the matter regarding Susan? I know for a fact that Timothy would want this secret kept.” He tries.

“Who else is aware of this matter?” Yamamoto asks in seriousness.

“Besides yourself and Captain Kurotsuchi, only Lieutenant Iba and myself.” He answers.

“No, Captain Unohana is aware of this matter as well. Like me, she is no fool, Captain Komamura. She realized it as well when that brat released her.” Yamamoto clarifies. “However, she has also been instructed not to say anything regarding the matter. I will say this, if she has realized that the brat’s sword was a fake, I am sure Captain Kyōraku, and Captain Ukitake have more than likely realized it as well. I will inform them not to say anything on the matter as well. That will be all, Captain Komamura. Return to your squad and tell your Lieutenant that he is to report to Squad 5 once Durn has returned.” The man concludes.

Sajin wanted to object to the man’s demand of making Timothy a Lieutenant, he just simply wasn’t ready for it. But nonetheless, he bows respectfully, then flashes away. Yamamoto turns to face out the balcony that made up his office to look out upon the Seireitei.

_‘That man…he reminds me of that substitute, Ichigo Kurosaki. He could prove to be one of our strongest assets. It is best to nurture him and force him to become better, if we are to stand a chance against Sōsuke Aizen.’_

Yamamoto closed his eyes and lightly sighed before turning back to continue his paperwork.

** Squad 7 Headquarters, 15 minutes later **

After a brief stop at the Squad 4 medical department to check on Timothy, Sajin was relieved that learn that he had been stabilized and was on the road to recovery. Lieutenant Kotetsu had told him that it would most likely be a day before he woke up, and two more days before he could be discharged.

He was also relieved to see that Susan’s blade had been returned and was leaning against the wall next to Timothy’s bed.

Sajin entered his office with his head hung a little low to see Tetsuzaemon working on the morning paperwork. The man turned turn him with a worried look when he saw the Captain enter the office, clearly, yet patiently, waiting for word on the results of Sajin’s meeting.

“Make us some tea, Tetsuzaemon. Then we’ll discuss the meeting.” Sajin said as he walked past the man towards his desk.

The man nodded and swiftly stood to begin boiling the water and getting the leaves. Sajin arrived at his desk and restlessly sat down with a heavy sigh.

He turned to the moderately sized stack of forms on his desk and took a quick glance through some of them. After a moment he sighed again as he carelessly set the forms back down, causing them to slide off the desk and scatter on the floor.

Tetsuzaemon peeked around the corner of the small room that housed a small sink and a single burner stove for making tea. He glanced at the forms on the floor, then back to Sajin who had a heavy face on.

“That bad, Captain?” he asked.

Sajin took a deep breath and let it out slowly to calm his nerves. He started to rub his temples before he replied.

“Not really…but I certainly didn’t expect how it turned out.” Sajin said in a low voice.

Tetsuzaemon could sense the worry in the Captain’s voice, so he stood fully in the doorway to listen.

“So…may I ask what happened?” he tried.

Sajin lowered his hand to his lap and closed his eyes.

“The Head Captain knows about Susan.” He starts, causing the Lieutenant to flinch.

“But…how did…?” Tetsuzaemon chokes.

Sajin turns to him as he opens his eyes slightly. “I guess it’s all of our faults for thinking we could keep something like this from him. He said he knew the moment Timothy released her. It turns out that Captain Unohana also knew it right away. Captain Kurotsuchi knows as well, and gave us some insight on her…condition.”

Both men heard a small whistle sound as the water started to boil, so Tetsuzaemon left the doorway to pour their tea.

“I figured the Head Captain would discover it sooner or later, but I never expected him to pick up on it that fast.” Tetsuzaemon said from the other room.

The man walks back into the office a moment later with a tray carrying two small cups of tea. He sets the tray on the floor next to Sajin’s desk and sets one of the cups on the desk in front of the man before grabbing his own.

“Thank you, Tetsuzaemon.” The Captain says and begins blowing on his tea.

“So, what did Captain Kurotsuchi have to say about the girl’s condition?” the man asks as he sits down next to Sajin.

Sajin takes a timid sip to test the temperature of his tea, then sighs.

“From what he could gather, it seems that whatever Aizen did, he managed to convert her soul into a zanpakutō spirit.”

Tetsuzaemon nearly chokes on his tea and quickly turns to the man.

“Are you serious?! A zanpakutō spirit?!” he asks in shock.

Sajin nods and sets his tea down. “Yes. But unlike a normal zanpakutō’s spirit, that is a part of the soul reaper’s soul, her spirit is not bound to Timothy. However, when Aizen had done that to her with the Hōgyoku, it somehow formed a bond between them. That’s how she and Timothy and converse within his mind. This also explains why her soul would disappear after a while if she was not sealed. As you are aware, the fate of a zanpakutō’s spirit is bound to the fate of its master. If its master dies, the spirit dies. But because she is not bound to Timothy, her fate is not tied to his.” Sajin clarifies.

Tetsuzaemon takes a sip and lowers his head. “So…what did the Head Captain say about her?”

Sajin takes a sip as well and holds the cup in his lap. “Because she is ‘technically’ a zanpakutō spirit, just one with a unique circumstance, the Head Captain is taking no action against Timothy.” He answers.

Tetsuzaemon nods, then Sajin turns to him. “But he did issue an order that you will most likely not approve of.” He said with dread. The lieutenant turns back to him. “He’s ordered me to assign him as the squad’s Lieutenant.”

Tetsuzaemon’s eyes widen. “Sir?!” he chokes.

Sajin nods. “Upon his return from Squad 4, he is to be assigned as the Lieutenant of Squad 7. The Head Captain wants me to instruct him on how to be a senior officer. He has also ordered for you to be temporarily transferred as the co-Lieutenant of Squad 5. As you know, they do not have a Captain, or Lieutenant at the moment, at least not until Lieutenant Hinamori recovers and returns to duty. He stated that when she does return to duty, you will be transferred back to Squad 7.”

Tetsuzaemon made no expression at the Captain’s words, he was too shocked to even begin to think of something to say.

“I am unsure as to what will become of Timothy when you return to the squad, but I would assume for now that you two would share the position together.” Sajin adds and drinks his tea.

“But Captain…Durn has only been a soul reaper for two weeks! How could the Head Captain even consider him for the position?! Is he even aware of how long Durn has been here?!”

Sajin nods. “He is. He views him as an asset for when we have to fight Aizen. But even you must agree that, in the regards of his combat abilities, and his proficiency in kidō, he more than fits the criteria for the position. And you have seen how well he manages the squad during training.”

Tetsuzaemon deeply sighs. “I can’t deny that, Captain, I do agree that he is skilled and good with the other members. But to make someone a Lieutenant after being a soul reaper for only two weeks…and I hope that you’ll forgive me for this Captain…is just plain absurd.”

Sajin turns to the man. “You may speak freely here, Tetsuzaemon. And yes, I’ll agree that is unheard of. But we cannot forget that Timothy spent years in Rukongai, and I can more than likely guarantee you that he spent a good amount of time there training. If it was anything like his training frenzy a few days ago, then it would be no surprise. How he managed to train himself in the arts of kidō during that time, I don’t know. But the point is that he is highly skilled, and the Head Captain does not want his skills to go to waste.”

Tetsuzaemon tilts his head. “Are you sure that Durn will accept the position? You remember how hesitant he was to take the 5th seat.”

Sajin nods in agreeance. “I do, but I don’t believe he has a choice in the matter. But I must warn you, Tetsuzaemon, you cannot say anything about this matter. This comes from the Head Captain.” He says with a serious face.

The man nods in understanding. “Yes sir. And what about the emergency team?”

“Timothy will still be in charge of it. Everything in that regard will continue as previously planned. Timothy will just have to stretch himself between the team and handling his duties as Lieutenant. While you are with Squad 5, I would like to ask that you help him out and teach him some things about being a Lieutenant when you can. This is not an order, but merely a request.” Sajin asks.

Tetsuzaemon nods again. “I’ll give him some pointers, sir. I trust the Head Captain, as everyone does. I just hope this don’t turn out to be a big mistake.” He finishes and drinks his tea.

Sajin finishes his tea and nods. “So, do I, Tetsuzaemon. Now, let’s get these forms finished so they can be turned in.” he says as he starts picking up the forms from the floor.

“Yes sir.” Tetsuzaemon responds and helps Sajin pick up the forms.

** Squad 1 Headquarters, Office of the Head Captain, Present **

Captains Kyōraku and Ukitake walk into Yamamoto’s office without knocking, as the pair had a tendency to do, and begin approaching the old man.

“Hey, old man Yama.” Shunsui greets.

“Good afternoon, Head Captain.” Jūshirō follows.

Yamamoto looks up from his paperwork and lowly moans.

“Captain Kyōraku, Captain Ukitake. Why am I not surprised to see you two here?” he greets back in annoyance, knowing why they were there.

“Oh, come on, old man Yama. Surely you can tell us more about the fight between Captain Zaraki and that kid.” Shunsui carelessly presses.

“Yes, what was that about, Master?” Jūshirō again follows.

Yamamoto stares at the two senior Captains a moment, then grunts in annoyance.

“The fight was between Captain Zaraki and Squad 7’s 5th seat, Timothy Durn. That is all you need to know.” Yamamoto offers, hoping that answer would sooth them.

“Now now, there’s got to be more than that involved, old man Yama.” Shunsui presses further.

It didn’t.

“Head Captain, this fight is no simple matter. That man took on Kenpachi, and even forced him to remove his patch. The man even has a Bankai. Please tell us more about this, Head Captain.” Jūshirō pleads.

Yamamoto groans in defeat, knowing that if he didn’t tell them here, where he could control the information they receive, then they most definitely find the information they want somewhere else, where the information could ‘not’ be controlled.

“It’s true, this man does indeed possess a Bankai, and it is also true that he has defeated Captain Komamura and Lieutenant Iba in battle in the past.” He half answers.

Shunsui smirks as he tilts his hat forward while Jūshirō’s eyes slightly widen.

“He defeated Sajin and Tetsuzaemon in battle?!” Jūshirō asks in surprise. He had known about Sajin’s defeat, but not Tetsuzaemon’s.

“That kids got some serious skills if he can defeat a Lieutenant and a Captain, and nearly defeat a second.” Shunsui remarks, then lifts his hat back to look at Yamamoto. “So, what do you plan to do about him, old man Yama? Surely you don’t expect him to remain as a 5th seat with that amount of skill.”

“He is to be promoted to Lieutenant upon his discharge from Squad 4. He will become the Lieutenant of Squad 7 while Lieutenant Iba will be temporarily transferred to Squad 5 until their own Lieutenant recovers. He will then return to his own squad where the two will work hand in hand.” Yamamoto answers.

“Head Captain, isn’t it unwise to have two Lieutenants in the same squad?” Jūshirō asks.

Yamamoto turns to him. “Well, what would you suggest? Surely you do not mean to suggest that he be promoted to Captain?” he asks with a hint of worry for their answer.

Shunsui lifts his hat further. “Come now, old man Yama. We’re not saying that at all.” He said with little enthusiasm.

“Of course not, Head Captain. But wouldn’t it be best to promote one of the current Lieutenants and then reassign this man?” Jūshirō clarifies.

“We have no Lieutenants that are fit for the position of Captain as of now. And besides, this brat has already defeated a Lieutenant and a Captain in combat. From what we have seen, he could very easily defeat any of the current Lieutenants in battle. Had he been here longer, I would have possibly considered him for the position. But with the short amount of time that he has been with us, it would be very unwise to place him in that position.” The old man points out.

“Just how long ‘has’ he been with us, Head Captain?” Jūshirō asks to see just how aware the man was in Timothy’s time of being a soul reaper.

At first Yamamoto didn’t answer, causing Shunsui to raise a brow and Jūshirō to tilt his head. Yamamoto closes his eyes and deeply sighs.

“Two weeks.”

Both men were already aware of the man’s answer, complements of Sajin, but still gave a shocked look so as to not get the poor, furry Captain in trouble for saying anything.

“Excuse me, old man Yama, but did you say two weeks?” Shunsui asked in fake surprise.

“I did indeed. Squad 7, 5th seat Durn has only been a soul reaper for two weeks, with not having been to the academy.”

Silence followed for a moment in the open office while Shunsui and Jūshirō stare at the Head Captain to grasp at his answer.

“Head Captain…how is that possible?!” Jūshirō asks, still giving a faked shocked look.

“That is not important. There is nothing more to discuss on this matter. Neither of you are to discuss this matter with anyone, and that is an order. Now both of you leave and find something constructive to do.” Yamamoto concludes.

Both men bow to him, then turn and leave the office. They walk down the hallway a bit before Shunsui turns to his friend.

“Well Jūshirō, care to pay another visit to our friend Sajin?” he offers.

The man turns to him with worry. “The Head Captain said not to discuss this matter with anyone, Shunsui.” He said hesitantly.

“Oh, come on. Sajin clearly already knows everything about this matter. So, it’s not like we’re spreading the word out if we talk to someone who already knows. Right? Besides, you could tell that old man Yama was holding something back.” he asks with his hat covering his eyes.

Jūshirō sighs in defeat. “I don’t believe that this will end well.”

Both men walk out the front of the building and disappear in a flash step.


	11. Bad News All Around

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 11

**(Bad News All Around)**

** Milan: Italy, World of the Living, 2 days later **

On the east side of the city, on a vacant side street that had a few residential buildings and shops, a lone soul was running for his life, wearing blue jeans and a red sports t-shirt. He was breathing heavily as he tried to run away from a hollow that was chasing him.

This hollow was a bit on the small side, possessed four arms, a grey body, and its mask resembling a rodent. The same one that had killed five soul reapers only days ago.

It had been over a week since it had a good meal, after killing all those annoying soul reapers, and it was time for its next one. The hollow had been walking by when it just happened to look over and notice the soul it was currently chasing standing near a shop.

Time was just about out for the unfortunate soul as the hollow was now only a few yards away. The soul glanced behind him as he ran, looking at the creature in fear as he saw that it was catching up to him.

The soul’s foot suddenly caught on the pavement, causing him to fall forward onto the ground face down. He quickly turned around onto his back and held an arm up to his face, shivering, as the hollow walked up to him.

“No…don’t!” he pleaded as the hollow raised one of its arms for a killing blow. The man froze as the hollow’s arm swung down on him, then he closed his eyes, waiting for the strike.

But the attack never touched him as a loud metallic sound rang out into the air. The man opened one of his eyes, then opened the other in surprise to see a man standing in front of him, holding a sword that was blocking the hollow’s attack.

The hollow stared at the man a moment, then pulled its arm back, returning it to its side, while the man returned his sword to his side. The soul looked at the man to see that he was fully clothed in loose, white robes and black shoes.

“T…thank you sir! That thing…it’s trying to…”

The soul was interrupted by the man as he suddenly swung back behind him, his blade cutting across the soul’s chest. The soul stared at the man wide eyed as he slowly faded into oblivion. The hollow watched as the soul disappeared, then returned to the man.

“That was my dinner, fool! I guess you’ll have to take its place!” a deep, and scratchy feminine voice sounded.

The man smiled and closed his eyes as he sheathed his blade.

“Actually, I find that I just saved you from a pitiful snack, if anything.” He responded in a calm voice.

The hollow tilted its head slightly. “Compared to your spiritual pressure, I would have to agree. You would make a much nicer meal for me. You must really favor it, if you are foolish enough to withdraw your blade in front of me. What are you? A soul reaper?” it asked.

The man gave off a slight grunt of amusement. “Indeed I am. I am Sōsuke Aizen. I have been keeping an eye on you for some time now.” Aizen greeted calmly.

The hollow tilted its head again. “Why should I care? Regardless of who you are, you will die here just the same.” The hollow threatened.

As it finished, something crashed into the ground behind Aizen, kicking up dust. Another hollow, a few inches taller than the other and very similar in appearance, except for the red body, raised its arms to attack Aizen from behind.

Aizen grinned. “Bakudō #8…Seki.” He chants without moving a single muscle.

The red hollow’s fist’s collided with an invisible barrier just inches from Aizen’s back. The red hollow recoiled and stared at him a second in surprise. This was the first time that anyone had managed to block his surprise attack like that.

“Before you proceed, I would like to offer you two a proposition.” Aizen offered.

The grey hollow scoffed back at him. “A proposition? And why should we take the time to listen to anything that our dinner has to say?” she asked.

Aizen light chuckled. “Because the offer for you, benefits you greatly.”

The grey hollow looked at its partner a moment, then looked back at Aizen with a narrowed gaze.

“I’m listening, soul reaper.” She said with a scowl.

Aizen opened his eyes and side glanced the grey hollow. “You should know, that while I am indeed a soul reaper, I do not possess any ties to the soul society. I have business that must be taken care of, business that you could accomplish. There is a soul reaper that I would like you to take care of, one that could become a problem for my plans. My proposition is this; I would like you to leave here and go to another city that is in Japan…Karakura Town. All that is required of you is to do what you normally do, devour souls.”

Aizen narrows his gaze. “This soul reaper is currently assigned as an emergency response team member. Before long, his team will be called in to respond to you. You are already on the soul society’s watch list, so once they see that it is you causing problems, they will not hesitate to send the team. You will more than likely encounter a young, teenage soul reaper with orange hair before the team arrives. Simply keep him busy until the team does arrive and kill them all. There is nothing more to it than that.” He finished.

The grey hollow stared at him as she thought the matter over until the red one spoke up.

“So…you just want us to go there and draw their team out, then kill this one soul reaper in particular?” the red one asked in a deep, masculine, and equally scratchy growl.

Aizen glanced over his shoulder to him. “Yes, that is all. You may do as you wish, as long as you eliminate him and his team.” Aizen confirmed.

“And what does this soul reaper look like? How will we tell him from the others?” the female hollow asked.

Aizen closed his eyes and lowered his head a bit. “He will be the one that fights with floating flames. “

“And what about afterwards?” the male hollow asked.

“As I said, you will be free to do as you wish. Kill the man and his team, that is all. However, I must ask that you wait a few days before you begin. My plans require precise timing. So, when you arrive, only devour enough souls to survive. After a few days, you may begin.”

Both hollows looked at each other and nodded before turning back to him.

“Why not handle him here? Why should we leave?” the male asked.

“My plans involve Karakura Town, so it would be far more efficient to deal with the soul reaper there.” Aizen answers.

“We’ll do it. But we are not familiar with this ‘Karakura Town’, so how do we get there?” the female asked.

Aizen raised his hand and flicked his wrist. There was a sudden ripping sound as the air next to him ripped open, revealing a black abyss.

“This garganta will take you there. But again, you must wait a few days before you begin.” Aizen informed.

Both hollows nodded and walked into the garganta, the black portal closing behind them. Aizen lightly chuckled as he looked down the street, seeing a couple cars pass and a few people in the distance.

“And now, we see if this soul reaper is worthy enough to be included in my plans.” He said.

He flicked his wrist again, opening another garganta, and steadily walked through it, closing it behind him.

**Timothy’s inner world, Present**

Timothy slowly opened his eyes, but only a little bit, seeing a blurry, and fuzzy sky. He could tell that he was laying down on the ground somewhere but had no idea where.

He blinked a few times, each time he reopened his eyes his vision steadily clearing. As his vision finally started to clear, he could now see that he was looking at a cloudy sky, and that it was lightly raining.

As his senses started to come back to him, his head started to throb a little, so he lifted his hand to his head to try and sooth the ache.

After a few minutes of rubbing his head and letting his senses come back fully, he slowly rolled to his side and braced himself up with his other arm. He raised himself until he was in a sitting position and folded his legs under him before looking at the area around him.

He saw that he was sitting in a familiar field, slightly overgrown with weeds with patches of grass trying to grow. As he looked around further, he could see, yet again, familiar, ruined buildings around him.

He closed his eyes and lightly shook his head to try and clear the ache in his head. The pain dulled a bit, but some remained as he opened his eyes back up.

“What am I doing here?” he mumbled to himself, now realizing where he was.

Silence followed for a moment before he heard a familiar voice.

**“You are…currently…unconscious.”** The voice replied.

Timothy turned forward to see the large cathedral, still in ruins, and the spirit of his zanpakutō sitting in front of him. Timothy shook his head again and lowered his comforting hand to his lap.

“What do you mean?” he asked, giving the spirit a worried look.

**“You are…currently in…Squad 4’s care…You have taken…quite a beating…from Captain Zaraki…You are…unconscious…in your…recovery bed…You have…been there…for two days.”**

Timothy sighed at the spirit’s answer. “Ok, but ‘why’ am I here? Shouldn’t I be like…asleep or something?” he asked in annoyance.

The spirit narrowed his gaze. **“When a master…is rendered…unconscious…in their world…their consciousness…will go to…their inner world…You are not here…by my choice…This is simply…how it works…But fear not…for you shall…awaken soon…For now…enjoy your stay.”** He finished with a hint of mocking.

Timothy scoffed and sat up straight, looking at the sky. “Greeaaat.” He moaned.

Silence fell upon the two beings while the rain continued to beat down on the both of them. Although he was unable to become wet from the rain, Timothy could still feel it hitting him nonstop, and it was starting to get on his nerves.

Normally, he didn’t mind the rain, he actually liked it from time to time. But when left sitting there with nothing to do but wait, the constant patter of it was becoming annoying. He left out a slight growl as he turned back to the spirit.

“How in the hell can you stand this rain nonstop?” he asked lowly.

The spirit gave him an angry stare. **“I can’t…but I am forced…to live…with it…Tell me…how does…it feel…to be beat on…by the rain…of your own despair?...Do you…feel it?…The sorrow…you have kept…within yourself?...Breaking you down?…Tearing you apart?…This is what…I have been feeling…for a long time…This is…the pain…that you have…brought to me…This is…the pain…of your own heart.”**

Timothy flinched and lowered his head. The rain kept beating on him endlessly, and he could actually feel it tearing at him. He could actually feel it starting to break him down.

Before, he had thought nothing of it, his spirit sitting in the rain while it never stopped. Sure, he knew that it was a bad thing and that it would feel bad. But now that he was forced to actually sit in it, nothing to do, nothing to shield him, he now felt absolutely horrible for the spirit for what he had put him through.

“I’m…I’m sorry.” He admitted in a low voice.

The spirit lowered his head with closed eyes. **“I have no need…for your pity…No need…for your apologies…They are useless…unless you fix…the problem…The rain…is not as bad…as it once was…but it is…still heavy…with sorrow…But…because you…have shown…humility to me…I shall…tell you something…in return.”**

Timothy raised his head to him as he paused. The spirit raised his head in return.

**“This concerns…your wife…Susan.”**

Timothy slightly widened his eyes and leaned forward a bit to listen intently.

**“Your wife’s soul…is no longer…a soul…It has not been…since that night…She…is a spirit.”** He clarified.

Timothy tilted his head. “What’s the difference? Isn’t a soul and a spirit the same, just different terms?” he asked.

The spirit gave him an emotionless stare. **“She is…a zanpakutō spirit.”**

This worried Timothy, but also left him a bit confused. “What do you mean? She’s a zanpakutō?”

The spirit nodded once. **“Yes…She is…now the spirit…of a zanpakutō…One that has…no bond…no inner world…yet bound…to you.”**

Timothy became afraid for his wife, wondering what the spirit’s words meant for her. He knew that there was something different, but he never guessed that this was the case.

“I’m…still not following you.” He pressed, afraid of the answer.

The spirit held a hand to his chest. **“I am the spirit…of your zanpakutō.”** He held both of his arms out wide. **“This…is ‘our’…inner world.”** He then dropped his hands back to his lap. **“We are bound…to each other…My soul…resides in yours…We are one…This world…is part of…your soul…and I live here…within it…Nothing…can separate us…You are me…and I you…Do you…understand?”**

Timothy thought it over a minute, then nodded.

**“Susan is…a zanpakutō spirit…with no bond…No link…No world…It is…for this reason…that she is capable…of having…a form…in your world…But…as you are aware…she cannot…maintain…that form…The seal…that you use…to keep her…within that sword…is similar…to a zanpakutō’s…sealed state…When you…release her…her soul…is materializing…in the only…world it knows…One that…’cannot’…sustain her.”**

Timothy held a hand out. “Why can’t it sustain her?”

**“That world…is no longer…her own…She does not…belong there…anymore…She requires…her own…inner world…to survive…To be bound…to a soul…By sealing her…within that sword…you are…only delaying…the inevitable…Have you…not noticed?…Every time…you release her…her strength…grows weaker…and weaker…You cannot stop it…Even drawing…on her powers…while sealed…pulls on…her soul…Eventually…she will…fade away.”**

Timothy lowered his head and tears began to form in his eyes. He actually hadn’t noticed her strength failing before, but now that the spirit mentioned it, he could see it now.

When she had fought against Sajin, she held her form and fought for almost half an hour. But when she had fought against Zaraki, she was tired after only ten minutes. And she hadn’t even fought as hard as she did then as she did before.

Tears began running down his cheek as he raised his arm to wipe them away. He took a deep breath as he lowered his hands back to his lap.

“What can I do?” he asked in a mumble.

**“You must…accept her fate.”** He answered, causing Timothy to quickly look at him in shock.

“What?!” he asked.

**“Accept…her fate…She can…never be…human again…This is her fate…her new life…Nothing…can change it…She may be…the same soul…that was your wife…but not…the same being…Did you think…that the name…‘Moeru Kitsune’…was something… ‘you’…came up with?…No…that ‘is’…her true name…that you…subconsciously knew…Who she…has become…Who she ‘is’…I am sorry…Timothy…but the spirit…that you have been…fighting with…is ‘not’ Susan…That is…Moeru Kitsune…And she…will die…unless…you help her.”**

The spirit’s last few sentences had taken the last of Timothy’s nerves. Tears were now freely flowing from his eyes as he looked up to the sky, seeing the rain starting to pick up.

**“I am…amazed…that she didn’t…tell you.”** The spirit added.

Timothy quickly turned back to him in shock. “She…she knew?!” he choked, getting a slight nod back. “And she…didn’t tell me?! Why?!” he yelled as he balled his fists.

**“She knew…there was nothing…that could be done…Neither of you…had expected…the turn of events…She had accepted…her own fate…She wanted…to spend…the last years…with you…with no worries…No pain…No regret…She knew…once you found out…that you…would tear…yourself apart…trying to find…a way…to save her…But…the truth is…there is no way…She knew this…But she also knew…that you would…never accept it…She was content…to fade away…and give you…her last moments…in happiness.”** He gave a brief pause.

**“You should…not hate her…for her choice…For I agreed…with her choice…You had…not known me…at the time…but I…would not have…told you either…because…again…there was…nothing…you could do.”**

Silence fell upon them for what seemed like eternity, before the spirit continued.

**“But now…you have…a way…to save…her.”**

Timothy turned back to him with wide eyes. “How?! Tell me!” he pleaded.

The spirit narrowed his gaze. **“She does not…possess… an inner world…Nor…will she ever…possess her own…It is something…that we are…born with…That you…are born with…When a…potential master…is born…an inner world…is born with them…along with…the spirit…of their zanpakutō…But she…Moeru Kitsune…was born…without one…Without…an inner world…or a master…You are able…to use…her powers…because she…allows you to…through the bond…that you share…The only way…that you…can save her…is to make her…a part of…‘this’ inner world…Although it is…exceedingly rare…it is possible…for two spirits…to inhabit…the same world…Captains…Shunsui Kyōraku…and Jūshirō Ukitake…possess…such an example…Two swords…two spirits…one world…The only difference…is we…would have two…different abilities…two different releases.”**

Timothy sets his head in his hand. “Why…why tell me now? If she wanted, so badly, to die away, why tell me now? What brought this on?” he asks lowly.

**“Because…she is…out of time.”**

Timothy looks back at him. “What?”

The spirit nods once. **“She can…no longer…hold her form…If you…release her…once more…she will fade away…She will die…She did not…tell you…because she simply…did not know. She is…very fortunate…that she…did not…fade away…when Captain Kurotsuchi…released her…for the…Head Captain.”**

Timothy quickly stands up, arms to his sides and fists balled. “What?! What the fuck are you talking about?! Who the hell is Captain Kurotsuchi, and why the hell is he releasing her for the Head Captain?!” he yelled, his face turning red in fury.

**“The Head Captain…figured out…that she…was a fake. That she…was not…a real zanpakutō…Those two…along with…Kyōraku…Ukitake…and Unohana…are all aware…of her existence…But fear not…for the…Head Captain…had decided…to keep her…a secret…and told…the others…to do…the same. For now…she is safe.**

Timothy dropped his head, his knuckles turning white from clenching his fists tightly, and nodded.

“Fine…just tell me…how to save her.” He said in a low voice.

The spirit stands up as well, keeping his emotionless stare.

**“I cannot…tell you…at this time…You are…too weak…to survive it…When…the time comes…I shall tell you…For now…you must not…release her…no matter what…You may still call…upon her powers…but you must not…release her…But know this…Timothy Durn…and do not forget…she is not…your wife anymore…she is a spirit…nothing more…When…the time comes…she will become…your partner…the same as I…Now…your time is up…You must return…to your world…Continue on…as you have…Become stronger…Steel yourself…and do not faulter.”**

As the spirit finished, Timothy’s inner world began fading away, until he finally became enveloped in darkness.

** Squad 4 Medical Department, Seireitei **

Timothy slowly awoke to the muffled sounds of people talking and walking by in the hallway. He slowly opened his eyes, allowing for them to adjust to the light. He took a moment to let his senses come back, then turned his head towards the noises.

He saw a sliding door, open just enough to where he could occasionally see someone walk by the room. He turned his head back the other way and saw a small bedside table with a small pitcher and a glass. He also could see both of his swords leaning against the wall next to his bed, causing him to breath a sigh of relief.

When he did, his throat felt scratchy and dry, along with his lips. He pulled back his arms beside him and tried to sit himself up but stopped when he felt a sharp pain on his stomach and flank.

He placed one of his hands on the wound and could feel bandages over top of it. It felt a little damp, so he figured that he must have bled through it. He let out a pained sigh and tried to swallow but was unsuccessful.

“Nur…” he tried to call, but his throat caught from its dryness.

He tried again to swallow, but again had no luck. He looked over to the pitcher and tried to reach for it, but with his position on the bed, he was unable to reach back far enough to grab it. He gave up the idea and returned his hand to his side.

He continued to lay there as he waited for one of the nurses, or anyone, to come check on him. Luckily, he didn’t have to wait but for a few minutes. He turned to the side when he heard his door open to reveal a slightly tallish woman with short, spiky, silver hair with a braid on the right side of her face.

“Oh, good morning, 5th seat. I didn’t know you were awake. How are you feeling?” she asked in a calm, yet slightly worried voice.

Timothy was unable to answer her and ask for something to drink, so he settled with touching his throat with his fingers to try and signal that he was thirsty. She nodded and swiftly walked over to his bedside table, pouring a glass of water. She turned back to him and gently raised his back up enough for him to drink without choking.

“Please drink it slowly.” She asked.

He nodded and took the glass, taking small sips at a time. It was difficult to take the first couple of swallows, but the water quickly relieved the dryness in his throat. He about finished the glass before handing it back to her.

“Thanks.” He said in a raspy voice.

She nodded and set the glass down before walking back towards the door.

“I’ll go fetch Captain Unohana. I’ll be right back.” She said, then left the room, leaving the door slightly open.

Timothy relaxed a moment and took a deep breath. After another minute, he heard his door open again. The silver haired woman returned with a much shorter, and kinder looking woman with long, thick, black hair in a thick braid running down the front of her body.

“Good morning, 5th seat Durn. How are you feeling today?” she asked in a pleasant voice.

Timothy raised his hand a bit and tilted it side to side, a non-vocal gesture that he was alright. The taller woman remained at the door while the shorter walked up to his side and held his wrist to check his pulse.

“I must say, you came away with minor wounds considering the opponent you were fighting, 5th seat Durn. Besides a deep cut to your abdomen, a few bruises, and using all of your spirit energy, you are otherwise quite fine.” She assured.

He then noticed that she was wearing a white haori, where he then pointed at her.

“Cap…” He paused for a quick cough. “Captain?” he asked, and she nodded.

“Yes. I am Captain Unohana, and this is Squad 4’s medical department. I brought you here two days ago after your fight with Captain Zaraki.” She then gestured to the woman behind her. “This is my Lieutenant, Isane.” She dropped her hand and folded them in front of her. “As long as you do as she, or any of my medical personnel tell you, you should be able to leave by tomorrow morning. Is that understood, 5th seat Durn?” she finished.

Timothy nodded. “Thanks Captain. If I may ask, what about Captain Zaraki?”

She gave a stronger smile back. “Captain Zaraki has already been treated and discharged. Although he had numerous cuts and severe burns, his abundance of spirit energy allowed him to be healed quite quickly, and had returned to his squad this morning.”

Timothy closed his eyes and growled. “After all I did to him, he’s already been released?” he mumbled.

Unohana slightly chuckled and turned to Isane. “Isane, please continue to keep an eye on 5th seat Durn and alert me of any changes.” She instructs.

“Yes ma’am.” She answers.

Unohana left the room while Isane walked over to write on his patient record.

“If you don’t mind…” he started, getting her attention. “Could you help me sit up, or am I not allowed yet?” he asked.

She nodded and set his chart down before walking over to his side. She undid a latch and slowly raised the back to where he was sitting up a bit. He winced once, but otherwise transitioned to a leaned back sitting position.

“Thanks.” He said, and she nodded back.

“I’ll be back to check on you in a while, 5th seat.” She said.

He nodded, then they heard a knock on the wall by the door. Both of them turned to see Hinata, Issei and Kenta standing there.

“Uh, is it okay if we visit?” she asked, then noticed Timothy awake. “Oh, Tim! You’re awake! How you feeling?!” she quickly asked.

He shrugged his shoulders and Isane turned to him. “They can visit if you want, but only for a little bit. You still need to rest. I’ll return in a little while.” She said, and he nodded.

“Thanks again, Lieutenant.” He returned.

She nodded back and left the room while the three friends walked in. Hinata sat down in the chair next to Timothy, while Kenta and Issei stood in front.

“So, how ya doing Tim?” Kenta asked.

“Meh, so so I guess.” He said with a shrug. “Definitely felt better, but after fighting with a six-and-a-half-foot demon, what do you expect?” he retorted.

Hinata giggled while Kenta shook his head.

“You’re lucky to be alive, idiot.” Issei insulted.

“Hey, I almost had him!” Timothy returned.

“Uh, no…you didn’t. You’re lucky the Captain, and the Head Captain showed up to stop you, or Captain Zaraki would’ve killed you.” Hinata stated.

“No, he wouldn’t. He may be a cruel bastard, but he’s not heartless. I will give the guy that much.” Kenta returned with a raised hand.

Hinata turned to him with an angry glare. “Either way…” She paused and turned back to Timothy. “That was stupid to fight him. What were you thinking?” she asked.

“The idiot called our Captain a ‘wolf-faced bastard’! After everything he’s done for me, you really think I’m gonna let that go?! Come on, you know me better than that!” Timothy blurted.

Hinata smacked her hand on the top of his head. “Yes, I ‘do’ know you’re better than that! I’m sure the Captain appreciates his defense, but that’s too far, Tim! Are you really that stupid?!” she asked, giving him an evil stare.

“Hey, you’re talking to your 5th seat here.” He joked.

She smacked him again. “A ‘stupid’ 5th seat!”

He quickly put his hand on his head. “Hey! You could still kill me like that! I’m a hurt man here!” he teased.

She then poked his wound, causing him to flinch in pain. “As long as you learn your lesson, I don’t mind killing you, moron.” She threatened.

He quickly held his hand up in defense. “Alright! I got it! Stop poking and hitting me! Damn woman!”

She smacked him on the head twice more. “This woman has you at her mercy at the moment, so don’t forget that!”

Kenta and Issei start laughing at the pair, but a quick death glare from Timothy and Hinata quickly shut them up.

“Anyways…” she started as she turned back. “We’re glad you’re doing alright.”

He turns back to her as well. “Yeah, thanks Hinata. So, any news lately?”

She shrugged her shoulders. “Not really. The Lieutenant has taken over the emergency team until you return. Other than that, not much. Oh, Minato did get promoted to 6th seat. I guess after showing him some tricks with your training, he picked up the squad training quite a bit. He got promoted this morning.”

“That’s good! So, what time is it by the way?” Timothy asked.

“Still morning, close to noon though.” Kenta answered.

“I see. Well, I guess I’ve got nothing to do for the rest of the day, except sit around and do nothing.” Timothy stated in a nonchalant tone.

“Tim.” Issei started, getting his attention. “Was that ‘really’ Bankai you used?” he asked.

The other two quickly turned to him, wondering the same thing.

“Uh…yeah, it was.” Timothy quietly answered.

“When the hell did you acquire it?” Kenta asked further.

“Uh, not too long ago. Before I came to the Seireitei. I mean, I know it’s a big deal and all, but it’s not really not ‘that’ big a deal.” He offered.

Hinata smacked him yet again. “Dummy! Of course it’s a big deal! You’re a 5th seat, and you have Bankai! That’s no laughing matter!” she said as he rubbed his head.

“Yeah. I wouldn’t be surprised if they made you Captain.” Kenta added in a joking tone with a smirk.

Timothy turned to him with a frown. “Oh ha ha ha. If only my stomach wasn’t cut up I would be laughing so hard. Very funny…dork.” He retorted.

Hinata scoffed and shook her head. “You’re the dork, idiot.” She returned.

Timothy in turn smacked the back of her head, causing her to quickly turn to him in shock.

“Did you…” she started as she pointed to the spot where he hit her.

Timothy gave her a grin. “How does it feel? Not too good I suppose.” He taunted.

Kenta and Issei’s jaws dropped. “Uh…Tim…you shouldn’t have done that.” Issei warned.

Before he could ask why, Hinata grabs his ear and twists it.

“Ow! Ow! Ow!!! Stop, you evil witch!” he yells.

She then growls. “I. Am. Not. A. Witch!” she says, twisting different ways with each word.

“Ahhhh! Stop! You’re going to tear it off!” he pleads.

Kenta and Issei start laughing again, until the door opens with the Lieutenant standing in the doorway.

“Alright, visiting is over you three. Please return to your Squad.” She instructs.

They all nod, then Hinata glares back at Timothy. “This is not over, Tim!” she whispers in a growl.

She lets go of his ear, letting him rub it while they all walk out of the room with Kenta stopping and looking back at him.

“See ya tomorrow, Tim. Get better, but also be sure to think of a good hiding spot so she don’t find you.” He said with a grin, then disappears.

Isane turns back to Timothy, who was shaking his head. “Alright, time to lay you back down, 5th seat. You need to get some rest.”

He nods and grabs the water, finishing the glass before returning it. She unlatches the back and gently lays him back down.

“Alright. Now get some rest, 5th seat. Someone will be back later to check on you.” She states and leaves the room.

Timothy takes a deep breath and stares at the ceiling. He was about to close his eyes before Susan speaks up in his mind.

**_“Tim? You feeling alright?”_ **

He nods slightly. _“Yeah, I’m ok I guess.”_

**_“I hope so. You had me worried when you passed out.”_** She states.

_“Don’t worry, I’m fine.”_ He confirms.

Then he suddenly remembered his conversation with his zanpakutō spirit, and turned his head to Susan’s sword. _“That reminds me…you got something you want to tell me?”_

**_“Uh…no? Not that I’m aware of.”_** She answers in confusion.

He gives the sword a glare. _“Really? You sure you don’t know anything about…I don’t know…about dying?”_ he asks with a hint of anger.

He heard a slight gasp. **_“I uh…I don’t know what you’re talking about. What do you mean ‘dying’?”_** she tried to avoid.

_“Don’t fucking lie to me! I know what you’re hiding!”_ he yelled inwardly.

For a moment, she didn’t reply, giving him nothing but silence. Finally, she decides to come clean.

**_“I…I didn’t want to tell you Tim…I couldn’t. Wait, how the hell did you know?!”_** she yells back.

_“My zanpakutō told me. He said that you’ve been slowly dying every time I release you. That you wanted to fade away without me knowing. Why? Why would you lie to me like that?”_

**_“I didn’t want to hurt you Tim. I was too afraid to hurt you. I knew our time together was limited, and I didn’t want you to spend our last bit of time together worrying about me. I wanted to tell you…I really did…I even tried to, but I just couldn’t do it.”_** She said in a teary voice.

_“So, you thought it better to just disappear on me and leave me to my sorrows? Really? How could you ‘possibly’ think that that wouldn’t hurt me even more? Tell me that?!”_

**_“I’m…I’m sorry Tim…Really I am. I didn’t mean to hurt you. Please forgive me.”_** She pleads.

Timothy turns back to the ceiling and sighs. _“I can’t stay angry with you, Susan. And I will forgive you…but you’ve hurt me, and that will take a while to heal. Now leave me be for a while.”_ He finished and closed his eyes, not hearing a response from her.

He continued to stare at the ceiling, but blinked his eyes and felt a warm tear run down his face. He quickly brushed it away and sighed deeply before closing his eyes and tried to let sleep take him over.

** Squad 7 Head Quarters, Present **

Sajin sat at his desk looking over completed paperwork before having it turned in while Tetsuzaemon stood in the small kitchen making the two of them tea. The Lieutenant walked back into the room with a tray to see a hell butterfly fly in through the window.

The Captain turned and held up his hand to allow the creature to land upon it and deliver its message. After a moment, Sajin grunted in acknowledgment and let the black insect take off, leaving the way it came in.

“What’s the word, Captain?” Tetsuzaemon asks as he set the man’s cup down in front of him.

“It seems Timothy has woken up a while ago. He seems to be doing fine and should be released tomorrow.” Sajin answers as the Lieutenant sits down with his cup.

“Good. That means I can knock some sense into that fool. I had thought that our little talk last week would have been enough.” He states, then blows on his drink.

“No need to be hostile about it, Tetsuzaemon. I’m sure he learned his lesson after getting put in the hospital by Captain Zaraki. Right now, I’m more worried about what his reaction will be once we tell him about his promotion.” Sajin returns and cools his tea as well.

“I’m still not happy with it, Captain. Like I said, he may have the skills to take on a Captain, but there is no way that he’s ready for Lieutenant. I don’t mind going to Squad 5 to give em a hand, but Durn shouldn’t be promoted. He has way too much to learn.” Tetsuzaemon states and takes a sip.

“That may be, Tetsuzaemon. But Timothy’s a fast learner, and I’m sure he’ll have the job down before you return. All we can do is give him the benefit of the doubt.” Sajin returns.

They were interrupted by a knock on the door.

“You may enter.” Sajin answers.

The door opens and Captain Hitsugaya walks in. “Captain Hitsugaya. How can we help you today?” Sajin asks.

Toshiro sits down in front of Sajin’s desk and sighs. “Captain Komamura, it’s been a few days now, and we have heard nothing about this ‘absorbing’ hollow. I intend to have my men return from the world of the living tomorrow morning. I just thought I should let you know.” He said with a depressed voice.

“I see. My men have not reported any sightings either. I’m starting to wonder if the hollow is even still there.” Sajin adds.

Hitsugaya nods back. “I would have to agree that it’s possible. If you would like, I could have the team on standby, just in case.” He offered.

“That won’t be necessary Captain. I already have a team on standby as it is. If we do not hear anything further on the matter a week from now, I will most likely disband the team. With training, and having to correct Squad 11’s mistakes in Rukongai, I cannot afford to have my members tied up doing nothing.”

Hitsugaya sighs. “I see. Well, again, I’m sorry for the loss of your men. Do you intend to pull back some of the men from the team currently there?”

“Not for a while. I believe it would be best to leave them there for a while longer.” Sajin answers, then takes a sip.

“How is your other officer doing? The fool who took on Zaraki?” Hitsugaya asked, causing Tetsuzaemon to grunt.

“He is recovering. In fact, he regained consciousness just a little while ago. He should return tomorrow.” Sajin answers.

“That’s good. I’m still having a hard time believing it though.”

Sajin chuckles. “So is the rest of the Seireitei by now I’m sure.”

Hitsugaya sighs and stands back up. “Well then, I must be going. Have a good day, Captain Komamura.” He said.

Sajin and Tetsuzaemon nod back. “And to you, Captain Hitsugaya.” Sajin returns.

The white-haired Captain bows briefly, then leaves the office as Sajin finishes his tea.

As he sets his cup down, Tetsuzaemon stands up, then retrieving the cup and taking them both back to the kitchen.

“I’ll be sending you to Squad 5 the day after tomorrow, Tetsuzaemon.” Sajin notifies.

The Lieutenant walks back into the office and sits back down behind his desk with a grunt.

“Hopefully Durn won’t tear the squad apart before I come back.” He mocks.

Sajin gives him a low chuckle and sets a form aside. “Yes, well I’ll be sure to keep him from doing so, Tetsuzaemon. Though I will say, you shouldn’t look down so much on Timothy.” He states as he grabs a new form.

The man grunts back. “Yeah, I guess you’re right, Captain. He just has a bad habit of getting on my nerves is all.”

Sajin nods in understanding as he signs the form in front of him.

“Yes, he does have that effect on others. But that is just his…”

Sajin was interrupted by another hell butterfly flying in through the window and hovering next to him. He allowed it to land on his finger to deliver its message. A moment later, the insect takes off and leaves while Sajin sighs in despair.

“Bad news Captain?” Tetsuzaemon asked.

Sajin nods back once. “The message was from Captain Unohana. It seems that Lieutenant Hinamori’s condition has taken a turn for the worst. Her spirit energy is still recovering, but she has gone into a coma. It seems that you may be with Squad 5 a little longer than expected.”

Tetsuzaemon lowers his head and nods. “Damn. She had better live through this.” He growls.

“We must have faith that she will stay with us, Tetsuzaemon. We cannot give in to fear, and must hope that everything will turn out alright.” Sajin reassures.

The shaded man sighs and nods. “Yes sir.”

Sajin watches the man for a moment, seeing that his thoughts were keeping him from his work. He lets out a sigh and stands up, getting the Lieutenant’s attention.

“Let us go walk for a bit, Tetsuzaemon. Perhaps a little bit of fresh air will help you with your thoughts. Perhaps a visit with Timothy will help get your mind of it.” He offers.

Tetsuzaemon nods and stands up as well. “Yes sir.” he replies as they both leave the office.

** Squad 4 Medical Department, Seireitei, 10 minutes later **

Sajin and Tetsuzaemon walk through the east side of the medical department towards Timothy’s room, every now and then stepping to the side to allow medical personnel to pass by unhindered. As they turn a corner, they run into Lieutenant Kotetsu holding a few forms.

“Afternoon, Lieutenant.” Sajin greets.

Isane turns towards him and slightly bows. “Good afternoon, Captain.” She returns and rises. “What can I help you with?” she adds.

“I thought I would check in on my 5th seat and see how he is doing personally.” He answers.

“He is resting at the moment, but I will take you to check on him, sir.” she offers.

Sajin nods in acceptance, and allows her to lead the two men to Timothy’s room. After passing a dozen or so rooms, they come to a stop outside his room where Isane peeks through the gap in the doorway.

Both men are a little surprised when she breathes out a sigh of annoyance. She opens the door and swiftly walks in.

“5th seat, I told you that you need to rest.” She states.

Sajin and Tetsuzaemon look inside to see Timothy sitting up to the edge of the bed with his legs hanging over the side.

“Sorry Lieutenant, but my back was starting to ache. These beds aren’t exactly comfortable.” Timothy defends.

“If the bed is bothering you, then let someone know.” She instructs as she helps him lay back down straight. “You need to stay in your bed, unless you are given permission otherwise.” She followed.

“Sorry, I’ve been here for two days and I’m a little restless. Can’t I at least stretch my legs off the side?” he pleads.

Sajin chuckles at his remark, getting his attention. “Oh, I didn’t see you there, Captain, Lieutenant. Morning…or afternoon…whatever it is.” Timothy greets.

Sajin nods back with Tetsuzaemon. “It’s afternoon, Timothy. How are you feeling?”

Timothy gives the man a sigh. “Besides being tied down to a bed, almost literally, I guess ok. Side still hurts a bit, but not bad. Just wish I could get out of this stupid bed is all.” He half pleads to Isane.

“The Captain said you need to rest, so please do so.” She insists.

“Actually, Lieutenant Kotetsu…” Sajin starts.

She turns to him. “Yes, Captain?”

“If Captain Unohana is alright with it, I can escort 5th seat Durn to your recreation yard for a little bit. I have some matters that I wish to discuss with him privately.” Sajin interjects.

Isane nods back. “Very well, Captain. I will ask Captain Unohana if it will be alright. Please excuse me.” She offers, then leaves then room.

Sajin turns back to Timothy who has a raised brow. “Let’s hope she lets me.” Timothy remarks.

Isane returns to the room only a minute later and nods to Sajin. “Captain Unohana says that it is alright if you are escorting him, Captain. But she insists that you do not have him out of bed for too long.” She answers with a bow.

“Very well, thank you Lieutenant.” Sajin returns.

She rises and nods. “Yes sir. One moment and I will be right back with a wheelchair.”

She leaves again while Tetsuzaemon sits in the chair next to Timothy with crossed arms.

“So, tell me Durn…” he begins.

The man turns to him. “Tell you what?” he returns.

Tetsuzaemon stares at him. “Did you learn your lesson, fighting Captain Zaraki?”

Timothy scoffs as he rolls his eyes and turns away. “Don’t start that shit, Lieutenant. Can’t you see I’m not exactly in the mood?” he retorts.

Tetsuzaemon grunts at him and turns away as well.

“But…to answer your question…” Timothy pauses, getting the Lieutenant to turn back. “I guess I kinda did learn ‘one’ thing when I was fighting him.”

Tetsuzaemon and Sajin both raise a brow. Timothy turns back to the Lieutenant. “That man ‘is’ a demon.”

Tetsuzaemon snorts while Sajin chuckles and shakes his head. “About time you learned that one.” Tetsuzaemon remarks.

After a brief moment, Isane returns to the room, pushing a wheelchair in front of her and stops next to Timothy’s bed.

“Alright 5th seat, take it slow. You can still reopen that would if you push too hard.” She advises.

Timothy nods and slowly sits up with her help. She maneuvers him to where he was now sitting on the edge on the bed and lets him rest for a second.

“Alright, let’s get you on your feet, then into the chair.” She instructs.

Slowly, Timothy scoots off the bed and stands on his feet. He stumbles for a second due to his legs being a little cramped up, but maintains his balance. She slowly escorts him to the chair and he takes his time sitting down in it, relaxing against the back.

Once he was settled, Isane turns to Sajin. “Please try to have him back in an hour, Captain.” She asks.

Sajin nods and turns to his Lieutenant. “Tetsuzaemon, if you don’t mind, would you please stay here with Timothy’s belongings?”

The man nods and leans back in his chair. Sajin grabs the handles of Timothy’s wheelchair and pushes him out of the room with Isane proceeding about her tasks. After walking through the hallway and going around a corner, they came to the door that led out to the Squad’s recreation yard.

The yard was not much, just a simple grassy area in the center opening of the large square building. On the edges and in the center on the yard, were numerous benches where patients could sit and relax, enjoying the air.

Thankfully for them, the yard was currently empty, so the two men could discuss their business in peace without worrying about anyone hearing them. Sajin pushes Timothy to one of the benches in the center on the yard, then takes a seat next to him.

Sajin sighs as he relaxes while Timothy closes his eyes and briefly enjoys the cool wind pressing against his face.

After spending the past couple of days stuck inside the medical area surrounded with noise and the smell of antiseptics, the quietness and clean air of the recreation yard were a blessing for Timothy.

“So, Captain, what did you want to talk about?” Timothy asks, keeping his eyes closed and his head tilted back.

Sajin takes a deep breath and plans his words carefully. He needed to be careful how he broke the news to Timothy, as him getting too worked up could cause him further damage.

“Well Timothy, there are a few matters we need to discuss. Most of them you won’t be too happy with.” He begins.

“I kinda figured it would be something along those lines, Captain. So, I guess start with the first one.” Timothy returns.

Sajin takes another breath before he begins. “Well, the Head Captain spoke with me after you were admitted here.” He pauses.

Timothy opened his eyes and turns his head to him. “Ok…About?” he asked.

Sajin scratches his chin and sighs. “About Susan.”

Timothy raised his head with a moan. “So, he does know then?” he asks, causing Sajin to raise a brow.

“You already thought he knew?” he inquired.

The younger man nodded. “My zanpakutō spirit told me. He said that the Head Captain had another Captain, Kurotsuchi I think it was, release her to show him. He also said that Captains Kyōraku, Ukitake, and Unohana know as well.”

Sajin sighed, then nodded. “Captain Ukitake and Kyōraku came to me not long after your fight and asked me about it. I assume that the Head Captain told them, or they found out another way…as they normally do. They have both assured me that they will not say anything, and I strongly trust them that they won’t. They are both very honorable men, and very trustworthy.”

Timothy nodded gently. “That’s good. So, who exactly is Captain Kurotsuchi?” Timothy inquired.

“He’s the Captain of Squad 12, and the head of the Department of Research and Development.” Sajin answered in a low voice.

Timothy breathes a sigh of worry. “Why do I have the feeling that it’s a really bad thing for him to know?” he moans.

“Captain Kurotsuchi is…not a friendly person. I guess you could use the term ‘mad scientist’ to describe him best.” Sajin answered.

“Oh lovely. So, I guess that now that he knows about Susan, he gonna want to take a look at her, right?” Timothy wonders.

“You don’t have to worry about that. The Head Captain has instructed him, sternly I might add, not to say anything, or to even look into the matter. To be frank, Captain Kurotsuchi is the only one you would have to worry about, but I highly doubt that he would go against the orders of the Head Captain.” Sajin reassured.

Timothy sighs and nods. “So, what did the Head Captain have to say about her? If he’s ordered everyone to be quiet about it, I’m guessing he don’t plan to punish me about it?”

Sajin nods. “Correct. His reasoning is that, because she is ‘technically’ a zanpakutō spirit with unusual circumstances, which was determined by Captain Kurotsuchi, no punitive actions will be taken against you.”

Timothy scoffs at his answer. “Funny how he figures that out before I did.” He stated.

Sajin rose a brow. “You mean you didn’t know yourself?” he asked in surprise.

Timothy shook his head a little. “No, I only just found out a little bit ago. My zanpakutō’s spirit told me. I guess I ended up in my inner world while I was out of it.”

Sajin nods in agreeance. “Yes, that normally happens when a soul reaper is rendered unconscious. Did he say anything further regarding her? Perhaps a clearer answer as to her situation?” the Captain asked.

Timothy nodded once. “He did, and I’ll tell you because I trust you, Captain.” He assured.

Sajin leans forward towards him, so he could speak quietly.

“It’s a long story, but short version is that…she’s no longer human. At least…not since that night after what Aizen did.” Sajin nodded for him to continue, then he turned his head to the sky. “Basically, he somehow turned her from a human soul, into a zanpakutō spirit. My zanpakutō explained to me, that she does not possess an inner world like he does. This world is the only one her ‘spirit’ knows.”

Another nod from Sajin tells him to go on. “When I release her, she materializes in ‘this’ world. When she is sealed, he said it’s similar to a zanpakutō’s ‘sealed state’, like yours. But…” he chokes and a tear forms in his eye.

Sajin narrowed his gaze. “But?” he presses.

Timothy takes a deep breath before continuing. “She’s dying.”

Sajin’s eyes widen a bit at his answer. “What do you mean?” he asked in seriousness.

Timothy turned back to him. “Susan’s dying. Without an inner world for her spirit to reside, she is slowly becoming weaker. Eventually, and soon, she will fade away.” He finished, then turned back upwards.

Sajin takes a deep breath and rubs his chin. “So…what do you plan to do about it?” he asked.

“Not sure yet. My zanpakutō’s spirit said that, when I’m ready, I need to somehow place her into ‘my’ inner world, with him.”

Sajin quickly looks back at him. “Can that be done?! Having two zanpakutō spirits in one inner world?!” he asked in surprise.

Timothy shrugged his shoulders. “No idea. My zanpakutō’s spirit says it can. He said Captain Kyōraku has a similar situation, two spirits in one world.”

“Yes, but those two spirits are of two zanpakutōs with ‘one’ release. You are talking of having two zanpakutō spirits of two ‘different’ releases in one world. It is not quite the same.” Sajin objects.

“I have no idea myself, Captain. I just know what he told me. The simple answer is that I have to somehow introduce her in my inner world before she dies.” Timothy concluded.

Sajin leaned back with crossed arms and sighs. “We can look into this matter later. For now, there is another matter we must discuss, one that you will almost certainly not be happy with.”

Timothy turns back to him. “What now?” he moaned.

Sajin takes a breath before answering. “By order of the Head Captain, he has promoted you to the Lieutenant of Squad 7.” He announced.

Silence followed while the two men stared at each other. After a moment, Timothy chuckled.

“Very funny, Captain. Really, what is the terrible news?” he asked.

Sajin kept his stare, now serious. Timothy started to sweat. “You’re not joking…are you?” he asked in worry.

Sajin slowly shook his head. “No, I am not.” He confirmed.

Timothy was now wide eyed. “What?! Why?!” he demanded.

Sajin took another breath. “The Head Captain views you as an asset for our upcoming fight with Aizen. He thinks it prudent that you be trained up as a senior officer. Even I must admit that you possess the skills of a senior officer.”

“Ok, put me as a 3rd seat, or something! Not a damn Lieutenant! Last I heard, there weren’t any open Lieutenant spots anyway! Are they really going to put ‘two’ Lieutenants in one squad?!” he asked in panic.

Sajin sighed and rubbed his temples. He really hoped that Timothy wouldn’t take the news that hard, but he was not so lucky this time.

“Tetsuzaemon with be temporarily transferred to Squad 5, seeing as their current Lieutenant is here in Squad 4’s care. With Aizen turning against us, and Lieutenant Hinamori in a coma, the squad does not have any senior officers to lead them. Once Lieutenant Hinamori recovers, Tetsuzaemon will return to Squad 7. After that, I suppose you two will work together as the squad’s Lieutenants.” Sajin clarifies.

“Ok, so what if I refuse?” Timothy ties.

“I am afraid that will be out of the question. This is an order from the Head Captain, and not one that he normally has the authority to do.”

Timothy rose a brow. “What do you mean?”

Sajin lowered his hand to his knee. “Assignment, and promotions of personnel within a squad resides within the authority of its Captain; and, under extreme circumstances, Central 46. The Head Captain does not have the authority to make such changes. He may plead to Central 46 for a change, but cannot directly affect the positions within a squad. However, with the Central 46 members murdered by Aizen, and with the wartime protocols, the Head Captain now has the authority of Central 46 until it has been reinstated with new members. To put it simple, the Head Captain ‘is’ Central 46. He used this authority to assign your promotion to Lieutenant.” Sajin answers.

Timothy slaps his hand to his face. “Just great. I didn’t even want 5th seat, and now I’m being forced to be a Lieutenant? Just perfect.” He complained.

“It won’t be that bad, Timothy. I’ll be there to instruct you and help you out. You really shouldn’t doubt yourself. I can see that you are a fast learner, and that you are always trying to help others. You were the one who stood up to Squad 11 in Rukongai. You knew what the consequences would be for attacking soul reapers while you were there, yet you still stood up to them and defended the residents. These are the kind of actions a leader takes. Whether or not you choose to see it, you do indeed have the makings of a good officer. You just need to get past your doubts and ‘see’ yourself as a good officer.” Sajin encouraged.

Timothy gave a deep sigh. “That’s not the point, Captain. I’ve already failed one person, and look where that got her.” He turned back to him. “I don’t think I could stand failing another person.”

Sajin then gave him a serious glare. “If that is how you feel, then you shouldn’t have become a soul reaper in the first place. You may not have noticed, but it is not ‘only’ the officers who run the risk of failing someone. Every soul reaper bears that risk. Every day, even if they are not on an assignment, soul reapers constantly live with the risk that they may fail someone.”

Sajin pauses and takes a deep breath, lowering his gaze. “That fact is Timothy, you cannot save everyone. When you receive your first assignment to the world of the living, there ‘will’ be times where you cannot save a soul from a hollow. There will be a time where a comrade will fall in combat. Things like these are unavoidable and cannot be stopped.”

He then looked back at him. “So instead of worrying about those you may fail, worry about becoming better so that you might ‘not’ fail them.” He finished. Timothy turned back to the sky and sighed. “We should return.” Sajin stated.

Timothy sighed again and nodded. “Yes sir.” he answered in a low voice.

Sajin stood up and began wheeling Timothy back to the building. “And by the way.” He started. Timothy glanced back at him as Sajin looked down to him. “You should be glad that the Head Captain didn’t do what he, supposedly, considered doing.”

Timothy rose a brow. “Why?”

Sajin looked back forward. “According to what Captain Kyōraku told me, the Head Captain had considered making you a Captain, if not for the short amount of time you have been with us.”

Timothy dropped his head and moaned. “I’m ‘really’ starting to hate that guy.” He complained.

Sajin chuckled at his remark. “Congratulations, ‘Lieutenant Durn.’” He teased.

Timothy glanced back at him. “Don’t make me hate you too, Captain.” He threatened.

Sajin lightly laughed as they came to the door. “I don’t believe that I would enjoy that, Timothy.” He returned as he slid the door open and pushed Timothy back inside.

** Squad 11 Headquarters, Seireitei, Present **

Captain Zaraki laid on his side behind his desk, head propped up with his arm and facing away from the door. He was currently catching a nap while Yachiru laid on the floor in front of the desk drawing.

Normally, the bloodthirsty Captain held an emotionless face while he rested. But today, his face had a slight grin to it. Ever since he had his fight with Timothy, he constantly found himself in a good mood.

Ichigo was strong, one of the few people who had ever defeated him in combat. But the problem he faced was that Ichigo lived in the living world, a place where Zaraki couldn’t get to him when he wanted.

But now, enter Timothy Durn. Sure, he may have lost to Captain Zaraki, but boy did he give Zaraki one hell of a fight. One that the Captain really enjoyed. And what could make that even better? The fact that he was a soul reaper that lived ‘here’ in the soul society.

Sure, the man’s fighting style and zanpakutō abilities were a hell of a nuisance, and in his opinion, a cowardly way to fight; but a fight was a fight, regardless of how it was fought. Even he had to admit that the main reason the kid lost was because he had fought too hard and tired himself out.

But nonetheless, Zaraki now had a sparing partner that he could easily access whenever he wanted. He would just need to rile the guy up a bit and get him to fight. Albeit that he’s not as strong as Ichigo, but he’s definitely more willing than Ichigo is.

His nap was interrupted by a solid knock on his office door before it was opened and two men walk in. Yachiru looks up at the men, then smiles at them.

“Hey! It’s Baldy and Yun-Yun!” she yells, then turns back to Zaraki. “Hey Kenny! Baldy and Yun-Yun are here!” she then turns back to the visitors. “Did you bring me candy?!” she finishes.

“No, I didn’t bring you any candy, runt.” The bald man answered.

Ikkaku Madarame, the 3rd seat of Squad 11, was Captain Zaraki’s right hand man. Although being a man of normal height, and over half a foot shorter than Zaraki, he shared a similar love for fighting that the Captain possessed.

While he was a 3rd seat, it was well known throughout the Seireitei that Ikkaku’s skills and fighting abilities were easily at the level of a Lieutenant, if not a bit higher. And the man would love to be the squad’s Lieutenant, if not for a particular pink haired ‘menace’ that always got on his nerves.

“Really, Lieutenant. Giving you anything that contains sugar is a bad idea in general. Seeing you while you’re hyper is so unsightly.” The second man replied with a slightly feminine-like voice.

The second man was Yumichika Ayasegawa, the squad’s 5th seat and Zaraki’s ‘left’ hand man. Yumichika was also Ikkaku’s closest friend and was rarely seen without him. Almost a half foot shorter than Ikkaku, Yumichika’s skills were nearly on par with his.

He could easily have taken the 4th seat right under Ikkaku, but due to his aesthetics, he viewed the written form of the number ‘four’ to be ‘unsightly’. Instead, he chose 5th seat simply because the symbol for ‘five’ looked similar to the symbol for ‘three’. His decision, however, has also given him an advantage in combat a few times, seeing as how most opponents would tend to misjudge his skills.

Zaraki slightly rolled back and turned his head to the pair, dropping his grin.

“What do you two want? Can’t you see I’m resting?” he stated in annoyance.

Both men stop in front of his desk. “Sorry Captain, but we wanted to ask you about your fight.” Ikkaku pressed.

“Yes, from what I heard, it was a beautiful encounter.” Yumichika added.

Zaraki’s grin returned, then he turned back to the wall. “Yeah, you could say that.” He answered.

“Yeah! Kenny had lots of fun with Zippy!” Yachiru furthered in glee.

Ikkaku turned to her with a raised brow. “Zippy?”

Yumichika scoffs at hearing it a second time. “Such an ugly name. No beauty in it at all.”

Ikkaku glances at his friend. “When you think about it, none of the Lieutenant’s nicknames are good.” He commented lowly.

A vein pulsed in the Lieutenant’s head before she leaped off the floor and lands on Ikkaku’s head, biting his bald surface.

“Hey! Get off me, you stupid runt! Quit biting me! Get off!” Ikkaku yelled as Yumichika gently shakes his head at the scene.

“Really, must you fight like this? This is so disgusting to watch.” Yumichika stated.

Zaraki turned back to the trio. “Hey! Knock it off! I’m trying to rest here! If you two wanna argue, do it somewhere else!” he yelled.

Yachiru then let go of ‘Baldy’s’ head and landed back on the floor, continuing her drawing session. Ikkaku growled at her and wiped his head off with his sleeve before returning to the Captain.

“Anyway Captain, so this guy is that good?” Ikkaku asked.

Zaraki didn’t move when he answered, but he still had his grin. “Yeah, he was good enough for me. That guy’s got balls, I’ll definitely give him that.”

The two friends glanced at each other a second, then turned back. “Did he really force you to remove your patch, Captain?” Ikkaku asked, a little skeptical.

His answer came in the form of Zaraki chuckling evilly. “Oh yeah. He may not look like much, but he’s got it where it counts.”

Ikkaku grinned at the man’s reply. “Is that so, Captain? I guess I’ll have to see for myself, huh.”

Zaraki turned back to him. “You better not hold back on him, Ikkaku. He might put you on the ground if you do, and you better not come back here if he does.” He threatened.

Ikkaku flinched at the man’s tone. “Uh, yes Captain.” He returned, his skepticism quickly dropping.

“Good. Now get outta here so I can rest a while.” Zaraki demanded.

“Yes sir.” the two friends replied, then turned and left the office.

Yachiru glanced back at Zaraki. “Do you think Baldy is gonna go look for Zippy, Kenny?” she asked.

Zaraki turned back to the wall and scoffed. “I wouldn’t doubt it. If he does, he better win.” He again threatened.

“Oooohhh. Sounds like Baldy’s gonna have fun too!” she observed with glee before turning back to her drawings.

** Conference Room, Las Noches, Hueco Mundo, Present **

Three individuals, two women and one man, found themselves, yet again, having to attend one of Aizen’s many meetings. It seemed to them that he tended to have one almost every single day lately.

The man was currently sitting in the chair closest to the doorway on the right side, his upper body sprawled out over the large, elongated table…snoring. The blonde woman was sitting in the chair next to him with her arms crossed under her, quite voluptuous chest, eyes closed in deep thought.

The last woman, one with long, teal hair, and also possessing a rather large chest herself, was sitting on the arm of the chair next to the blonde woman, supported with her arms. She had her head tilted back and seemed to be staring at an invisible spot on the ceiling.

All three remained silent for a while as they waited for their comrades to show up, until the teal haired woman sighed and spoke up.

“I am so tired of all these stupid meetings. Every day it’s the same thing: who we are going to duel against, scouting reports out on the dunes, more blah blah blah about Aizen’s plans…it just doesn’t end.” She complained.

The blonde opened her eyes a bit and glanced at her. “I would advise you tread carefully on what you say about Lord Aizen’s matters, Nel. You should be aware that he does not think kindly on such disrespect.”

Nel gruffly sighed and nodded with a dropped head. “Yeah, I know Tier. It’s just…” she paused and sighed again before returning to her ‘spot’ on the ceiling.

Tier rose a brow at her. “Just what?” she asked with a hint of concern.

Nel swiftly stood up and dropped back down in the same chair, tossing her legs onto the table and crossing them.

“I don’t know…I’m just not…” she paused again and started running her fingers through her hair. “I’m loyal to Lord Aizen, make no mistake on that. But…I just don’t really…agree with his…methods?” she stated, wondering if the word was the right one to choose.

Tier turned back front and closed her eyes with a sigh. Her and Nel were the only females in the group of espadas. Although they were not very close friends, and in fact had a few disagreements between them, they both knew that in the world of Hueco Mundo, they needed to look out for each other.

Living as a hollow was exceptionally difficult, most especially for females. The weak almost always became the next meal for the strong. And it was well known, yet also quite unfortunate, that females were normally weaker than males.

Female Adjuchas were not that common, and were usually picked off fairly quickly; but a female Vasto Lorde was rare. It became instinct, and a form of necessity for multiple female hollows to band up in order to survive. Even then, is was very challenging. Even as Arrancars, and as Aizen’s Espada, the two of them needed to watch each other’s backs.

“It shouldn’t matter what Lord Aizen’s ‘methods’ are, Nel. Whatever Lord Aizen requires of us, it is our duty to see it done. Regardless of how we feel about it.” Tier cautioned.

Nel turned to her companion. “Yeah, but don’t you feel…I don’t know…just a little bad about what his plans are?”

She slightly jumped when the man next to Tier snorted loudly in his sleep, remained silent for a moment, then resumed his entourage of snores. Tier turned to him in annoyance.

“That man can be so annoying sometimes.” She stated, then turned back to Nel. “And to answer your question, no. His plans do not phase me, because I simply do not care. I am thankful to Lord Aizen for what he has done for me, as should you be.” She concluded.

Their conversation was interrupted by the rest of their companions walking into the room. Nel removed her feet from the table and sat up straight as the rest of the espada surrounded the table and took their seats.

Nel turned to the man with blue hair, who took the seat next to her. “Good afternoon, Grimmjow.” She greeted with a small smile.

The man lightly scoffed and waved her off. “Yeah, whatever, Nelliel.” He shot back.

The large group heard the doors close, getting their attention…and waking the sleeping man…to see Aizen walk down the steps with Gin and Kaname at his sides. The latter two broke off and stood back a bit while Aizen sat down in his chair, at the head of the table, with his head propped up with a gently closed fist.

“Good afternoon, my dear espada.” He greeted in his ‘kind’ voice. The espada all nodded back to him, minus a couple ‘temperamental’ ones. “Today, we have something important to discuss. A slight change in my plans, if you will. Kaname?” he paused.

The former Captain nodded before reaching next to him and pulling down a small lever. A small section in the center of the table parted away, letting a small device rise up, and illuminate a holographic image.

The espadas looked at the image to see a playing video of sorts, featuring two men dueling each other like their lives depended on it. One man was clearly at least a foot taller than the other, but what really caught their attention was what the smaller man was doing.

The video kept replaying itself over and over, being only around fifteen to twenty seconds long, but the smaller man seemed to be…vanishing, then reappearing somewhere else, usually behind the taller man.

The actions seemed to confuse most of them, but what baffled them more were the numerous floating flames scattered around the field.

“What is this technique that the smaller man is using? It is clearly ‘not’ a flash step.” A black man on the left side asked.

“Yeah, and what is up with those flames everywhere?” the former sleeping man followed.

Aizen grinned as he looked at the two speakers, then closed his eyes. “You are correct, Zommari. That is indeed ‘not’ flash step. To put it simple, he is teleporting.” This gained everyone’s attention. “And to answer your question Stark, those flames are how he does it. Those flames are similar to beacons; objects that he uses to teleport to. The teleportation is so fast, one is unable to sense his spiritual pressure while he is changing locations. In fact, he can make clones of himself by constantly shifting from one location, to another, and back in very quick succession. This technique is quite similar to your Gemelos Sonido, Zommari.”

Tier narrowed her gaze a bit at the image. “Who is this man?”

Aizen opened his eyes to a slit at her. “His name is Timothy Durn, and as of two days ago, he is the new Lieutenant of Squad 7. The man you see him fighting is none other than Captain Kenpachi Zaraki of Squad 11, the most powerful fighter in the soul society; for the exception of the Head Captain of course. What you see here is Timothy Durn fighting Captain Zaraki ‘before’ he has released.”

Nel turned to him. “What do you mean ‘before’? Isn’t his zanpakutō released to allow him to use those abilities?” she asked in confusion.

Everyone else turned to Aizen for the answer as well, who simply smiled more. “If he were a normal case, that would be true. However, Timothy Durn is a special case. That zanpakutō that you see him using is actually not a zanpakutō, but a failed experiment. It is a simple sword that contains the soul of a pitiful human that has been converted into a zanpakutō spirit by the Hōgyoku. Timothy Durn is able to use that spirit’s abilities at a reduced effectiveness without releasing it.”

Nel’s eyes slightly widened. “What do you mean converted? You mean you used the Hōgyoku to turn a human soul into a zanpakutō?” she asked in worry.

Aizen glanced at her and slightly narrowed his gaze before closing his eyes again. “Indeed. In fact, I believe that the soul in particular was once the man’s wife, when they were alive.”

Her eyes widened further, and Tier’s did a little as well. “Forgive me Lord Aizen, isn’t that a little…cruel?” Tier asked cautiously.

Aizen then glanced at Tier a moment before returning to Nel. “Not at all. That soul is nothing more than a failed experiment. Now, shall we move on?” he asked while giving a slight gesture to Kaname to continue.

Nel sat back and lowered her head in shame. Sure, she was a hollow, and hollows devoured human souls without any remorse or ever thinking back on it. But what Aizen did was just simple and needless cruelty.

She had little love for humans, and absolutely none for soul reapers, but one doesn’t do something as heartless as that. Take someone’s loved one, turn them into something else, then leave them with the pain? No one deserved that, not even an enemy.

The image vanished, then a new video appeared, this one a few seconds longer than the last. This time, everyone looked to see that now the short man, Timothy Durn, had someone fighting with him against the tall Captain.

Once again, the viewers were shocked. The person fighting next to Timothy looked to be an anthropomorphic animal, completely covered in flames.

“Who, or ‘what’ is that?” Grimmjow asked, pointing at the flaming being.

“That, is the spirit, now released.” Aizen answered.

Nel’s eyes bulged from their sockets as the words ran through her mind. The man’s wife, was turned into that? Tier was wrong. This was ‘not’ cruel, this was absolute evil. She could feel tears starting to form on the sides of her eyes, so she quickly rubbed her face to hide them.

Tier glanced at her, and while she didn’t have as strong of feelings regarding the matter, she still felt that Aizen’s actions were uncalled for as well.

Nel could remember from her days as a Vasto Lorde the unmistakable feeling of emptiness that every hollow felt. The emptiness of not possessing a heart, a soul. After she had become an Arrancar, that feeling had gone away.

Now, after seeing what Aizen had done, she was feeling something she thought to be much worse. A deep, throbbing pain within her chest. The man may be a soul reaper, but she simply couldn’t help but feel terrible for the man.

Unknowing to her, Aizen had caught her action of rubbing tears away, and narrowed his gaze before continuing.

“The man is able to release the spirit, then reseal it with a barrier-type kidō. When he releases the spirit, it takes on a physical form in the real world. Normally, a zanpakutō’s spirit can materialize next to its master, if its master has gained dominance over it. However, the zanpakutō’s spirit cannot participate in combat with its master, except for only a very few cases with particular spirits. An example of such a case would be Captain Sajin Komamura of Squad 7 with his Kokujō Tengen Myō.” He paused to let the information soak in, maintaining his watch on Nel.

“When the spirit is released, the overall abilities are improved: he can create more flames, can now move them around, albeit slowly, and they will cause those who touch them to be set on fire and burned. The flames that surround the spirit’s body also have this effect. Both the man and the spirit can fight side by side, and can both use the flames at will.” He paused again and lowered his stare on Nel by closing his eyes.

“The man is also quite proficient with kidō, able to use 80’s level hadō and bakudō. He has already defeated both the Captain and former Lieutenant of Squad 7 in combat; and while losing the battle with Captain Zaraki, he did put the man in a medical ward for two days. A task not easy to perform.” Aizen finished.

He glanced back towards Nel to see her with her head held low, but still high enough to see the image.

“So, what do you want us to do about it? You want us to kill em?” the blue haired Espada asked.

“Ha, like you would be able to do that, Grimmjow.” The very tall, and lanky Espada mocked.

Grimmjow looked across the table at the man. “What the hell did you say, Nnoitra?!” he hissed back.

The tall man gave him a wide, toothy smile. “You heard me. I doubt you’d be able to complete such an easy task.” He taunted further.

Tier turned to Nnoitra. Are you really so foolish to start your bickering in front of Lord Aizen? Especially during a meeting?” she inquired.

Aizen turned to the blue-haired man. “No Grimmjow, that won’t be necessary.” He stated, causing the two men to stop their arguing and look at him. “Right now, I am in the process of introducing him into my plans. Ulquiorra…”

The pale Arrancar turned to him. “Yes, Lord Aizen?”

Aizen closed his eyes. “Your pre-assigned mission has already been placed on hold, and will remain so for now.”

Ulquiorra bowed his head. “As you wish, Lord Aizen.” He raised his head as he finished.

“Nnoitra, Szayelaporro…” Aizen continued, getting their attention. “There is a task that I have for you that will allow my plans to proceed further. I will discuss this with you in private, after the meeting. I believe you will find the task to be rather…to your liking.” Aizen stated with a grin, getting one from Nnoitra and Szayelaporro as well.

“Of course, Lord Aizen. I am at your service.” The pink-haired scientist returned.

Aizen closed his eyes again with a smile. “This meeting was to allow you to see the man’s abilities for yourself. As you can see, his fighting style, paired with these abilities, make him a formidable opponent. Rather than fighting the traditional way, by fighting with his physical abilities, he instead fights inside your mind. To be honest, I rather admire this method. If any of you should face him in the future, keep what you have seen today in mind. I have nothing further for you all today. You are all dismissed.”

Everyone, minus Nnoitra and Szayelaporro, stood up from their seats and began filtering out of the room. Nel however, remained seated a moment with her head down before slowly standing up as well and joining her comrades in leaving the room. Aizen’s gaze followed her movements as she slowly walked passed him.

** Los Noches Palace, 10 minutes later **

Nel continued walking through the halls of one of the many palaces with the confines of Los Noches. She walked slowly with her hands held behind her back, head low and deep in thought. She came around the last corner to the hallway where her room was located, but stopped when she noticed someone standing in front of her.

She looked at the person with surprise. “Oh, Tier…what are you doing over here?” she asked.

The blonde Arrancar was leaning against the wall and side glancing her with a serious, but concerned look.

“You should be careful with your feelings, Nel. I may not very much approve of Aizen’s actions regarding a particular matter either; we are, however, still bound to serve Lord Aizen.” Tier warned.

Nel dropped her head again and slowly shook her head. “I know that, but that was still wrong.” She returned to look at her. “Tell me Tier, how would you feel if it was one of your fracción that it had happened to? Apacci? Mila Rose? Sung-Sun?”

Tier narrowed her gaze at the teal haired female. “I would consider your next set of words very carefully, Nel. Do not speak of my fracción in that manner.”

Nel clenched her teeth and gave a light growl, pointing at her. “You would feel horrible, wouldn’t you?! I don’t want to kill humans needlessly, but that does not mean I won’t do it. Like everyone else here, I hate the soul reapers and their soul society. But I would ‘never’ wish such a horrible thing on any of them.”

Tier glared at the finger pointed at her, then back to Nel. “It is no different than what Lord Aizen had done with us. We were Vasto Lorde, and he used the Hōgyoku to turn us into something else. Stop being so naïve, Nel.”

Nel’s temper began to rise. She then pointed at herself forcefully. “We ‘chose’ to be changed! We were ‘asked’ to be changed!” She then pointed behind her. “She did ‘not’ want to be changed! It was forced on her! And her situation is very different than what happened to us, and you know it!”

Tier lifted herself from the wall and stood only a foot from Nel’s face. “You are letting your emotions get the better of you, Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck, and that is a very dangerous thing to do here. Or have you forgotten who and what you are? You are the Quinto Espada; act like it. Now, I would strongly advise that you return to your room and calm yourself, before Lord Aizen decides to take notice to your behavior.” She then walks around the teal haired woman, stopping right next to her and glancing at her with her eyes. “If he hasn’t already.” She finished and continued walking away.

Tier rounded the corner, leaving Nel alone in the empty hallway, her arms to her sides and fists clenched.

“This…is wrong.” She whispered to herself, her fists clenching tighter.

“I thought Harribel warned you to be careful with your emotions.” A low and strained voice said from behind her.

Nel quickly turned around to see another one of her comrades. “Stark? I’m sorry, I wasn’t paying attention and didn’t notice you.” She stated.

Stark leaned sideways against the wall, hands in his pockets, and looked at her with calm, and tired eyes. Nel always enjoyed Stark’s company, especially his fracción, Lilynette. She would oftentimes lounge around in Stark’s room playing games with Lilynette while Stark did what he did best…sleeping. During the odd times when he was awake, the two of them would often play chess, with Nel normally losing.

Tier and Nel were decent friends for the most part, but that was more along the lines of survival than companionship. But Stark had become an Arrancar before she did; and when Nel had come to live in Las Noches, they quickly became close friends. Nel even viewed Lilynette as a little sister at times.

Stark gently waved her off and lead his head against the wall as well. “Is what we saw in the meeting really bothering you that badly?” he asked lowly.

Nel sighed deeply and leaned back against the wall as well with a small thump. “Why did Aizen have to do something like that? It’s not right, not fair. If he needed to experiment, or whatever, fine. But don’t leave people to suffer.” She complained.

Stark stared at her for a moment, then sighed. “Life is never supposed to be fair, Nel. You should know that, being a hollow.”

Nel turned to him with a tear in her eye. “Don’t you feel even the slightest bit of pity?” she asked.

“I’ll admit that Lord Aizen’s actions were not very honorable in that regard, and I may even feel a little sorry for the guy and his woman, but this is war, Nel. Sometimes, things happen, or we may have to do things that don’t please us. That’s just how it is.” He paused and stood straight off of the wall, looking at her. “And I would have to agree with Harribel; you should probably head to your room to calm down a bit and sort these feelings out.” He advised.

Nel dropped her head back against the wall with a thump. “Yeah…I guess. I’ll drop by later, Stark. Perhaps we can have a game between us.” She half offered in a depressed voice.

“Nah, not today, Nel. Lilynette found my best sleeping spot earlier, so now I gotta find a new one.” He replied as he rubbed the back of his head.

Nel lightly smiled at the, most likely, chain of events after he was discovered. Definitely along the lines of him getting kicked over and over and pounced on by Lilynette until he finally woke up.

She glanced over at him. “You know you’re more than welcome to stay in my room. You know I wouldn’t tell.” She offered.

“No…that’s the first place she’d probably look. And besides, when it comes to either me or her, you would choose her. And let’s face it Nel, you’re not exactly resilient to her ‘pleading eyes’. You’d sell me out in a heartbeat.” He half joked.

Nel held a hand over her mouth to stifle a laugh from being called out on.

It was true. While she would gladly try and help Stark out, more for the excitement than to help him get the sleep he really didn’t need; once Lilynette started giving Nel her ‘puppy dog eyes’, she would end up giving in and giving away Stark’s spot. It was her only weakness that the little Arrancar knew quite well, and usually exploited.

“Alright then. I’ll see you later, Stark. Good luck on your…uh, spot hunt.” She said with a wave.

Stark smirked back and turned to leave, giving her a wave over his shoulder before rounding the corner to find his new spot. Nel stood back straight and continued on to her room, only a dozen yards down the hallway.

As she walked into her room, she was greeted by her two fraccións, Pesche and Dondochakka.

“Good afternoon, Master Nel.” They greeted in unison. “How did your meeting with Lord Aizen go?” Pesche added.

They both flinched when they saw the saddened expression on her face.

“Is everything alright, Master Nel?” Dondochakka asked in worry.

She gave them a sweet, but still saddened smile. “Yes, everything’s fine, guys.” She lied.

The two men glanced at each other a moment, then back to her. “Are you sure, Master Nel? You wouldn’t be lying to us, would you?” Pesche asked accusingly.

Nel lightly scoffed. “Yes, Pesche. Everything is fine.” She returned, trying to hint for them to drop the subject.

Luckily, it worked. “Very well, Master Nel.” Pesche said.

“Yeah, we’re just worried about you. Know what I’m talking about?” Dondochakka added.

Nel smiled again and sighed. “I know, thanks you two.” She said, then turned and started walking towards her room. “I’ll be resting a while. Please ensure I am not disturbed.” She instructed.

“Of course, Master Nel.” They replied together.

Nel walked into her room, closing the door behind her, and plopped on her bed, landing with her legs extended over the side and her face buried in her pillow.

She laid there for a moment before turning over to face the ceiling and threw an arm over her forehead. She closed her eyes and gave a deep sigh.

“I don’t know if I can do this anymore.” She lowly whispered before grabbing another pillow and placing it over her face.

She stayed in her position for a while before rolling onto her side, embracing the pillow from her face, and slowly letting sleep take her over.


	12. Promotions and Exiles

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 12

**(Promotions and Exiles)**

** Squad 4 Medical Department, Seireitei, The Next Morning **

Finally, after a long day and restless night of waiting, Timothy was cleared by Captain Unohana to leave and return to his squad. Even though he was only there a few days, he felt that if he had stayed confined to that stupid, uncomfortable bed any longer, he was going to have Susan burn the place down.

_‘Or should I say…Moeru Kitsune…’_ he thought woefully. He stood there next to his ‘former’ bed, head held low, his kosode still open, deep in thought. _‘Is she…really not Susan anymore?’_

The past twelve years since he had come to the soul society, the whole time that he thought his loving wife Susan was right there with him, it was all a lie? She had sounded like her, acted like her, ‘joked’ like her, but wasn’t her? The whole time, the being that was with him all this time was just another being, with her memories?

He slowly fell back and landed sitting down in the bedside chair, ignoring the tinge of pain that shot through his gut as his body collided with the furniture. He rested his elbows on his legs and dropped his head into his hands, his fingers gripping tufts of his dirty blonde hair.

Him and Susan/Moeru Kitsune hadn’t spoken a single word to each other since their very brief talk the day before. Normally, when Timothy was down or depressed, his companion would jab at him with something perverse, or make fun of him to try and get his mind off the matter; but considering the reason for his current depression, she wisely chose to keep silent.

He continued to ponder on his thoughts for a moment, until a large, solid hand placed itself on his shoulder. Timothy quickly, and lightly jumped at the sudden contact and turned over to see none other than Captain Komamura standing next to him with a slightly concerned look.

“C…Captain Komamura? Uh, I’m sorry sir, I didn’t mean to take so long.” Timothy quickly said.

Sajin patted his shoulder a couple times then waved him off lightly. “It’s fine, Tim. Is everything alright?” he asked as he returned his hand to his side.

“Sir?” Timothy deadpanned with a raised brow.

Sajin crossed his arms. “I called you from the doorway three times, and you didn’t respond. So, I ask again, is everything alright?”

The younger man’s eyes widened a bit at the news. “You did? I apologize, Captain. I didn’t hear you. Uh, yeah, I’m fine sir. Just got a lot on my mind, if you catch my meaning.” He defended.

Sajin nodded. “It’s alright, Tim. I understand your meaning. I came here to sign your release paperwork and walk back to the squad with you. As soon as you have finished getting ready, we may leave.”

Timothy nodded and stood up. “Yes sir, I’ll be just a moment more. Sorry about the wait.” He said as he closed up his top and began wrapping his obi around his waist.

After a moment, Timothy was fully dressed and had slipped both of his weapons in his sash. Giving the furry Captain a curt nod, both men left the room towards the building entrance. As the pair came around the last corner and within sight on the large double doors, Captain Unohana walked out of an observation room, stopping the two officers.

“Ah, Lieutenant Durn, how good it is to see you back on your feet. How are you feeling?” she asked politely with a wide and caring smile.

Timothy gave her a swift, but slow bow. “I’m fine now, Captain. Still a bit sore in the midriff, and quite stiff, but otherwise alright. Thank you for your care maam.” He returned.

She smiled more and nodded kindly. “It is no problem, Lieutenant. Though, I would ask that you try not to make it a habit of being a resident here. Might I recommend not to engage in any more ‘foul play’ with Captain Zaraki?” she politely asked/demanded with her ‘special’ smile.

Timothy, although he could sense her sudden change in demeaner, remained vigilant and nodded. “Of course, maam. I don’t intend on fighting that fool again anytime soon.”

Noticing no change in Timothy’s stance or attitude, Unohana ‘smiled’ even more at him, with even Sajin starting to fret just a little bit. Timothy still kept his stance, now knowing that she was trying to intimidate him. _‘Two can play at that game, Captain.’_

Timothy held his palms up as he shrugged his shoulders. “But then again, if you ever find yourself short of patients Captain, I could always give you a hand with that.” He tossed out.

Unohana opened her eyes to him, giving him her kind/evil stare. “Oh, I don’t really think that will be necessary, Lieutenant. Surely you wouldn’t want to inconvenience my squad with needless casualties, would you?” she stung back, her evil aura gaining in magnitude.

Still, Timothy held firm, and gave her a ‘friendly’ smirk. “Please Captain, why would you think that I would want to inconvenience you? You could always view it as practice.” He returned.

Sajin stared between the two, mostly Timothy, in complete shock. For the exception of Captain Zaraki and the Head Captain, NO ONE dared to stand up to Captain Unohana! Yet, here stands Timothy, solid as a damn rock; and he’s not only standing up to her, he’s standing ‘against’ her!

Unohana rose a brow at Timothy. “Do you believe that my squad needs more practice, Lieutenant?” she asked threateningly.

Timothy inwardly chuckled. _‘Alright, I’ll give her this one.’_ He gave her a bow of the head. “Not at all, Captain. But as you know, ‘practice makes perfect’. You can ‘never’ be good enough when it comes to saving the life of another.” He said, pulling back from his standoff.

Realizing his change of approach, Unohana lowered her evil aura and chuckled. “Yes, that is true, Lieutenant. Very true. Thank you for the offer, though I must advise against it. Please do not over exert yourself, and I would recommend staying with deskwork for the rest of today and tomorrow. Please have a pleasant day, Lieutenant, Captain Komamura.” She concluded.

Both men bowed to her and walked by towards the doorway, Unohana glancing at Timothy after they passed. She stared at him, studying him, as the two Squad 7 officers walked out the doors.

_‘I’m impressed, he shows no fear towards me, and from what I saw the other day, not even the Head Captain. He is obviously a man that has experienced enough fear within his life that he has grown accustomed to it, not allowing it to control him. I believe he will make a fine officer.’_ She thought before giving a light chuckle and turning around to continue on her duties.

Sajin and Timothy continued their walk out the front doors of the medical department towards their squad in momentary silence. The furry Captain glanced over at Timothy to see him with a neutral expression on his face, completely unfazed by his encounter with the female Captain.

He found himself unable to discern whether or not the man was a fool for his lack of fear towards the woman. Even Captains Kyōraku and Ukitake, the oldest and most experienced Captains in the soul society feared the woman when she gave them her ‘loving’ smile.

If Tetsuzaemon was there to witness the conversation, he would have, without any doubt, being berating the new Lieutenant endlessly, calling him a fool. Sajin was actually a little glad that the man wasn’t there at the moment; the last thing Timothy needing right then would be an argument.

Timothy glanced over to see his Captain looking at him with a puzzled face. This caused him to raise a brow.

“Is there something wrong, Captain?” he asked.

Sajin continued his stare for a few seconds longer before turning back front and grunting in acknowledgment. “Not necessarily wrong, but I would like to ask you; do you not fear Captain Unohana, or the Head Captain?” he asked.

Timothy returned forward and tilted his head as he thought about his answer. “Well…not really. I mean…I do respect them, and understand their positions, but I don’t really ‘fear’ them.”

Sajin glanced back to him. “Might I inquire to the reasoning? Surely you do not mean to say that you don’t fear anything?”

The Lieutenant scoffed at the question. “No, there are some things I fear. Let me rephrase; I do ‘fear’ them, but I simply chose not to let that fear take a hold of me. This may have been the first time that I have met either one of them, but I could tell right off the bat that they were both powerful, easily someone I would stand no chance against. Trust me Captain, I’m not a fool on that regard.”

He looked over to see the Captain waiting, expecting more from him. Timothy then turned back front with a heavy sigh. “The truth is Captain, the past twelve years in Fallen Tree were worse than you think. There were quite a few times where I came really close to being killed. I was not a fighter, I actually hated violence. It was because of that, that life was absolute hell for me in the beginning. Every time that someone tried to cause me harm, I became fearful, afraid to die. That fear ruled over me for the first year of my life.” He paused for a moment and sighed again.

“Eventually, I came to the realization that if I kept letting that fear take over like that, then I would, without a doubt, die. I knew that I wouldn’t be able to get rid of that fear, but I also knew that I could push that fear away, lock it away inside me and keep it from interfering. As time moved on, the fear of fighting was no longer a problem; and in fact, the habit of pushing my fear aside transitioned to all of my fears.” He paused again and glanced at Sajin, who returned the look.

“I still feel the fear, Captain; I always will. But I simply choose not to let it get the better of me. I needed to fight to survive in Fallen Tree, and I simply couldn’t afford to let my fears get in the way. All it would do is get me killed.” He finished.

Sajin watched as the man turned back front. _‘So, the fear is still there, but he chooses to block it. That is something that takes most soul reapers decades to learn on their own; yet even then they wouldn’t have the level of control over the emotion that he does.’_

“I see.” Sajin finally answered. “Even so, you should keep in mind that not all fears are inherently evil, Tim.” His statement got the man’s attention.

“What do you mean?” Timothy asked, brow raised.

“What I mean, is that while fear is a negative emotion, it is still a necessary one. Fear is simply your mind telling you that whatever it is, careful consideration should be taken when facing it. If you fear the dark, you would be extra careful when in dark places, this makes you more aware of your surroundings. If you fear losing someone, you would try your hardest to protect them, so that you won’t lose them. If you fear being killed in a fight, you would take extra caution during the fight, watching your foe more closely as to avoid being hit.” He paused for a breath.

“While fear can sometimes hold us back, fear can also help us improve ourselves. If you lock your fears away, never allowing yourself to experience it, then you would likely become complacent. Your skills would falter, and you could get yourself into something that you cannot walk away from. As I have said, fear may be a negative feeling, but it something that we need in order to grow. Holding back your fear in certain circumstances is good, but it shouldn’t be held back all the time.” He concluded.

Timothy watched the man for a second, then turned back and nodded. “I understand, sir. But nonetheless, I refuse to be intimidated by anyone. Intimidation shows weakness.” He countered.

Sajin rose a brow at him. “So, are you saying that you are not intimidated by Head Captain Yamamoto?” he asked in surprise.

Timothy turned his eyes to him. “I respect his power and authority, but I refuse to be looked down upon. He may have the power to force me to the ground without so much as lifting a finger, but I will not allow him to break my resolve. Even if I find myself unable to stand in his presence, I will not back down. You can call me a fool as much as you like Captain, but this is who I am, and I doubt anything will change it.”

Sajin then stopped his walk, causing Timothy to do the same while he stared at him with a serious glare. “You are indeed a fool if you believe yourself able to stand up against the Head Captain, Tim. I greatly respect that you will not allow yourself to be intimidated, and that you have your fears under control; but make no mistake, should you decide to stand up to Head Captain Yamamoto, you will find yourself suffering more pain and anguish that you could possibly imagine. I strongly suggest you heed my warning, Tim.” he stated in a stern tone.

Timothy closed his eyes sighed with a nod. “Thank you for your warning, Captain. I will keep it in mind. But never actually said that I could take on the Head Captain. I am fully aware that he could kill me before I had a chance to even draw my zanpakutō. Trust me, I have absolutely no intention of ever fighting the man.”

Sajin continued his stare for a moment before nodding slightly and gesturing for them to continue walking. Timothy offered a bow of the head and resumed walking with the man. The pair continued on in silence until they returned to the squad headquarters.

** Las Noches, Hueco Mundo, Present **

Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck was partially enjoying her morning on her couch, one of her favorite books in her hand and lightly skimming over the words. Her two fracción were currently somewhere else in the palace walking around, most likely engaging in conversation with one of the other Espada’s fracción.

Lord Aizen had not called for any meetings that particular morning, and nothing else was scheduled for the day; for the exception of a couple assigned duels between certain Espadas that she was not involved in. So, unless Aizen decided to bring up a surprise meeting or assign her to a duty, she essentially had the entire day to herself.

Normally, if the rare chance where nothing was happening, such as this, she preferred to sit down somewhere and read one of her books, or go for long walks with her fracción; provided that the Sexta Espada, Nnoitra, didn’t decide to hound her again.

While the majority of the Espada got along and had a common understanding, Nnoitra Gilga for some reason absolutely despised Nelliel, always trying to goad her into fighting him to the death. He had succeeded in getting her to fight a few times, but had never once won against her. In fact, he never even once forced her to release her Resurrección.

Nelliel hated fighting and would gladly try her hardest to prevent conflict, but that didn’t mean that she wouldn’t fight if she had to.

Although she had a book in her hands and was following the words, she wasn’t really paying attention to what the words were saying. She was actually lost in deep thought over the contents of the meeting from the day before.

Every Espada within Aizen’s ranks bore a certain trait, known as an aspect of death; each one unique and that governed the individual Espada’s personality and power. Nelliel’s aspect of death, was Loyalty.

It was because of her aspect that she was fiercely loyal and devoted to Aizen and the rest of the Espada, especially her own fracción. But now she found her loyalty being severely tested after seeing the cruelty behind Aizen’s methods.

She discovered that she no longer wanted to be a part of his plans, wanting to stay out of them. But she also knew that that was not an option; she was expected to perform her duties, regardless of the actions that she would be forced to take.

She was beginning to wonder if her loyalty was placed in the wrong direction, to the wrong person. No matter what Aizen required of her, she absolutely refused to ever do anything like what Aizen had done to the poor soul she saw in the recordings yesterday.

She lightly snapped her book closed, dropping the arm holding it into her lap as she dropped her head back with closed eyes.

_‘What do I do? I could never do anything so heartless as that. It’s wrong…so wrong.’_ She thought sadly.

Her train of thought was broken by a gentle knock on her door. She lowered her head back level, keeping her eyes closed and sighed.

“Come in.” she answered in a gentle tone.

The door opened and a pink haired Arrancar with a mask that resembled glasses walked in with his hands clasped behind his back.

“Good morning to you, miss Odelschwanck. I hope that I have not disturbed you.” He greeted with a chipper voice and a smile on his face.

Nelliel halfway opened her eyes to the man to see it was one of her comrades, Szayelaporro Granz, the Noveno Espada.

In addition to each Espada bearing a unique aspect of death, some of the Espadas also had certain responsibilities within Los Noches; Szayelaporro’s specific job within Aizen’s army was research and laboratory work. He was Aizen’s ‘scientist’.

While Nelliel respected each and every one of the Espada, to even include Nnoitra, she did not care too much for the man. His presence always gave her a chilling feeling deep inside and she was always cautious around him.

She gave a shallow sigh and closed her eyes again. “Good morning, Szayelaporro. Is there something you needed from me?” she asked politely.

The edge of the man’s mouth raised just a fraction. “For me? No.” he replied in a mocked tone of surprise. “I had only come to inform you that Lord Aizen had requested your presence later this afternoon. He had asked me to inform you to meet with him at the grand balcony at two this afternoon.” He stated.

Nel opened her eyes back to him with a raised brow. “Lord Aizen wishes to see me? Did he happen to say what he wanted to discuss?” she interrogated.

Normally she could read others and get a rough feeling of their intentions, but even after spending so much time being in the same faction as him, she was still unable to get any form of reading from him. He was a very difficult person to decipher.

“I am afraid not, Miss Odelschwanck. He did not reveal any details to me; he merely asked me to inform you of the summons.” He answered with a low bow, arm across his chest.

Nel watched his movements closely, trying to find anything from the man by his posture, but finally sighed in defeat as she nodded.

“Very well. Thank you for coming to tell me, Szayelaporro. I will meet with him at the mentioned time. If you have nothing further for me, I kindly ask that you leave me be; for I have things I must attend to before I meet with him.” She concluded.

Szayelaporro’s smile grew just a bit as he bowed once again. “Of course, Miss Odelschwanck. My apologies for the interruption. I shall take my leave now.” He finished as he raised himself and left the room.

After the door closed and she was sure that he was no longer close by, she sighed heavily and looked at the small clock the hung on the wall near the door. Seeing that it was late in the morning, almost noon, she still had a couple hours before she would have to go meet with Aizen.

She began to ponder as to what Lord Aizen could want to see her for. Besides asking her to complete a special task, or to discuss her behavior during yesterday’s meeting, nothing was coming to mind.

She gave up the thought as she set her book aside on the seat next to her and stood up. “Well…” she started in a whisper as she stretched her arms out wide to get rid of the stiffness. “I guess I’ll take a walk while I clear my head.” She finished as she dropped her arms to her side.

She picked up her zanpakutō, Gamuza, and slipped it into her sash on her left side, adjusting the sash to be more presentable. Once she had finished, she walked out of her room, closing the door behind her, to begin her walk and look for her fracción.

** Squad 7 Headquarters, Seireitei, One Hour Later **

Timothy sat down on one of the couches in the Captain’s office with a table pulled up close to him, a moderately sized stack of paperwork sitting on top as he read the forms over; signing them once he had confirmed everything on it was correct.

Although he was now the squad’s Lieutenant, he knew that Tetsuzaemon would be returning to the squad eventually, so he didn’t want to disturb anything on the man’s desk. Sajin was sitting behind his own desk completing his own stacks of paperwork, a cup of warm tea sitting next to him.

Per the ‘doctor’s request’, Sajin decided that now was the best opportunity to introduce Timothy to how the paperwork was handled at the Lieutenant’s level. Essentially, Timothy found that the paperwork part of the job was not as bad as he thought it would be.

Sure, there was a whole lot more of it than when he was a 5th seat, but now he simply had to read over the forms and make sure they were correct, rather than having to fill the forms out himself. He was pleased to see that the method he had introduced to Minato about reorganizing the list of entries on the forms had been incorporated, making his job all that much easier.

He currently held two forms, one in each hand, as he compared the two together, looking for any discrepancies. It was then that Timothy lifted his head to Sajin.

“Captain.” He started, getting the man’s attention. “I know I’ve only been your Lieutenant for a couple of hours, but might I make a suggestion?” he asked.

Sajin put down the form in his hand and nodded. “Go ahead, and you may speak freely, knowing you would most likely ask for it.” He answered.

Timothy gave him a light chuckle. “Already know me that well, do you?” he asked with a smirk.

The furry Captain chuckled as well and returned the smirk. “You are easy to read, Tim. You try to be respectful, but you always feel that you need to get your point across. So, what is it?” he returned.

The Lieutenant lightly scoffed and nodded. “True. Anyway, as it currently stands, our 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th…well I guess 7th seat now that Minato got promoted, but they are all currently empty.” He paused, and Sajin nodded for him to go on. Timothy set the forms in his hands down and crossed his arms. “Well, that’s four empty top seats, top leadership that we are lacking. We need to fill those spots, Captain.” He advised.

Sajin sighed, then nodded. “I agree; however, we do not have anyone with the ability to fill those respective positions. 6th seat Minato was promoted because he has shown great improvement with his leadership skills, as well as some improvement with his overall combat skills.”

Timothy nodded. “I agree. During the couple of days that I worked with him, he’s shown a greater interest in training the other members. But the problem still stands, Captain; we need to fill those positions. We may not have anyone with the power worthy of the spots, but there are some members with the knowledge and leadership skills worthy of the positions.” He pointed out.

Sajin rose a brow. “Are you suggesting promoting individuals without the necessary combat skills?” he asked cautiously.

The Lieutenant sighed and leaned back on the couch. “Captain, which one is more difficult to teach; combat skills, or leadership skills?” he rose a finger. “The answer is leadership skills.” He answered himself as he dropped the finger. “Sure, you can teach the certain aspects of the job, but you cannot teach them experience. Experience in combat may take a little while to learn, but the experience of a true leader takes even longer.” He paused for effect.

Sajin dropped his arms to his lap and nodded. “So, what is your suggestion?” he asked, trying to get to the point.

Timothy held his hand out to him, palm up. “My suggestion, is promote those that show promise ‘as a leader’. They may not be up to par in regards to spiritual power and abilities, but we can at least get them started in learning what it means to be a leader. Sure, we can train the whole squad to be at the power of a 3rd seat, but it won’t mean shit to us if they don’t know what it means to be a leader. We need to put them in that position so that they can gain that experience. At least, that’s my thinking.”

The Captain rose a brow at his explanation. Afterall, the man did have a very valid point. The squad may not have anyone with the skills to fill the positions, but there were some who had the makings of a good leader. And at this point, the squad was really hurting with the low amount of mid-level leadership.

“In that case, who would you suggest? I am guessing that you have someone in mind?” Sajin asked.

Timothy scratched his chin for a moment. “I have a couple of people in mind; people who I have seen to possess the potential of being a leader. Might I suggest something like a trial period? Not necessarily promote them, but place them in that position for a certain amount of time and see how they pan out?” he offered.

Sajin rubbed his chin as he thought over the man’s proposal. “Very well.” He answered as he dropped his hand. “We will give this suggestion of yours a try, Tim. They will not be promoted at this time, but they will be given the responsibility of the position. I will give them one month to prove their abilities as leaders. I will also expect you to speak with those you have in mind and discuss this matter. Should they choose to accept, they will be assigned as the ‘acting’ seated officers. But…” he paused and held a finger towards him. “This will be your responsibility, Tim. If this trial period does not work out, you will be held accountable for it. Is that understood?” he asked in a serious tone.

Timothy nodded back to him with a solid face. “Yes sir, I understand. Once I have spoken with them, I will tell you who they are. I don’t want to put anyone’s name on a platter until they have accepted.”

Sajin nodded in understanding. “Very well.” He concluded as he dropped his hand. “Now, with that matter discussed, I should tell you about your response team.”

The Lieutenant rose a brow. “Okay?”

“Captain Hitsugaya payed a visit to me yesterday; and as of this morning, his selected team is no longer in the world of the living. I had informed him that the response team will remain on call for another week. If nothing further is heard about this hollow we’ve been looking for by then, the team will be disbanded. You are still in charge of that team, so please keep that in mind when you speak to your proposed officer candidates.” Sajin instructed.

Timothy nodded back. “Understood. What about our extra members assigned to the living world? Any plans to recall them?”

“As for right now, no; they will remain there until further notice. I know that you are restricted to desk work until after tomorrow, but I would advise you get with the members of the team. Get to know them and discuss strategies.” The Captain advised.

“Agreed, sir. I’ll get with them later today, after the paperwork is finished.” Timothy stated.

They were interrupted by a knock on the office door. “You may enter.” Sajin answered.

The door opened and Tetsuzaemon walked in, giving Timothy a quick glance.

“I see you’ve already started working on your new job, huh?” he asked in a gruff tone.

Timothy shrugged his shoulders. “Just the paperwork portion so far, not much else. I’m under ‘desk arrest’ for today and tomorrow.” He joked.

Tetsuzaemon snorted at his remark. “So why aren’t you using your desk? You’re the Lieutenant after all, right?”

Timothy rose a brow. “Because it’s still ‘your’ desk. If I remember right, you’re only going to be with the 5th Squad for a while, then you come back, right?” The man nodded. “Well, that makes it ‘still’ your desk; and I didn’t want to mess anything you had on it up. The couch is just fine for me, Lieutenant. Or, would it be better to address you by your name instead?” he pressed.

Tetsuzaemon scoffed again. “Yeah, I guess you can just address me by my name. Though I still expect you to show the proper respect; even as peers.” He advised.

Timothy nodded in understanding. “Got it. So, what brings you here, Tetsuzaemon?”

The man turned to the Captain. “Just here to pick up a few things from my desk; and to get away from the massive headache called ‘paperwork’.” He air quoted.

Sajin rose a brow. “I see it’s worse than we thought.” He observed.

Tetsuzaemon shook his head. “You have no idea, Captain. The squad’s 3rd and 4th seats tried their hardest to keep up with it, but it’s been steadily falling behind. And if the paperwork wasn’t bad enough, the whole squad is in complete shambles.”

Timothy looked at him with worry. “That bad huh?” he asked.

Tetsuzaemon gave a serious nod to him. “Oh yeah. With Aizen turning traitor, Lieutenant Hinamori in the hospital, and the 3rd and 4th seats occupied with endless paperwork, the leadership in the squad is almost nonexistent. Some of the mid-level officers, and most of the lower officers have transferred over to another squad. The only mid-level officers I have, besides the 3rd and 4th seats are the 6th and 9th seats. The 5th seat transferred to Squad 8, the 7th seat to Squad 13, and both the 8th and 10th seats went to Squad 6.”

Timothy rose a brow. “They allowed them to transfer to other squads with how bad they’re hurting?!” he asked in shock.

Tetsuzaemon nodded. “Because of the lack of a Captain and a Lieutenant, the 3rd seat was the acting Captain; and he’s a bit of a softie. He let them go without any argument. If things keep going like this, the Head Captain may as well just shut down the entire squad; cut the losses and send the members to other squads.”

“I don’t believe that would be necessary, Tetsuzaemon.” Sajin spoke up, getting both Lieutenants’ attention. “The squad may be under extreme duress due to lack of leadership, but don’t give up on them yet. The Head Captain personally assigned you to take over affairs in the squad, so that means that he has trust in you that you will be able to get the squad back on its feet.” Sajin offered, then stood up tall.

“Should you find yourself needing help or guidance, do not hesitate to come back to me for help. With the Head Captain, I also have trust in you that you can get the job done. Do not be so ready do doubt yourself, Tetsuzaemon.” He reassured.

The man nodded. “Yes, Captain. I need to grab my things and return to the squad.” He then turned to Timothy. “As for you Durn, and I’m sure this is a lot to ask for, but don’t burn the place down.”

Timothy scoffed at him. “If I burn anything around here Tetsuzaemon, I’ll be sure to start with your desk. Toss me a message or something when you get done with your mountain of paperwork; I’ll buy ya a drink or two.” He retorted.

Tetsuzaemon grunted with a smirk. “You burn my desk, I’ll burn your face, Durn.” He taunted.

Timothy rose a brow and grinned. “Last time I checked, I beat you in our last fight; damn near scorched your ass.”

“Ha! You didn’t beat shit! The Captain stopped that fight because you were a fool.” He returned.

“No…the Captain ‘saved’ your ass! If he hadn’t of stepped in, you would have spent the next five years in the hospital, and you know it!” Timothy clarified.

“He has a point, Tetsuzaemon.” Sajin interjected, causing the man with shades to snap to him.

“Captain! Are you seriously going to defend him like that?!” Tetsuzaemon barked.

Sajin simply rose a brow, wordlessly asking the man ‘Really?’.

After a moment, Tetsuzaemon finally caved in with a sigh. “Fine.”

Timothy snickered at his victory in the verbal conflict with the man. Tetsuzaemon quickly turned back to him.

“This ain’t over, Durn. We’ll have a rematch soon enough.” He threatened.

Timothy waved him off. “Yeah yeah, anytime you want your ass handed to ya, just give me a call. I’ll try to make sure I don’t embarrass you too badly.” He teased.

The man growled back at him and walked over to his desk. After grabbing the things he needed, he walked back to the door and stopped to look at Timothy again.

“Laugh while you can, Durn. You’ll be put back in your place soon enough.” He mocked.

Timothy chuckled, then smiled. “Noted. Have a good one, Tetsuzaemon. And like the captain said, if you need help, just holler.” He said with a brief wave.

Tetsuzaemon nodded back to him, then gave Sajin a swift bow before leaving the office. Once he left, Timothy snickered again while Sajin slowly shook his head.

“Is it really necessary to always try and start a fight with him, Tim?” he asked.

Timothy turned to the Captain with a smirk. “Not trying to start a fight, Captain. Just a little bickering between peers is all. You both know I didn’t mean anything by what I said; just trying to bug him. Besides, he needed to vent a bit after his rough morning, don’t you think?”

Sajin chuckled and nodded. “Yes, he does seem to be in a better mood now. Just don’t take it too far, Tim. You know how he is.”

Timothy lightly scoffed. “Well, if he laid off the coffee or whatever for a bit, he’d mellow out. Wish I could help him out though; I can’t even begin to imagine the shit he’s got going on after what he told us.”

Sajin sighed with a groan. “Yes, I agree. Come, let’s get our work finished here so you can go about talking with those you mentioned earlier.” He stated as he sat down and picked up a form.

Timothy nodded and returned to his work as well, then remembered something.

He turned back to Sajin. “Oh, before I forget Captain; I was thinking of having Minato teach the people for leadership positions. I’m thinking of letting them conduct the squad training sessions while he monitors them and gives them pointers and such. Sound good to you?” he asked.

Sajin nodded in acceptance. “That will be fine, Tim. Just remember what I said; it’s your responsibility.” He reminded.

Timothy nodded, then returned to his work.

** Las Noches, Hueco Mundo, 20 Minutes Later **

Nel spent close to an hour trying to find her fracción, but was unsuccessful. Knowing that, wherever they were, they would be fine, she gave up her search and decided to walk to one of the walkways outside the palace.

While the skies outside of Las Noches were completely dark with a night sky, only the eerie moon high above as the only source of light; the skies within the dome of Las Noches bore a sunny, cloudy sky. This was one of the many changes that Aizen had made when he came to Las Noches; trying to mimic the skies of the soul society.

While most of the other Espada and Arrancar hated the change, greatly preferring the darkness of Hueco Mundo, Nel found the artificial sky to be calm and relaxing. When she was not reading a book or taking a walk through the hallways within the palace, she would come to one of the walkways between buildings and stare up at the sky.

Somehow, in addition to the artificial sky, Aizen had made the air cleaner and more crisp than outside the dome; also similar to the soul society.

She knew that the air was somewhat fake; just the same air from outside that had been treated with kidō, or something along those lines, she wasn’t sure. She sometimes wished that she could go to the soul society or the world of the living, so she could experience the real thing. The real sun shining on her face, the wind blowing against her skin.

She took a deep breath and let it out slowly as she pushed herself up from leaning against the sidewall of the walkway.

“Well, I guess it’s time to go see what Lord Aizen wants.” She whispered to herself as she turned to the main building that housed Aizen’s throne room, where the grand balcony was located.

With the dull buzz of a sonído, she disappeared, only to reappear in front of the door that led into the throne room. She took a quick breath, then pushed the door open and walked in. As she closed the door, she was a little surprised to not see, nor sense Aizen in, or near the room.

“Lord Aizen?” she called out.

“I am here on the balcony, Miss Odelschwanck. Please, join me.” She heard from in front of her.

She took another breath and began walking towards the raised platform where Aizen’s throne was. As she climbed the steps up to the top of the platform, the balcony beyond the large chair came into view, where she could now see the back of Aizen; who was standing comfortably with his hands in his pockets.

As she came to the last step and walked passed the chair, she came to a stop at the entryway to the large balcony that overlooked a large portion of Las Noches. Aizen made no move or sound when she stood there looking at him for a moment.

“You wished to see me, Lord Aizen?” she finally asked.

“Yes, I did Miss Odelschwanck.” He answered, not turning or moving. “Do you know why I have called you here?” he asked her.

Nel lightly shook her head. “No, I don’t, Lord Aizen. Might I ask why you have?” she carefully pressed.

Aizen lowered his head a notch, closing his eyes with a smirk and a chuckled. “Of course you may, Miss Odelschwanck. I have called you here because you have served me well. You have performed quite exquisitely, never failing me. As such, I would like to reward you for your actions.” He stated in a low and calm voice.

He then turned around to her with his unique smile and closed eyes. He held out his hand wide to his left side, palm out and gesturing to a large table with a white sheet covering the entire surface.

“Please, see for yourself.” He said calmly.

She looked at the table, then turned her eyes back to him with an emotionless look. _‘He’s up to something…something’s not right.’_ She thought.

Aizen slightly opened his eyes and stared at her. “Is something wrong, my dear Nelliel?” he asked in concern.

She watched him for a moment, then lightly shook her head. “No, Lord Aizen. Please forgive me; it was just unexpected.” She admitted, but kept cautious.

“It is quite alright, Miss Odelschwanck. I understand your cautious nature; and it is completely understandable, considering the suddenness of the matter.” He offered.

She lightly bowed her head before walking slowly towards the table. She stopped in front of it and raised her hand towards the edge of the sheet to pull it away, but briefly stopped when an odd smell came to her heightened senses.

_‘What is this?’_ she asked inwardly. After a brief pause, she grabbed the edge of the sheet and began pulling it away from the table. As the sheet fell away, she completely froze, her eyes close to popping themselves out of her skull as her eyes widened beyond comparison.

“What is this?!” she seethed through her teeth as she stared at what was in front of her.

Aizen smiled more and dropped his head a bit. “Your reward.” He responded.

There, lying on the table, where the dead and mutilated bodies of her two fracción: Dondochakka, and Pesche. Pesche’s torso bore two very large, and very deep gashes across his chest and hollow hole; his left arm severed and draped across his midsection. Dondochakka had a very large, circular hole burned through his chest, a clear sign that he was killed by a cero.

Both of their necks had been slit open, and both of their masks broken and ripped off their faces. With the amount of blood that had seeped from the wounds of removing their masks, it was quite evident that they were painfully removed while they were both still alive.

A strong spiritual pressure began to emit from Nel, and grew in strength as her body began to glow with a pinkish tint.

“What have you done?!” she growled as her spiritual pressure continued to increase.

“What do you mean, my dear Nelliel? I have presented you with your reward, for your actions.” Aizen replied calmly, keeping his dark smile.

The wind around them suddenly picked up with immense strength as Nel’s spiritual pressure exploded to its fullest extent. Her teal hair floated freely around her mask as she slowly turned around to face him, head lowered, and eyes closed.

Tears began to form around her eyes as she slowly lifted her head just enough to glare at him with eyes filled with hatred. She placed her offhand on the scabbard of her zanpakutō as she brought her other hand to rest on its hilt.

“I will give you a few seconds to explain this Aizen…” she started, then drew her zanpakutō, holding it to her side. “…before I kill you for this monstrous act!” she finished in a calm voice filled with anger.

Aizen chuckled at her threat. “Do you believe that it was I that extinguished their pitiful lives? Surely you should have noticed that those wounds were not from my zanpakutō.” He stated.

She narrowed her gaze further. “What do you mean?!” she asked.

She slightly flinched when she heard a familiar chuckle come from just outside the entryway to the balcony. She turned her head and her eyes widened a bit when Nnoitra came out to the balcony with his scythe-like zanpakutō resting on his shoulder.

She clenched her teeth to the point of shattering as Nnoitra chuckled more. “Nnoitra!” she hissed.

“Hey Nel. Like your present? It’s a special one that Lord Aizen had me make; just for you.” The Sexta Espada taunted with a wide grin.

Nel’s arms were shaking with rage as she glared at him with a look of death. “You will die!” she yelled.

She instantly disappeared with a buzz of sonído, reappearing right beside Aizen. The man gasped in pain as he looked down to see Nel’s zanpakutō run right through his side, extending out the other with the blade going straight through his heart.

As she appeared, she also had her left arm raised and palm open right in front of Nnoitra’s chest. The Espada widened his eyes as a bright pink ball of energy formed in Nel’s palm. She turned her rage filled eyes to him as she gritted her teeth.

“Cero.” She called.

The pink ball of energy quickly reformed, and with a dull thrum, projected itself out from her hand in a large circular beam of energy; going right through the Sexta Espada’s chest. Nnoitra choked a breath of pain as the cero went through him and into the wall at the far side of the throne room.

Nnoitra looked down at the medium sized hole in his chest, trying to take in a breath and failing, then back to her with a shocked looked on his face.

“N…Nel…How could…could you?” he asked.

Nel’s eyes widened even more at the man’s sudden death question. _‘What does…’_

“Shatter…” a familiar voice suddenly spoke from in front of her. She gasped loudly as she quickly turned to the voice. “…Kyōka Suigetsu.” The voice finished.

Nel lost her breath as the entire world around her shattered like glass; revealing, what once was an empty space, now Aizen standing firmly, unharmed with his zanpakutō in his hand and held to his side.

“No…that’s not…!” she started.

She slowly turned his gaze to where Aizen was ‘supposed’ to be, but her heart suddenly stopped beating when she saw someone else instead.

“M…Master…Nel…” the being spoke.

Nel was frozen in shock and horror to see that instead of running her blade through Aizen, she had run it through Pesche, her fracción. She widened her eyes more and quickly turned her head around to where Nnoitra was supposed to be, but instead saw her other fracción, Dondochakka, with a hole through his chest from her cero.

“P…Pesche?…D…Donda…chakka?” she choked out.

She quickly turned back to where the table that their bodies were supposed to be laying on, but saw that the table was no longer there.

“No…” she whispered, then turned back to Pesche. “No!” she spoke louder, salty water now flowing freely from her eyes. She turned back around to Dondochakka just as his, now lifeless, body fell down to land on the floor. “NO!” she yelled out as she quickly, and carefully withdrew her blade from Pesche’s body.

His body began to drop as well, until Nel quickly caught him as she dropped to her knees. “Massster…Nel…” he spoke softly. She flinched at hearing his dying voice and closed her eyes, clenching her teeth further. “R…run!” he tried to shout, but his voice gave out as his world went dark.

Nel quickly reacted at his words by grabbing her zanpakutō and holding it to block the incoming strike. She then saw the ‘real’ Nnoitra swinging down onto her. She held her blade firm, ready to block, then counter attack him.

Nnoitra’s blade struck hers with full force, and she was just about to force his blade back up and into the air for her attack; but suddenly, her blade snapped right in the middle. The world froze around her as she watched his blade go clean through hers.

_‘That’s…not possible!’_ she thought as Nnoitra’s blade continued its course, right across her chest, from her left collarbone, to her right flank.

The force of the attack pushed her back and forced her against the stone rails of the balcony. She let out a grunt of pain as her body collided with the stone structure, with her now sitting down and leaning forward; clutching her front with her off hand and a broken Gamuza still in her sword hand.

“…what…how is…how is that…possible? It’s not…possible…to break an…Arrancar’s zanpakutō!” she hissed in pain.

She then heard yet another familiar chuckle from behind Nnoitra, causing her to glance behind him to see an all too familiar, pink haired scientist walk around the corner with his hands clasped behind his back.

“That’s because Lord Aizen had me develop an interesting little device.” Szayelaporro answered as he stopped and brought one of his hands out front behind his back.

Nel looked as close as she could, her vision starting to blur, to see a small, four-inch wide, six- inch long black cylinder in his hand.

“This nifty little device temporarily seals away any powers contained within a zanpakutō; rendering it to be nothing more than a simple, fragile blade while it is active. Very impressive, wouldn’t you agree, Lord Aizen?” he asked the still smiling man as he returned his zanpakutō to its sheath.

“Yes, I am very impressed, Szayelaporro. Thank you for your hard work in developing this device. I have nothing further for you; you may leave.” Aizen answered.

The pink haired man gave a deep, and crossed arm bow to his leader. “Thank you, Lord Aizen. I shall take me leave now.” He said, and then turned to walk away.

“Szayel…aporro…why…?” Nel asked through her short breaths.

The man stopped and turned his head to her. “Why because you make such an excellent test subject for my new toy, Miss Odelschwanck. I bear no hard feelings, and I thank you for proving my little device works. Now I must bid you goodbye, Miss Odelschwanck.” He answered, then left the balcony.

Nnoitra chuckled as he stood above her with his weapon resting on his shoulder. “So, I’ve finally beat you, Nel. After all this time, I have finally finished you. Now ‘I’ will be the Quinto Espada!” he finished.

Aizen glanced at him. “That will be enough, Nnoitra; you may finish her off now.” He stated in his usual tone.

Nnoitra smiled more and raised his weapon high above his head. “Any last words, Nel?” he asked in a mocking tone.

She tightened her muscles and growled. “Yeah…just one…Nnoitra.” She answered.

He rose a brow. “And what is that?” he asked further.

Nel dangerously narrowed her gaze at him. “Cero.”

His eyes widened as he quickly looked down to her offhand, seeing her palm flat against the balcony floor. A bit of her remaining spirit energy gathered in her hand as a pink beam of energy exploded on the floor.

Both men jumped back as dust was kicked up, obscuring their views of the woman. ‘ _Damn! That sneaky little bitch!’_ Nnoitra seethed inwardly as them both waited for the air to clear.

A few moments later, the air began to clear enough to where they could now see where she was…or where she used to be. Aizen’s eyes narrowed just a bit as both men looked to see a very large chunk of the balcony missing, Nel’s body nowhere in sight.

Aizen turned to Nnoitra. “Find her, Nnoitra. Kill her and bring her zanpakutō back with you. I’m sure Szayelaporro would be most pleased to be able to conduct research into the effects of his new invention. As for your rank, I hereby appoint you as the new Quinto Espada.” He stated and walked back inside the throne room.

Nnoitra grinned with satisfaction as he turned back out towards the open view of Las Noches. “I’m coming for you Nel. Let the hunt begin.” He said in a joyous tone, then disappeared with a buzz of sonído.

After her body landed with a solid crash of the ground level of Las Noches, the impact creating a small crater, she slowly, and weakly rose herself up; laying on the forearm of her offhand. She pulled her fighting arm, still holding Gamuza, around from under her and stared at the broken blade.

_“Gamuza…speak to me…”_ she pleaded inwardly. _“Gamuza?”_ she tried again, but received no response. “Gamuza…” she whispered.

A sudden buzz of sonído came from behind her, so she slowly, and painfully stood up to turn and face the threat. She glanced up with her blurred vision to see Nnoitra standing in front of her threateningly with his weapon on his shoulder.

“Heh, nice try Nel; but it won’t save you. It only bought you a few extra minutes of living. But I won’t fall for that again; you’ve got nowhere else to go.” he stated as he readied his weapon for the killing blow.

She clenched her muscles as she got ready to defend herself with her broken blade.

Nnoitra rose a brow at her. “Are you seriously planning to take me on with that broken piece of crap?”

Nel flinched at his words, knowing that there was no way she could fight him in her condition, especially now that Gamuza was broken.

_‘What can I do? I have to do something…but what?’_ she pondered.

“Tsk, what a waist. You’ve lived long enough, Nel. Time to end this.” He stated, as he began walking towards her.

She stood there watching as he came closer to her, trying to figure out a plan.

_‘I have no choice…’_ she concluded.

She quickly dropped her offhand with her palm facing the ground. Nnoitra, knowing what she was going to do, quickly jumped back as to not get caught up in the blast.

“Cero.” She called, the beam leaving her hand and colliding with the ground.

A tremendous amount of dust and sand got kicked up by the impact, once again obscuring the tall Espada’s view.

“Heh, if you wanna kill yourself, go right ahead, Nel. That’s all you’re doing at this point.” Nnoitra mocked.

After a minute of waiting, the sand finally settled, and the dust began to clear. Narrowing his gaze to try and see through the obscuration better, his eye widened as he managed to catch a last glimpse of a garganta closing; Nel’s face looking back at him just as the eerie portal snapped shut.

Nnoitra clenched his teeth and growled in anger. “Damn you Nel!” he seethed.

He immediately raised his hand and flicked his wrist to open his own garganta to follow her. He was just about to step in when a voice stopped him.

“Let her go, Nnoitra.”

The Espada turned to the voice to see Aizen standing there looking calm with his hands now in his pockets.

“Let her go?! I almost have her!” Nnoitra pleaded.

“It is no longer necessary to pursue her; as she is doing exactly as I had planned. You have done well, Nnoitra. You may return to your quarters now; and you may have the rest of the day to yourself to do as you wish.” Aizen stated, much to Nnoitra’s anger.

Nnoitra growled even more and gripped his weapon tighter. Aizen narrowed his gaze at the Espada and forced some of his spiritual pressure on him, slightly chocking him.

“Do I need to repeat myself, Nnoitra?” he asked.

Nnoitra scoffed heavily, but shook his head. “No…Lord Aizen.” He answered as he closed his garganta.

Aizen dropped the pressure off the Espada, then flashed away. Nnoitra glared at where the man used to be, then to where Nel’s garganta had closed.

“I ‘will’ kill you, Nel!” he seethed through his teeth, then disappeared through sonído.

** Inside the Garganta, 5 Minutes Later **

Nel stumbled forward at a slow pace, barely even a walk, while using what little spirit energy she had left to make her walkway.

She had her offhand clutched to her chest, trying to keep her wound from tearing open after using her own saliva on herself to try and stop, or at least slow down her heavy bleeding. A bit of her saliva mixed with blood ran down the side of her mouth and her throat was now as dry as the dunes of Hueco Mundo from using so much of it.

She held the remains of her zanpakutō, Gamuza in her fighting hand, hanging down at her side. Her vision was getting worse as she started to become light headed from the loss of blood; the entire front side of her white uniform stained red from it.

The barely stable path that she was laying out before her was steadily becoming weaker and weaker as her energy was coming close to nonexistent. As she took another shaky step, the side of the path broke loose and she fell forward, her leg hanging off the side over the vastness of oblivion.

_‘Damn…I just need…to keep going a little…little farther…almost…there…’_ she thought as she pulled her leg back on top of the path.

She lifted her head to look ahead of her and clenched her pain in pain. She then looked down at herself to see that her stumbling had reopened a small part of the wound and began bleeding again.

_‘I need to hold out…at least until…I’m out of here…’_

She grunted in pain as she tried to push herself up to a kneeling position, before trying further for a standing one. She managed to slowly stumble back to her feet, but winced as the wound tore open even further.

_‘Just…a little…longer.’_ She pleaded to herself as she resumed her slow walk into the abyss, still clutching tightly onto her broken zanpakutō.

** Squad 7 Barracks, Seireitei, Present **

Timothy walked into the barracks through the rear doors and straight towards the common area. Seeing as how his friends were all part of the emergency team, they were restricted to being either in the barracks, or out in the training grounds.

Not feeling any of their presences in the field after leaving the headquarters, he figured that they would most likely be in the common area entertaining themselves.

As he entered the room, he turned to the right to see Hinata and Kenta sitting together at one of the tables; each one reading a book. Timothy started walking towards them until he was a good ten feet away.

Seeing that neither of them had noticed him yet, he thought it would be the perfect time to pay back Hinata for trying to basically rip his ear off. He slowed his pace down to a very slow, very quiet tip-toe as he inched closer and closer behind her.

Kenta glanced up at him, just now noticing him. Timothy held a finger to his lips, telling his friend to keep quiet. He could see Kenta’s eyes slightly widen, knowing what Timothy was about to do.

Timothy was now less than two feet away from Hinata, so he raised both of his hands and flexed his fingers.

_‘3…2…1…’_ he counted down in his head, then quickly grasped Hinata’s shoulders and shook her forward and backward.

“Hey Hinata!” he yelled close to her ear.

She jumped and screeched in fright as her body was slung back and forth. Timothy let go of her shoulders and quickly backed away from her. She turned around to him, a hand clutched to her chest and eyes glaring at him like daggers.

“I’ll kill you!” she yelled and immediately jumped up and started hitting Timothy with the book in her hands. “I hate you! I hate you! I HATE YOU!” she yelled further.

Despite being hammered to death with her chosen weapon, both Timothy and Kenta were laughing at her as she continued her assault.

“It’s NOT funny! You bastard!” she growled as she slammed the book down on his head.

Timothy dropped like a rock, out cold on the floor while Hinata stood over him, fist balled and still holding the book at her side; seething with anger. Kenta quickly stopped laughing and stood up from his seat to peer over the table at the near lifeless body.

“Uh…I think…you might have killed him.” He observed.

Hinata quickly turned back to him. “You wanna be next?! I strongly suggest you shut up, Kenta!” she growled.

He quickly swallowed the lump in his throat and sat back down as her glare returned to Timothy. Luckily…or maybe perhaps ‘unluckily’…Timothy woke back up with his vision spinning. Seeing that he was coming to, Hinata raised the book above his head and glared at him.

“Good night, Tim!” she whispered evilly, then slammed the book down on his head once again; once again putting him out of the world.

** 2 minutes later **

“T…”

The world, still dark, began to slowly come to light.

“Ti…ay”

He heard a faint voice, so he opened his eyes slightly to see a spinning world.

“Tim…u…kay?”

He blinked his eyes a few times, his vision returning each time to where he could now see someone standing in front of him.

“Tim, are you okay?” the voice rang in his head.

“Huuuhhh?” he groaned out.

“You okay?” the voice asked again, but much clearer.

Timothy shook his head slowly and turned a bit to see another person standing above him, arms crossed.

“Whaaa?” he tried, then shook his head again.

“Hey, snap out of it.” The person kneeling down said as he lightly tapped Timothy’s cheek.

“Ugh…what the hell…happened?” he asked as his vision returned.

He looked to see Kenta kneeling down next to him while Hinata stood over him with crossed arms, tapping her foot and fury in her eyes.

“A taste of what’s to come, if you ‘ever’ do that again!” she growled as she lowered her face close to his.

Kenta turned to her. “Was that…really necessary Hinata?” he asked in fear.

She turned her eyes to him, causing him to shudder in fear. “You want some too?!” she asked.

He quickly shook his head as Timothy sat up and rubbed the two lumps on his head. He hissed in pain as his hand came into contact with his new protrusions.

“Damn woman, you trying to kill me?” Timothy asked, causing her to look back at him.

“I’d keep my mouth shut if I were you.” She warned.

He held a hand up to her. “Fine, geez. I was just trying to mess with ya. And just so you know…” he paused, getting her to raise a brow. “…you just assaulted a Lieutenant. I don’t think the Captain would be very happy about that.”

Kenta raised a brow as well while Hinata closed her eyes and sighed. “Lying ain’t gonna save you, Tim.”

Timothy snickered at her, causing Kenta’s eyes to widen. “Tim…you are joking with us…right?” he timidly asked.

Hinata opened a single eye and stared at him. “Really Kenta? Do you have to ask a stupid question like that? Of course he’s joking with you.” She then turned to Timothy with both eyes open.

Timothy snickered again and shook his head. “Nope, not joking.” He stated.

Hinata’s glare got worse. “Tim, I’m warning you; you are NOT on my good side right now. Now quit screwing around.” She warned.

“I ain’t messing with you on this, Hinata. I’m really your Lieutenant.” Timothy stated again, now giving her a serious look.

She looked closely into his eyes, trying to figure out what game he was playing. But as she stared longer at him, her eyes slowly started to widen.

“You have got to be freaking kidding me…” she mumbled.

Timothy shook his head again and slowly stood back up with Kenta. “Nope, not kidding.” He stated firmly with his hands on his hips.

Hinata’s and Kenta’s eyes were now wide as saucers. “N…no way…When?! How?!” she demanded.

Timothy chuckled at her. “As of yesterday…or I guess today, seeing as how I was in the hospital just yesterday. And that also reminds me…” he paused, causing Hinata to fret a bit as to what else he could possibly have up his sleeve. Timothy touched a finger to his chin. “…you also assaulted a patient still on recovery. I wonder how Captain Unohana would react to that; pretty sure not to too fondly.” He threatened.

Hinata and Kenta both backed up a step, then flinched when Timothy started laughing. Hinata started to sweat and took another step back.

Timothy stopped his laugh and waved her off. “Don’t fret it, Hinata. I guess I did kinda deserve that, knowing how you would most likely react. But seriously, you didn’t have to try and kill me.” He said with a grin.

She growled and balled her fists. “Well you didn’t have to try and kill ‘me’ by scaring me like that! I almost had a heart attack!” she yelled as she stomped her foot.

Timothy held up both hands in surrender. “Alright, don’t bite my head off.” he pleaded, then dropped his hands. “Anyway, how you two been; and where’s Issei?”

Hinata sighed and shook her head. “We’re fine, Tim…” she then froze. “Uh…should we…call you uh…Lieutenant?” she fretted.

Timothy waved her off. “Nothing changes, guys. As long as it’s within the squad area and no higher ups are around, just Tim is fine.” He placated.

The two friends nodded and let out their respective breaths. “Anyway, we’ve been fine; and Issei is up in his room catching a nap. All this sitting around, waiting, has been torture for the team.”

Timothy nodded. “I bet. You guys do any training together?”

“Yeah, we train for a couple hours here and there. But Lieutenant Iba said we shouldn’t push ourselves too hard since we would need to be fit to fight at a moment’s notice.” Kenta added.

Timothy nodded once more and sighed. “Yeah, well the Captain said that the team is going to be disbanded next week, if we don’t hear anything further on that hollow. For now, we just need to keep ourselves ready to move.”

“Alright. But I would like to ask…” Hinata started, getting Timothy’s attention. “If you just made Lieutenant, does that mean you’re leaving the squad once the team is disbanded?”

Timothy shook his head slightly. “No, Tetsuzaemon has been moved over to Squad 5 as a temporary Lieutenant; at least until Hinamori recovers. Then he’ll come back here, and we’ll be working together.”

Kenta tilted his head. “Two Lieutenants in the same squad?”

The Lieutenant nodded to him. “Yeah. I don’t have any clue as to what the future plans are. But anyway…” he paused and turned to Hinata. “…I did want to talk with you for a moment, if you don’t mind, Hinata.”

She nodded to him. “Sure, what about?”

Timothy gestured behind him with his thumb. “Not here, it’s best to talk in private. My room, your room?”

“Your room is fine, Tim.” she clarified, then turned to Kenta. “Be right back.” She said, then he nodded.

“I ain’t going anywhere.” He answered. 

She nodded back, then her and Timothy walked through the room to head for his quarters.

After a few minutes, the two friends walked into the room, closing the door behind them, and Timothy gestured for her to sit at his table. She removed her zanpakutō and set it next to her as she knelt down on the pillow seat, Timothy following suit.

“Soooo, what’s up, Tim?” she asked.

Timothy took a deep breath and rested his hands in his lap. “You know that the squad is really hurting on officers, right?” he asked, getting a nod. “Well, I proposed an idea to the Captain a little while ago, and he approved it.” He paused, and she nodded for him to continue. “The idea, is to do something like a trial period; temporarily assign certain members a leadership role. They wouldn’t be promoted per se, but would still have the same responsibility as they would if they actually held the position. Follow me so far?”

She took a breath and nodded. “Yeah, so far.”

He nodded back. “Ok, the point being is to get these individuals trained up and get them the experience needed as a leader, and train up their combat skills and power later.” He stopped a moment.

“Ok, sooo, you’re saying that you’re looking for members who have potential to be a leader, and train them to be one?” she asked.

He nodded in acknowledgment. “Yes, exactly.”

She gave him a sigh. “And I’m going to guess that the reason you’re telling me this is because I’m one of the people you thought of.” She observed.

Timothy sighed and nodded. “Yeah. You may have a temper…” he started, getting a glare from her. “But! You do have the potential. You look out for the rest of us in the group, and they all listen to you, to your advice.” He pointed out.

She sighed again and nodded. “Thanks, but I’m not so sure about this. I haven’t exactly been here that long.”

“How long ‘have’ you been here?” Timothy interrupted.

“Seven years, or at least close to it.” She answered.

Timothy scoffed at her and held is palm out to her. “Ok, and I’ve only been here two weeks, yet I’m a god damned Lieutenant! I’ve noticed that when it comes to showing your worth, time don’t really matter worth a damn. Afterall, it was the Head Captain who ‘personally’ promoted me; and he was well aware of how long I have been here. So, I really doubt that you being here seven years is gonna matter. Right?”

She thought it over a second, but finally shook her head. “No, I guess not; when you put it like that. But…do you really think that I can do it? Be a seated officer?” she asked in concern.

Timothy nodded firmly. “Yeah, I do. And that’s another thing. I’m going to be assigning you as the second in command of the team. If something were to happen to where I couldn’t be with the team, they’re under you command. As far as training, I’ll be having Minato guide and instruct you while ‘you’ conduct the daily squad trainings. Sound good?” he concluded.

Hinata dropped her head back and thought it over for a moment. She hummed to herself, then returned her gaze to Timothy.

“I…I guess I could do it. But I have to ask, why don’t you ask one of the other seated officers? You do know that there are at least a dozen lower officers, right?” she inquired.

He nodded back to her and crossed his arms. “True, but my statement still stands; I think you have the potential for it. And I’ll be looking at the lower officers as well.”

“Who else did you have in mind to ask?” she wondered aloud.

“I thought about giving Junya a shot; after all, he did look out for us that night we were all drinking, making sure none of us left or did anything stupid.” He answered.

Hinata’s eyes suddenly widen as something came to her. “Oh, now that I think about it, we need to have a drinking party to celebrate your promotion!” she announced with glee.

Timothy rose a brow to her. “Isn’t that considered fraternization?”

Hinata then sweat dropped. “Uh…yeah…it is. Sorry, I forgot.” She said in a depressed tone.

Timothy snickered at her. “As long as no one gets in trouble, I’m fine with it. But I’ll definitely have to let the Captain know, and we can’t do it until after the team is cut loose.”

She nodded at him. “Yeah, that’s true.” She said, then narrowed her gaze. “Plus, we still need to determine who the stronger drinker is.”

He rose a skeptical brow. “Seriously? Do you really think you stand a chance against me?”

She raised a brow as well. “Wanna put a bet on it?” she offered.

Timothy gave her a toothy grin. “Why not. I’ll introduce one of ‘my’ drinking games to ya. First to drop loses.”

She grinned as well. “The stakes?” she inquired.

“Simple: you win, I’ll buy you a bottle of sake worth a half month’s salary; but if ‘I’ win, you can’t hit me for calling you a witch.”

Her eyes widened. “That’s not fair! I hate it when you call me that!”

Timothy snickered at her. “What’s the matter? Chicken?”

She then rose a brow in confusion. “Huh?”

Timothy slumped his shoulders in defeat. “It’s a phrase…in otherwards, are you a coward?”

She glared at him evilly. “I. Am. Not. A. Coward!” she growled.

“Then take the bet.” He pressed, holding out his hand,

She growled even more, but finally took his hand, shaking it. “Deal!”

Timothy then started chuckling darkly, causing her to narrow her gaze again. “What?” she asked.

He then sighed and glared at her. “Woman, you’re about to learn from one of the biggest mistakes a person can make.” He started.

She tilted her head a fraction. “And what’s that?”

His toothy grin returned full bore. “You should ‘never’ challenge a man from Texas to a drinking contest.”

** World of the Living, Karakura Town, That Evening **

Deep in the woods on the northern side of Karakura Town, just off an old, dusty trail that barely sees any use in recent years, were a set of stairs that led up to an old abandoned shrine. The pagoda topped building had definitely seen better days; the roof was starting to cave in, the entry arches were rotting, and there were a few spots of graffiti on the shrine walls.

As the years had passed by, fewer and fewer people would visit the shrine; meaning less and less offerings to help keep the building in shape. As bigger and better shrines started to appear around the city, the shrine steadily became a lost cause. And now, it sits as a lonely reminder of years gone by, nothing more than a sightseeing object.

But the shrine would get a visitor this night, and not one that anyone would expect.

The wind blew steadily, gently brushing leaves across the paved ground and causing the tops of the trees to sway only a bit. It was a gentle and quiet evening, until the disturbing sound of the air ripping away came about as a rift in the air tore open, revealing the dark abyss inside.

As the rip got wider, it revealed a single being, a woman, standing there just inside the void. Once the rip had reached its widest point, the woman took two steps out of it, only to fall to her knees and collapse on the ground.

With the woman no longer inside, the garganta slammed itself shut, the quiet of the night returning, except for the labored breathing of the woman on the ground. She remained unmoving for a moment, holding her chest tightly as more blood seeped out of a large, open wound; only made worse by her collapse onto the hard surface.

She took a few minutes to try and catch her breath, then slowly pulled herself to her knees. She took a quick glance around at her surroundings, then noticed the small shrine with one of its doors hanging on by a single hinge, the other one missing entirely.

_‘That should…work as a shelter…so I can…treat my wounds.”_ She thought.

She pushed herself back up to her feet, then stumbled over to the doorway, peeking inside. She saw the offering totem in the back center on the structure, and multiple pieces of the ceiling’s interior scattered on the floor.

“Yeah…this will work.” She whispered.

She let go of the doorway and trudged over to the back wall, turning around and slowly letting herself scoot down the side to a sitting position on the floor. She looked down at the wound on her chest, seeing that the bleeding has slowed, but not stopped.

_‘I need stop the bleeding before anything.’_ She concluded.

Taking Gamuza, who was still in her fighting hand, she bent forward and made two small cuts in the fabric of her pants just above the knees on both sides. She set the blade down next to her and pulled on the fabric.

The fabric ripped apart and she pulled both of the torn pant sleeves off her legs, setting them aside. She then grabbed her blade again and made another small tear in her shirt, just above her abdomen.

Returning Gamuza to its sheath, she then ripped the bloody fabric away, exposing her flat stomach and a large portion of the wound. She unbuttoned the remaining part of her top and opened it up, exposing her bare chest and the rest of the deep and deadly wound.

Tying the two sleeve together, she placed it longways against the entire length of the cut. She then slipped it behind her back, over the top of her left shoulder and between her breasts. She finally pulled the other side around her right side under her arm and tied the two ends together, pulling hard to put pressure on the wound and hold the improvised dressing in place.

Taking the bloody lower half of her top, she pulled it around her waist and did the same thing, pulling it tight and tying it off. Once she had finished, she looked down to see that, although the bleeding hadn’t stopped, it was greatly reduced.

She breathed a sigh of relief as she pulled her top back together and buttoned it back. Now that her bleeding problem was solved for the moment, she leaned her head back against the wall with a heavy sigh.

Now that she was relaxed a bit, she could already feel her spirit energy starting to recover, albeit at a very slow rate. She then realized that it would be days before she would be able to move freely, and much longer before she would be in fighting shape.

But then again, maybe not.

Her zanpakutō was broken, not knowing if it could even be fixed. She had heard of a couple of instances where the Arrancar’s zanpakutō had broken, but that was after they had been foolishly killed while they were in a sealed state.

She had never heard of a zanpakutō breaking while the wielder was still alive. It was thought to be impossible for a zanpakutō to break like that. What worried her even more, was that Gamuza wouldn’t answer her.

The whole time she was in the void of the garganta, she had tried over and over to call to the spirit of her hollow powers, but it never answered; not once. It felt like something was missing inside her again, a part of her that was removed from her forcefully.

“Oh Gamuza…what has happened to you?” she whispered.

She then took a deep breath and slowly let herself glide over to where she was now lying on her side. She slipped her arm under her head as a pillow and balled herself up as she tried to get some rest.

But her thoughts drifted over to rest on the faces of her two fracción, her family. Tears started to well up and fall as she let out a sniffle. She clenched her teeth and shut her eyes forcefully as she remembered what she had done.

She had killed her two best friends; they were dead because of her. It was ‘her’ sword, and ‘her’ cero that had taken their lives away from them. It may have been one of Aizen’s illusions, but it was ‘her’ actions that had resulted in their deaths.

“Pesche…Dondochakka…I’m so sorry…” she cried.

She balled herself up even further, wincing in pain as the wound was shifted, and pulled her knees in close with her free arm. Her body trembled as she completely broke down in tears and choking breaths.

“I’m sorry.” She cried again.

Her breakdown continued late into the night, until she had sometime later, finally cried herself to sleep.


	13. Paperwork Problems and Hinata's Training

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTORS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 13

**(Paperwork Problems and Hinata’s Training)**

** Squad 7 Headquarters, Seireitei, The Next Morning **

It was a calm and peaceful morning in the Seireitei; the air was just a bit nippy, and there was a thin blanket a fog hovering at rooftop level. There were a few random soul reapers patrolling the streets, but otherwise they were still vacant.

It was still a little early and the sun had not risen yet when Timothy had walked into the Captain’s office to get a head start on the late-night turn-ins of paperwork. Afterall, he had always been an early riser, wanting to get work done early.

He walked out of the mini kitchen with a tray in hand; a small clay pot filled with tea and two small cups. He set the tray down on the edge of the table, that had become his desk, and let out a deep and long yawn as he walked over and sat on the couch.

He finished his yawn with a swift head shake, then reached over and poured himself a cup of tea; blowing on it a few times to cool it before taking a small sip and setting it down in front of him as he picked up the first form from the pile.

He scanned it over for a minute, then rubbed the rest of the sleep from his eyes before grabbing his brush and signing his name on the bottom. He set the form aside and grabbed the next one. He scanned it over, but noticed something was off.

“This ain’t right…” he mumbled, and picked up the following form, checking it over as well. “What?” he mumbled further.

He looked over the numbers and entries, trying to find out where it had gone wrong, then glanced at the top where the primary squad information was written down. He then saw why everything was wrong.

“Crap.” He said with annoyance.

He set the two forms down and sifted through the rest of the uncompleted paperwork, noticing that about a dozen of the following forms had the same issue.

“Those idiots.” He moaned.

The problem that he had was that somehow one of the night clerks had grabbed the wrong forms, the forms that belonged to another squad.

“Squad 8…Squad 8…Squad 8…” he said as he looked at each of the misplaced forms.

In all, he counted sixteen documents that belonged to the eighth squad. “Don’t tell me…” he slightly whined as he started looking through the rest of the documents. “Damn it…” he whined further as he saw that some of the squad’s night forms were missing.

“Damn.” He said, then leaned back with a growling moan and started rubbing his face. “Not’ how I wanted to start the day.” He complained, then sighed heavily.

He leaned back forward and rested his head in his hand as he growled again. The door to the office then opened and Sajin walked in. The furry Captain turned to Timothy, surprised to see him there ahead of him.

“Tim? You are here early this morning.” He stated.

Timothy rolled his head back in his hand, glancing briefly at him before returning to the forms in front of him.

“Morning Captain.” He answered in a low, still annoyed tone.

Sajin rose a brow at the man’s voice. “Something wrong?” he asked.

Timothy sighed and lifted his head, dropping his hand on the table. “Some idiot back at Squad 1 mixed up our paperwork; we ended up with some of Squad 8’s night work, and I’m willing to bet that they have ours.” He answered with a moan.

He reached over and began pouring a cup of tea for his Captain as Sajin walked over and picked up one of the misplaced forms.

“I see. It sometimes happens, Tim. We’ll just have to send someone to take this paperwork to Squad 8 and return with ours. For now, we can complete the forms that we have.” He advised as he set down the document and accepted the cup of tea from Timothy.

“Yeah, but it’s still annoying. I was hoping to get this stuff done early today.”

Sajin took a sip of his drink and nodded. “It is, but as I said; it happens. So why are you here so early? Even if you complete all of the late-night paperwork, it will still be a while before the first batch of morning forms arrive.”

Timothy leaned back on the couch and sighed. “Well, I was hoping to get it done quickly, then show Hinata how to fill out some of the paperwork.”

Sajin rose a brow. “Do you mean Hinata Ogawa?” he inquired.

The Lieutenant nodded. “Yes, she’s one of the people I mentioned yesterday about leadership training. I talked to her yesterday, and she accepted.” He answered.

Sajin nodded back. “Who else have you spoken to about it?” he inquired further.

“I asked her, Junya Sano, and a couple of the lower seated officers, but the rest declined. Junya didn’t want the responsibility, and the other officers didn’t feel that they were ready for it yet. So, Hinata is the only one.” He gave a soft chuckle. “She’s a good woman; a bit violent when she’s mad, but a good person that I think has the potential.” He added as he rubbed his head where her paper bound weapon had struck him.

Sajin chuckled as well. “I see that you have come into contact with her ‘violence’?” he observed.

Timothy quickly nodded. “Oh yeah, a few times actually. And I learned the hard way not to try and get back at her.”

Sajin lightly laughed at the man’s recall of yesterday’s event. “Well, it seems that she’ll be able to keep the members in line at least.”

His Lieutenant scoffed. “I almost feel sorry for any hollow that crosses her path when she’s mad. Hell, her fury filled glare would probably be enough to kill it.” He joked.

The Captain shook his head and began walking towards his desk. “Have you spoken with 6th seat Minato about helping her with training the other members?” he asked as he sat down behind his desk.

Timothy leaned forward and picked up the next form, checking again to make sure it was ‘their’ squad’s paperwork. “Yeah, I spoke with him yesterday about it, and he was happy to help. He feels the same way I do about the matter; we need to fill those positions. I plan to show her how to handle the paperwork after I’m done here, then Minato will sit down with her and they’ll both continue filling out the forms.”

He signed the form in his hands and grabbed the next. “After I’m done with showing her how to do the paperwork, I’ll run over to Squad 8 and switch the paperwork back.” He added.

Sajin hummed in understanding, then turned back to the window behind him; watching as the sun came close to creeping over the horizon. He took a long sip of his tea, then took a deep, relaxing breath.

“Have you spoken with your zanpakutō about your…situation with Susan?” he asked hesitantly.

Timothy rose his head to him a moment, then dropped his head with a sigh. “No…and I haven’t spoken to her since I found out about the…whole ordeal.”

Sajin glanced over to him. “You have not talked to her?” he asked worriedly.

The Lieutenant lightly shook his head. “No, I’m still a little upset that she kept the part about her…dying from me. I just can’t get around that she would do that.” He glanced back at his Captain. “I know that she didn’t want me to worry, but it still wasn’t right to do that. My trust in her was a little…shaken up after that.” He said in a low tone.

Sajin hummed and turned back to the window. “I can understand how you feel about it, Tim; trust me. But don’t hold it against her. We all have secrets that we do not wish others to know about.”

Timothy rose a brow at him. “Even you, Captain?” he pressed.

The furry Captain chuckled. “Yes, even myself.” He turned back around to his desk, setting his cup down on it. “She may have kept the secret of her…dying away from you, but even you should be aware that she did it with good intentions. She is a kind soul, and I can see that she would never intentionally hurt you, Tim. It’s understandable to be angry or upset when things do not go our way, but we must push to see past it and overcome it.”

Timothy sighed and leaned back, resting his head against the back of the couch. “I understand. Perhaps I’ll speak with her later today; but right now, I need to get this stupid paperwork done.” He finished as he leaned back forward, grabbing another form.

Sajin nodded with a small smile, then turned back to the window after grabbing his cup.

“There is a Captain’s meeting later this afternoon, so I will not be in the office later.” He stated, then glanced over his shoulder to Timothy. “And as Tetsuzaemon said, please do not burn down my squad while I am gone.” He teased.

Timothy’s head shot to him with a scowl on his face. “Don’t you start that shit too, Captain! I didn’t peg you to be one with so little faith!” he shot back.

Sajin laughed at his outburst. “I have faith in you Tim, but you do have a bit of a temper.”

His Lieutenant growled at the remark. “I do not! I may get agitated, but I do ‘not’ have a temper!”

The Captain then pointed at him accusingly. “My point has been proven.” He returned.

Timothy sighed in defeat after falling for the man’s taunt. “I’m not in the mood to argue, Captain. I think I’ll go ahead and take care of our botched paperwork problem now.” He said as he grabbed the said paperwork and stood up.

“Could you please confirm with Captain Kyōraku about the Captain’s meeting while you are there? I am sure he knows, but it is always better to be on the safe side.” Sajin asked.

Timothy nodded and walked towards the door. “Yeah, I’ll give him the reminder, sir. Be back in an hour.” He said, then left the office.

Sajin chuckled again as he stood up and walked to the table Timothy was using to refill his cup from the pot of tea.

** Squad 8 Headquarters, 15 Minutes Later **

Timothy flashed into place in front of the headquarters for Squad 8. His shunpo was getting much better, only tripping once on the way, and he was steadily getting faster as well. He shifted the paperwork in his arm and walked into the building.

The building was quite different on the inside compared to Squad 7’s, and slightly larger as well. He walked into one of the offices and up to the lone clerk; clearing his throat to get his attention.

“Excuse me, but where can I find the Captain’s office?” he asked politely.

The man gestured to the hallway with his hand. “Go towards the rear doors, you’ll see the staircase to the second floor. As you walk out, walk straight ahead to where you are directly above us. The Captain’s office will be right in front of you.” He instructed.

Timothy gave the man a slight bow of the head and smiled. “Thanks, have a good one.” He said with a wave.

The man waved back as he returned to his work.

Timothy did as the man instructed, going to the second floor and walking down the hallway until he was in front of the similar, large, white double doors with the large kanji for ‘8’ painted in black on it.

He cleared his throat again and knocked on the door twice. After a few seconds, he heard a stern, feminine voice answer.

“Please come in.” the voice said.

Timothy pushed the left door open and walked in to see a medium length, dark-haired woman wearing glasses sitting behind, what he assumed was, the Captain’s desk. She was looking down at the forms in front of her and had not looked at him yet.

“Morning.” He greeted.

She then glanced up at him with a stern look on her face. “Good morning. Can I help you?” she asked.

Timothy gave her a decent bow and rose. “I’m Timothy Durn, Lieutenant of Squad 7.” He answered.

She rose a brow at him a moment. “Squad 7? So that means you must be the one who fought against Captain Zaraki, right?” she pressed.

Timothy sighed at her question. “Yeah, that’s me.” He moaned.

Her brow lowered, and she smirked at him. “I see.” She returned, then stood up and walked around the desk towards him, stopping at arms distance and giving him a head bow. “I am Nanao Ise, the Lieutenant for the squad.” She introduced.

Timothy held out a hand to her, which she took, and shook it. “Nice to meet you, Lieutenant.” He replied.

She removed her hand and waved him off gently. “Please, just address me as Nanao; we are both Lieutenants.” She insisted.

The man nodded. “Alright, then just call me Tim.” he returned.

She nodded back. “Very well. If you are looking for my Captain, I’m afraid he’s…unavailable at the moment.” She dodged.

Timothy chuckled lightly at her statement. “I can imagine; I’ve heard the stories about his…shall we say, demeaner.” He joshed.

She chuckled back. “I’m sure you have.”

He shook his head lightly. “Anyway, I not really here to see him exactly, just to hand over some paperwork of yours that somehow ended up with ours.” He said as he held out the said forms.

She took them and gave them a brief look over. “I was wondering where these had ended up at. I noticed they were missing earlier, and we ended up with some of your documents as well.” She notified and began walking back to the desk.

She set the forms in her hand down and grabbed a different pile before walking back to him. “Here you are.” She said as she handed him his forms.

He looked them over as well for a moment, then gave her a brief nod. “Thanks. I was hoping to have it all done earlier, but karma I guess decided to say ‘nope’.” He said with a light laugh.

She laughed as well and pushed her glasses back further on her nose. “Yes, well, how are you adjusting to your new position?” she asked with a smile.

Timothy shrugged his shoulders. “Alright I guess; lot of paperwork, but not too bad. Just a bit of a pain with the shortage of officers we have. But Tetsuzaemon’s got it much worse from what he told us yesterday.”

She nodded at him. “Yes, we received Squad 5’s 5th seat two weeks ago. I’ve also heard that many of the top officers had transferred to other squads. It seems that Squad 5 is falling apart.” She stated with worry.

He gave a heavy sigh. “Yeah, I guess Aizen had done more damage than we thought. I wonder how Squads 3 and 9 are doing; probably not much better.” He wondered.

She sighed as well and crossed her arms. “They are doing alright for the moment; most definitely not as bad as 5. Izuru and Shūhei are managing to keep their squads in order, but Squad 5 really fell apart with no Captain or Lieutenant for guidance. It is a good thing that Lieutenant Iba was sent there to get the squad back on its feet.”

He nodded in agreeance. “Yeah, it is. But he was not in a good mood when he came by yesterday.” He stated.

They were interrupted by the office door opening and the calm-mannered Captain Kyōraku walked in with his arms tucked in his sleeves, wearing his pink floral kimono and straw hat.

“Good morning, my little Nanao.” He greeted with a smile.

Her face dropped a few notches. “Captain.” She returned in annoyance.

Shunsui walked up to the pair and stopped to look at Timothy. “Well, if I’m not mistaken, you must be the new Lieutenant of Squad 7; am I correct?” he asked calmly.

Timothy gave him a polite bow. “Morning Captain, and yes I am.” He rose as he finished.

Shunsui nodded his head to him in return. “I see. So how is old Sajin doing today?” he inquired.

Timothy gave him a slight smirk. “He’s doing good, at least from what I’ve seen.” He answered.

The Captain tilted his hat a bit to the side. “Well that’s good. And how about yourself? Adjusting to the world of a Lieutenant alright?”

The shorter man gave a quick tilt of the head. “Yeah, for the most part. Lotta paperwork and such, but okay.”

Shunsui gave a smile in return. “That’s good. So, what brings you here this morning, Lieutenant? Care to join me for a drink or two?” he offered.

Timothy rose a brow at him. “It’s still morning and you’re already starting?” he asked in surprise.

Nanao turned to him. “It’s always like this with him.” She informed.

The younger man sweat dropped. “I…see.”

Shunsui turned to her. “Now don’t be like that, my little Nanao. You shouldn’t deny a man the simple pleasures in life.” He whined.

“At eight in the morning?” Timothy mumbled in disbelief.

Nanao sighed in defeat and turned to Timothy. “Thank you for returning the forms, Tim. If you would excuse me, I must return to my work.” She stated in annoyance, then walked back towards the desk.

Timothy turned to Shunsui. “I’ll take my leave now, Captain. But before I forget, Captain Komamura asked me to remind you about the Captain’s meeting this afternoon.”

Shunsui nodded. “Thank you for the reminder. Have a good day, Lieutenant.”

Timothy bowed to the man once more and rose. “To you as well, sir.” he returned, then turned to Nanao, now behind the desk. “See you later, Nanao.” He said with a wave.

She nodded at him, keeping her stern face. “Until next time, Tim.” she returned.

The younger man nodded and walked out of the office to begin his trek back to his squad. Shunsui turned his head to his Lieutenant with a smirk.

“Well he seems like a good kid.” He observed.

Nanao nodded in agreeance and sat down. “Yes, he does. I am impressed with how he has made Lieutenant so quickly.” She admitted.

Shunsui walked over to stand in front of ‘his’ desk and smiled. “That’s true, but he’s got a good Captain pointing him the right way. Sajin’s a great leader. He’ll have the job down in no time.” He stated calmly.

“I’ll have to agree with you on that, Captain. If it is true that he has managed to attain a Bankai state in that short amount of time, he should do quite well as a Lieutenant. Now, if you have nothing further Captain, I have work that needs to be done.” She said as she shooed him away with her hand.

“Aw, don’t be like that, my little Nanao. You should take time and relax.” He pressed.

She glared at him with her stern eyes. “If I did that, then the work would never get finished, Captain. I can’t rely on you to do it, afterall.” She pointed out lowly.

Shunsui gave her a mock look of hurt. “Must you always be so harsh on me, little Nanao? That face doesn’t suit you, you know.” He teased.

She maintained her glare, unmoving. “Please let me get back to work, Captain.” She half pleaded.

He chuckled and began walking towards the door. “You are sure bossy this morning, sweet Nanao.” He teased further over his shoulder as he walked.

She slammed her hands on the desk as she stood up with a face full of anger. She then pointed to the door. “Get out!” she hollered in annoyance.

Shunsui didn’t answer her, but instead waved over his shoulder as he left the office. She growled before slumping back down in her seat and sighing. “That man is so lazy.” She mumbled as she pushed her glasses back along her nose again. “What am I going to do with him?” she wondered aloud as she picked up one of the forms in front of her.

Shunsui then poked his head in the door with a smile. “Have a good day, my little Nanao.” He stated.

She again slammed her fists on the desk and evilly glared at him. “Out!” she yelled back.

Shunsui quickly ducked away and left the office, for good this time. She growled yet again and looked down at her cup of tea that had tipped over when her fists slammed down, now running over a few of the forms and ruining them.

“Damn that man.” She seethed before taking a ‘very’ deep, calming breath and standing to go to the kitchenette and grab a towel to clean the mess. “Tim just ‘had’ to bring his curse to me.” She moaned further as she started pulling the ruined forms away and wiping the desk.

** Squad 7 Headquarters, 10 Minutes Later **

Hinata and Minato both sat at the round table in one of the second-floor offices; Minato showing her the different forms and how they were to be filled out. Minato could already tell that she absolutely ‘hated’ paperwork.

“This is ridiculous, how can there be so much stuff to go over and write down?” she complained.

Minato chuckled lightly at her antics. “It is a lot, I’ll agree; but the Head Captain I guess wants to know every single detail and happening in the squads. You’ll get used to it; it just takes a while. But look at it like this…” he paused, getting her attention before turning to her as well. “…you only have a part of the overall amount of paperwork; Tim and the Captain have to review and sign ‘all’ of it, each.”

She closed her eyes and sighed. “Is it too late to change my mind about this?” she asked in a depressed manner.

He chuckled again just as Timothy walked in with the forms he retrieved from Squad 8. He stopped next to them and looked at Hinata’s woeful state, then to Minato.

“Hating it already I see.” He observed.

She glanced up at him with ‘puppy dog’ eyes. “Please…save me.” She pleaded.

Both men laughed a bit before Timothy lightly shook his head. “Sorry, but you’re the one who agreed to it, Hinata.” He pointed out.

She slapped a hand on the table with a glare. “You never told me that there was ‘this’ much paperwork! You tricked me!” she accused, pointing at him.

Minato placed a hand over his mouth to avoid blasting out in a loud laugh as Timothy scoffed. “No, you should have known that paperwork would be involved. Not ‘my’ fault you failed to think about that.” He teased.

She turned and slapped him on the arm with a growl. “Evil bastard.” She said in a hateful tone.

Timothy shrugged his shoulder at her. “Perhaps, but my point still stands.” He stated, causing her to slap him again.

“I hate you.” She said and turned back to the forms in front of her.

The Lieutenant shook his head, then turned to Minato. “So, how’s it going with you two this morning, besides the paperwork?” he asked.

“Pretty good so far. Just got started a couple minutes ago.” Minato answered.

Timothy nodded and turned to her. “I’ve gotta get this night paperwork done, then I’ll come give you guys a hand. Hinata…” he paused. She looked up at him. “…you and Minato are gonna be training with the squad members this afternoon for an hour or so, then we’ll break off and do some team training for a while. We’ll need to get used to working together in case we’re called out.” He instructed.

Her and Minato both nodded. “Alright. So, I guess ‘I’m’ the one doing the training then?” she asked.

The Lieutenant nodded. “Yeah, while Minato watches ya and help you out along the way. I’ll also have you do some of the training for the team; seeing as how I’m not allowed to do anything, at least until tomorrow.” He added.

She nodded back and sighed. “Fuuuunnnn.” She moaned.

Minato lightly chuckled. “It’ll be alright Hinata; like I said, you just gotta get used to it. Once you have, the work becomes easier.” He reassured.

She scoffed back. “Yeah, thanks.” She returned in a skeptical tone.

Minato turned back to Timothy. “So where did you go to, Tim?” he asked.

Timothy gestured behind him with his thumb. “Had to fix a mishap with the paperwork. Squad 8 ended up with some of ours, while we ended up with some of theirs. Otherwise I would have had all the night work done by now. So, I guess I’ll leave you two and get this done so I can give you a hand.” He stated.

He nodded to him as Timothy turned to leave, waving behind him as he left.

“Don’t take too long.” Hinata called out.

Timothy stopped in the doorway and glanced over his shoulder. “Nah, I think I’ll take my time and let you suffer.” He teased.

She growled and stood to chase him, but stopped when he quickly left to go back to the Captain’s office. She stood there with her fists balled and shaking.

“I swear I am going to kill him one of these days.” She threatened.

Minato snickered and tapped on her seat. “Later, but for now, let’s get back to this. Come on.” He pleaded.

She growled again, then turned back and returned to her seat with a huff. She picked up the form she had before and started filling it out.

“He must not value his life very well if he thinks it’s a good idea to keep pissing me off.” She observed. Minato snickered again, getting her attention. “You want a part of this too?” she asked with a glare.

Minato held both of his hands up in surrender. “Nah, I’m good.” He placated.

“Then keep quiet.” She cautioned.

He raised a brow at her. “You threatening an officer?” he teased.

She then held a fist up. “Let me put this in your face really quick and see if that answers your question.” She threatened again, her face starting to turn red.

His eyes widened, now knowing that she meant to go through with her threat if he kept it up. He then quickly shook his head.

“Nope! I’m good!” he said in a retreat.

She lowered her fist and returned to her paperwork. “Good.” She finished and continued filling out the form. The quiet only lasted a few moments before she slammed her fist on the table and growled. “Damn it, Tim!” she hollered.

In the Captain’s office, Timothy was now sitting back on his couch and looking over the forms from earlier. Sajin was doing the same thing on his side, when the walls suddenly started to vibrate as a loud voice echoed through the halls.

“Damn it, Tim!”

Sajin looked at the door with a confused look, then turned to see Timothy snickering. He rose a brow at him.

“What was that, Tim?” he asked, worried.

Timothy snickered more and turned to him. “Hinata’s pissed, likely from the paperwork…and me.” He offered.

Sajin turned back to the door a moment, then shook his head with a heavy sigh. “It seems that if ‘you’ don’t burn the squad down, ‘she’ll’ only demolish it instead.” He remarked, causing Timothy to start laughing.

“I told you about her temper, didn’t I?” he said.

The furry Captain glanced at him with a stern look. “I did not figure that you meant it like this, Tim. I am starting to worry about the safety of the other members now.” He pointed out.

Timothy scoffed and shook his head. “She’ll be fine, she’s just having a hard time getting used to it.”

Sajin narrowed his gaze at the man. “She better be, Tim; I’d rather not have to pay for any structural damages or health costs.” He warned.

His Lieutenant took a deep breath. “Yes sir.” he said, dropping the subject.

The Captain sighed and pinched the large bridge of his nose as he shook his head. “What have I agreed to now?” he mumbled in wonder.

Timothy glanced at him. “A side show?” he teased.

Sajin groaned and stood up, walking towards the door. “I am heading out for a while; I am starting to feel a headache coming. I will return after the meeting.” He stated and opened the door, stopping to give Timothy a last look. “And the squad had ‘better’ still be in one piece when I return, Tim.” he finished with a serious glare.

Timothy held up his right hand. “I swear I will not, nor will I allow Hinata, to destroy, or damage the building sir.” he promised.

Sajin growled and left the office. Timothy dropped his hand and shook his head with a smile. “Oh, ye of little faith’ Captain.” He quoted, then returned to his work.

Meanwhile, Sajin walked through the hallway towards the stairwell and turned to see Hinata and Minato both sitting down, working on their respective forms. He stopped his walk and watched the two of them for a moment; seeing Minato pointing out certain spots on the form she was holding and, he guessed, telling her what to do.

He let out a sigh and turned around to enter the office, her and Minato turning to face him and giving respectful bows of the head.

“Morning, Captain.” They both greeted in unison.

He returned the gesture and stood by the doorway. “Good morning. I trust everything is being handled properly?” he inquired.

Minato nodded at him. “Yes sir. Just showing Miss Ogawa here the forms and how to fill them out.” He answered.

Sajin nodded back. “Very good. And how are you fairing, Miss Ogawa?” he asked, now looking at her.

She shifted a bit in her seat, but stood firm otherwise. “I’m doing alright for now, Captain. Though, you might want to ask me again later; the answer would probably have changed by then.” She half joked.

Sajin chuckled at her response. “I heard, along with the rest of the Seireitei I believe.” He stated calmly.

She then turned red from embarrassment. “Uh…sorry about that, Captain…I got…uh, a little…upset?” she offered.

Minato started to snicker, but stopped when she turned to him with a glare. The Captain lightly laughed at the event. She turned back and lowered her head a little.

“It’s alright, Miss Ogawa; I understand your frustration.” He comforted.

She gave a slight moan. “I’m not so sure I can handle this, Captain.” She stated.

Sajin shook his head at her. “Don’t be too quick to give up, Miss Ogawa. Tim believes in you, and I’m trusting him with his decision. From what he has told me, and from your ‘authoritative’ behavior just now, it would seem that he has made the right choice.” He reassured.

She lowered her head further at the word ‘authoritative’. Sajin walked up and placed a large hand on her shoulder, causing her to look up at him.

“Do not lower your head to something that is good about you, Hinata.” He instructed sternly, causing her eyes to widen a bit. “You must stand tall and believe in yourself. Do not shy away when someone points out a strong suit of yours; not even when one of your weak ones are. Stand up and face the challenge ahead; fight for something you know you can be better at.” He demanded calmly, then dropped his hand and folded his arms, maintaining his stare.

“Tim also had problems of his own when he had first come here; rude behavior, temperamental, and impulsive. Being a friend of his, I am sure that even you have seen this, am I correct?” he paused, getting a nod from her. “Well, as you can see, he has improved greatly after being forced into more demanding situations. And from what I can see, you require the same push as well. Tim has given you this chance to become a better person; and we both know that he does not make a decision lightly, right?” he paused again, getting another nod from her.

He dropped his arms to his side and spoke softly. “Then trust his judgement, as I do.” He finished, then turned and started walking away.

“Captain…” she started, causing him to stop and glance at her. She took a deep breath and sighed. “Thank you for your words.” She finished with a bow of the head.

He nodded back to her. “Be sure not to forget them.” He instructed, then turned and left the office, again stopping before he was out of sight and glancing back to her. “And make sure that neither you, nor Tim tear the building down trying to kill each other.” He joked, then left.

She sweat dropped at the remark as her mouth twitched. “I’m gonna kill him.” She whispered.

Back in the Captain’s office, Timothy suddenly felt a dark and cold presence surround him, causing him to shiver.

“Why do I have the sudden feeling that my life is in danger?” he mumbled to himself, then returned to his work.

** Later That Day **

After having finished signing the final form, Timothy grabbed the completed pile off his ‘desk’; walking over Sajin’s and setting them down evenly with the rest of the Captain’s incomplete paperwork.

He took a brief moment to stretch his arms out in front of him, then across his chest to loosen up his stiff muscles. Sajin was currently in his meeting, and Minato had taken Hinata out to the training grounds to help her with training the other members.

For the moment, all of the morning and early afternoon paperwork was done, waiting for the Captain’s signatures; and it would be another two or three hours before the evening forms came in. This meant that Timothy now had a little bit of room to relax a moment.

He still needed to work with training the team sometime in the next hour or two; only now did he realize that ever since he was assigned to the team, they hadn’t practiced even once. That needed to be fixed, today.

He relaxed his arms with a heavy sigh, then began walking towards the door to head out to the training grounds; but he stopped when he noticed a small black butterfly fly in through the open window behind Sajin’s desk.

Timothy rose a brow as the insect came to a stop in front of him and began fluttering in circles around his head.

“Ok…this is new.” He mumbled to himself.

He held out a hand to try and catch it gently, so he could let it loose outside. But as his hand came close to grab it, the insect suddenly landed on his primary finger. Timothy flinched when he suddenly started to hear a familiar voice coming from the butterfly.

“Tim, a few things have come up after the meeting that require my attention. I will not be able to return until the morning. Please leave the completed forms on my desk, and I shall review them when I return. For now, continue on with normal squad activities.” The voice of the Captain sounded.

Timothy rose a brow again in surprise. “Ok…that’s just a whole new level of weird.” He observed as the hell butterfly left his finger, its message delivered, and flew back out the window.

“Weird and cool. I have ‘got’ to get him to show me how to do that.” He mumbled further, then continued walking out of the office.

Moments later, he left out the back of the building and looked out to see a medium sized amount of the members huddled around two people, who he assumed to be Hinata and Minato. With a quick step of shunpo, he was now standing a few feet behind the officer and ‘trainee’.

They both turned back to him, where he waved. “Hey guys, how’s it going so far?” Timothy asked.

Minato started scratching his head, while Hinata dropped hers. “Uh…could be better.” Minato admitted.

Timothy gave a quiet sigh, then gestured them to come over with his hand. They both walked up to him and he spoke in a whisper.

“Ok, so what’s wrong then?” he asked.

“They don’t really listen to me; I guess they don’t like taking orders from a woman.” She complained.

Minato turned to her. “No, I’ve told you that you were being too soft and quiet. Of course they aren’t going to listen.”

Timothy turned to her. “He’s right, Hinata. You need to make them ‘want’ to listen to you. And if you’re soft and quiet, they won’t. And I know just how to fix it.” He stated, then gestured to the small forest behind him. “Head over there for a moment.”

She let out a depressed sigh, but nodded and disappeared with a flash step. Timothy then walked over to the members, still huddled around, and gestured for them to come closer. Minato watched as his Lieutenant spoke very quietly to the members.

After only a few seconds, the members started looking at each other in confusion, then back to Timothy, who nodded. He then said something further for a moment, then walked back over to Minato.

“Well, now we see if this works.” He said, then waved out to Hinata, who then suddenly reappeared next to them and sighed again. “Alright, let’s try this again, shall we. Hinata, have them run twenty laps on the track while they practice the barrier I taught them last time.” Timothy instructed.

She sweat dropped. “Twenty? If they didn’t listen to me before, do you ‘really’ think they will now?” she asked.

Timothy shrugged a shoulder at her. “I’m guessing that, here in a moment, they won’t have a choice.” He clarified.

She moaned and growled as she started walking back towards them.

“And Hinata…” he called, getting her to turn around. “…if you leave before all of them are done, I’ll have ‘you’ run fifty.” He threatened.

She widened her eyes. “The hell you will.” She seethed, and he rose a brow.

“I suggest you don’t leave then, and I’ll be watching.” He warned further.

She turned back around and continued walking, mumbling under her breath, as Timothy turned to Minato. “And it would be a ‘very’ good idea if we left the immediate area.” He advised, then flash stepped back to the headquarters’ doors.

Minato followed suit, stopping right next to him. “So…why are we here and not down there?” he asked.

Timothy glanced at him. “You’ll see in about five seconds.” He answered, then they both turned back to the field.

Sure enough, five seconds later, the two men heard a loud, and unanimous set of voices. “Make us, you witch!” they heard ‘all’ of the present members shout.

Minato quickly shot to Timothy with wide eyes. “You didn’t?!”

They then heard a loud commotion and looked to see all of the members now running on the track…with Hinata chasing after them and yelling at the top of her lungs.

“I did.” Timothy confirmed.

Minato glanced at him with worry. “You know she’s going to literally kill you later…right?”

The Lieutenant shrugged his shoulders without looking at him. “More than likely, but at least now they know to respect her…the hard way.”

Minato rose a brow. “So…this was a lesson?” he asked.

Timothy nodded. “Yeah; for her, because now she knows that she has to prove to them that she is not a pushover; and them, because she was put in charge, and they didn’t listen. It don’t matter who the person is, or what they are like; if the person in charge gives you an order, or a set of instructions, you follow it. Period.”

Minato nodded back. “Makes sense. But I still think you’re gonna die later.”

In the distance, Hinata suddenly stopped her pursuits and stared at the two men from the grounds, shaking a fist in the air.

“You are dead, Timothy Durn!!! You hear me?! DEAD!!!” she blared out.

Timothy then frowned. “Yyyyeeeeaaaahhhh…fuck.” He moaned as a multitude of horrifying, and gory images of his death began to pour through his head. “Maybe…that wasn’t such a…good idea.” He concluded as he started to think of any possible hiding spot he could use.

** The Next Morning **

Sajin strolled through the hallways of the squad’s headquarters at a relatively slow pace. He had spent the rest of the day before, and a good portion of the night at Squad 5 helping Tetsuzaemon try to catch up on its paperwork; returning to his room an hour or so after midnight for a few hours of sleep.

He let out a long, bestial yawn as he entered the stairwell to the second floor. He was still deadly tired from the night before, and he felt like one of those human fantasy creatures that they called a ‘zombie’.

As he walked out of the stairwell, now on the second floor, one of his clerks was about to enter an office, but stopped to give him a respectful bow.

“Good morning, Captain.” He greeted.

Sajin grunted and waved as a response; not to be disrespectful, but he was sleep deprived enough that he still needed some time to fully wake up. But he had at least had his morning agenda made out, and it consisted of one thing: a hot cup of tea.

He yawned once again as he came to his office door and pushed it open. He slowly walked inside, noticing Timothy sitting on the couch as he normally did; going through the morning paperwork.

“Morning Captain.” He droned out in a low tone.

Sajin grunted again and walked on towards his desk…but he then suddenly stopped. _‘Wait a minute…’_ he thought, then slowly turned to look at Timothy more attentively. His eyes widened a bit as he took a good, careful look at his Lieutenant.

The man’s shoulder length hair was in complete disarray; he had a swollen cheek that looked like he had a walnut inside his mouth, a split lip, and a solid black eye that was barely open. The man also looked to be extremely pissed.

Sajin turned to him fully and walked over to stand in front of him. The man’s movements got his attention, so he looked up at the Captain with an annoyed face.

“Don’t. Ask.” He simply instructed in a low voice.

The Captain closed his eyes and moaned. “Is anyone dead, dying, or in the medical center?” he returned as calmly as he could manage.

“No…unfortunately, I’m the only victim. There’s hot tea in the kitchen, Captain…it looks like you really need it too.” Timothy observed.

Sajin pinched the bridge of his nose with a growl. “I ‘must’ accept that offer. Please tell me that I will not have to hear of this later.” He pleaded.

Timothy set his form down and sighed. “No…I doubt that you’ll have to…She gave me a pretty good beating, so I believe she thinks I learned my lesson.”

The Captain lifted his hand from his face to stare at him disbelievingly. “Ogawa, alone, did this?!” he asked in surprised.

His Lieutenant flinched, then moaned with a swift nod. Sajin slapped the hand back to his face and pulled it down along his fur with a sigh.

“Did she try to ‘kill’ anyone else?” he asked in worry.

Timothy shook his head. “No, she chased them around a bit…then found me…aaannnnd…yeah, you can see the result.”

“Do I even ‘want’ to know?” Sajin half asked.

Timothy turned to him with a stern gaze. “No, you don’t. And in my opinion, it should be left at that, Captain.” He insisted.

Sajin waved him off as he turned and walked to his desk. “It is as I said; this is ‘your’ responsibility. I see that I should have specifically stated that it included the repercussions of each action as well.” He stated

“I just hope that Captain Unohana doesn’t find out; she’d put me back in one of those stupid beds as a punishment, rather than for recovery.” Timothy commented.

Sajin poured himself a cup of tea and sat behind his desk with a heavy breath. “I thought you told me you do not fear her.” He inquired.

Timothy looked at him. “I don’t; but I’d gladly face off against Captain Zaraki ‘and’ the Head Captain at the same time than go back to being figuratively strapped down to that goddamned bed again.” He said with a stern look, then returned to his work. “By the way, yesterday’s paperwork is on your left, Captain. I looked over it twice, so a quick glance should be enough for you to sign away on it. Also…” he paused, returning to Sajin and getting him look at him as well.

“I’ll be leaving the office early today to get some training in before I work with the team. Five days of not getting any physical work done is killing me.” He stated.

Sajin nodded in understanding. “That will be fine. So how did Miss Ogawa’s training session go yesterday?” he asked, then took a long sip of his tea.

Timothy sweat dropped. “For her, rough at first, but a little push got her in the right direction. For the members…well, let’s just say they learned the hard way to show her respect.”

Sajin rose a brow and set his cup down. “If your current condition is anything to go by, I would have to agree. So where is she now?”

His Lieutenant gestured to the outside offices with a jerk of his head. “Working on the morning forms with Minato. She’ll be heading out when I start the training with the team. So, they say anything interesting in your meeting?”

Sajin slightly shook his head and grabbed his first form. “Nothing of particular interest; simple reports and any new information regarding Sōsuke Aizen. I notified the Captains of my intention to disband the response team at the end of the week, but nothing further than that.”

Timothy nodded. “So, what kept ya yesterday, if I may ask?”

Sajin signed the form and set it aside before grabbing another. “I was assisting Tetsuzaemon with his backlog of paperwork. I did not return until very early this morning.”

“So that’s why you look like you’re about drop on the spot.” Timothy observed with a glance.

The Captain moaned as he drew his hand down his face again. “It was much worse than he had led us to believe. The paperwork was behind by six days.”

Timothy gave him a shocked look. “Six days?! Damn that’s bad! Now I ‘really’ pity him!”

Sajin sighed and nodded. “The 3rd and 4th seats for the squad were not prepared for this at all. But, now that it has been caught up, I am hoping that Tetsuzaemon can keep the squad going.”

Timothy rose a brow. “Shouldn’t the paperwork be the same as if he was here? I mean, it’s just there won’t be a Captain to sign in the appropriate spot.”

Sajin shook his head. “That is true, however it is only him that can do the reviews, instead of two officers. If he turns in an incorrect form, it could have poor consequences for the squad. So that means he has to spend more time looking them over to ensure that they are correct.”

The Lieutenant sighed and nodded. “Yeah, that does make sense.” He commented, then ran his fingers through his hair. After a minute, he growled and slapped both hands on the table. “Hell with it.” he said sternly and stood.

Sajin looked at him curiously. “Tim?”

Timothy turned to him as he grabbed his zanpakutōs. “Come on Captain, let’s get a little workout this morning.” He politely demanded as he tucked both weapons into his sash.

Sajin chuckled and lowered his head. “No, I do not believe that would be wise.” He pointed out.

His Lieutenant walked up and stopped in front of his desk, hands on his hips with a stern look. “We’re both in a piss poor mood this morning and need to blow off some steam, Captain. So, either get up and duel it out with me on the grounds, or we can do it in here.”

The furry Captain rose a brow at his tone. “I ask that you watch your tone, Tim.” he cautioned.

Timothy rose a brow in return. “Reprimand me later, but right now we both need this. So, get your furry ass up and let’s go.” he demanded.

Sajin glared at him, but finally sighed in defeat. As usual, the man had a point. They were both in foul moods; and perhaps a little physical activity would relieve the stress that they were both feeling.

“Very well, but let’s try ‘not’ to destroy the grounds this time.” Sajin accepted.

Timothy waved him off. “Nah, just a simple blades-only match. No kidō, no releases, just skill. First to land three hits.” He offered.

Sajin nodded in acceptance and stood up, following the man to the door. “Besides…” Timothy spoke up as he opened the door, stopping to glance at him. “…if you flash your spiritual pressure, Captain Unohana will ‘definitely’ figure out something’s up.” He commented and left the office with Sajin in tow.

“Agreed, neither of us would like to explain this to her this morning.” Sajin added.

** Squad 7 Training Grounds, 5 Minutes Later **

Both officers came to a stop in the center of the field, Timothy holding out his right hand to the Captain.

“Like I said; no releases, no kidō. First to three blade strikes.” He reaffirmed.

Sajin nodded and took his hand in a shake. “Agreed, first to three.”

They broke hands and walked away from each other, twenty feet separating the two men. Timothy drew his ‘unnamed’ zanpakutō as Sajin drew Tenken. Sajin lowered himself a bit into a wide, one-handed stance, while Timothy leaned forward a bit with his weapon in his right hand, outstretched behind him; ready for a charge attack.

“Are you ready?” Sajin asked.

Timothy nodded. “Ready. Count together?” he proposed, where Sajin nodded back.

“3” Sajin started.

“2” his Lieutenant followed.

“1” they spoke in unison.

A split second later, both men charged at each other, Timothy swinging up, Sajin swinging down. Sparks flew as their blades clashed together, but Sajin’s immense strength forced Timothy’s blade back down.

Timothy twisted his body a bit to the left, letting Sajin’s strike go past his right shoulder. He then twisted around to the right, bringing his blade around with him towards the Captain’s flank. Sajin turned to the right as he pulled his blade up, blocking Timothy’s own.

The Lieutenant lifted his left leg and swung out with a kick to Sajin’s side, only for it to be blocked by the Captains armored wrist. Timothy pulled his leg back quickly as Sajin tried to grab at it, then pulled his blade straight back.

He twirled it around to bring it high above his head, grabbing the remainder of the hilt with his other hand. He swung down hard on the larger man’s arm, getting blocked by Sajin’s other armored wrist.

Sajin attempted a side swing at the Lieutenant’s exposed side, but he pushed down harder on his blade as he jumped back, narrowly missed by the Captain’s strike as he leaped into the air. He landed in a low stance with his blade held to his right side with both hands and quickly re-engaged with a low charge.

** Squad 7 Headquarters, Present **

Minato and Hinata, again were sitting in one of the offices on the second floor, filling out the last of the morning paperwork. She was still thoroughly pissed at Timothy’s actions from the day before, and Minato could sense the dark aura surrounding her.

After an hour of silence since they first came in, Minato finally broke it with a sigh. “Hinata…” he started.

She glanced at him with fury filled eyes. “Yes?”

He swallowed hard. He needed to calm her down and explain to her why Timothy did what he did, but he needed to be ‘very’ careful about what he said; lest her fury be turned onto him.

“Look…about…” he tried to continue, but two of the clerks running through the hallway caught his attention.

She rose a brow, having not noticed the clerks yet, but turned when she heard more running to see another clerk running towards the stairs as well. Minato raised a hand high and called out loudly to get the lone clerk’s attention.

“Hey!” he yelled, getting the man to stop and peek in the doorway. “What’s going on?”

“The Captain and Lieutenant are fighting again!” he announced before going on his way.

Minato and Hinata quickly looked at each other with shocked faces. “Oh shit!” she said with worry.

Minato nodded, then they both quickly shot up and ran towards the stairs as well.

** Squad 7 Training Grounds, Present **

Timothy landed roughly on his feet after being forced back by Sajin.

“That’s one, Tim.” Sajin stated.

The Lieutenant now had a small cut on the top of his left shoulder, now starting to bleed slowly. He held his blade in a cross guard across his chest as he darted forward. Sajin swung down on him as he came close, but the man held his blade up while still moving forward, catching the Captain’s blow.

Keeping his momentum, Timothy used the force of Sajin’s strike to force him down to the ground, sliding under the Captain’s legs on his back and running his blade across Sajin’s inner calf. The Captain grunted in a wisp of pain and turned to try and catch Timothy as he came to a stop.

Still on the ground, Timothy held his blade up with his left-hand bracing against the back side of his blade; catching the large man’s blow.

“That’s one for me!” he commented, then lowered his left hand. His blade tilted down, letting Sajin’s glide along its length and towards the ground. Timothy then placed his hand on top of the back of Sajin’s blade, rolling himself around and up into a handstand on it.

He swung his right foot out and managed to catch Sajin in the side of the head. But Sajin used the momentum of his body to grab Timothy’s ankle and pull him out of his stand. Twisting his body, Sajin pulled Timothy along in the air, throwing him as he swung up.

Timothy flew a few yards and landed on his side, but rolled a bit further before stopping in a low stance.

“And that makes two.” Sajin said as he turned to face him and return to his stance as well.

Timothy now sported a wide, but not deep slash on his left flank, but he merely grinned at the man.

“For both of us.” He added, pointing at Sajin’s head.

The Captain’s eyes widened a bit, then he reached up with his free hand to his right canine ear. He touched the furry surface and felt that his ear had been split. He held his hand in front of him and the sight of blood on his gloved hand confirmed the hit.

He then looked at the Lieutenant. “Impressive reflexes, you have improved since our last match.” He complemented.

Timothy nodded. “Thanks, but now it comes down to whoever gets the next hit.”

At the edge of the field, Minato and Hinata came to a stop and slightly gasped to see Timothy with a gash on his side and shoulder; and the Captain with a bleeding leg and cut ear. Minato then turned to one of the other spectators.

“What’s going on here? Why are they fighting?” he asked.

The woman turned to him. “I don’t know, sir. I just got here a minute ago.” She admitted, then turned back to the fight.

Hinata looked closely at the two warriors, then breathed a sigh of relief. “I think they are just having a simple duel; it looks like they are both holding back as neither of them have released their zanpakutōs.” She observed.

Minato looks closely as well, then nods in agreeance. “You may be right; neither of their injuries are that bad as either.” He adds further.

Hinata glances at him. “Care for a bet?” she offers, getting his attention.

“I’m listening.”

She smirks at him, then turns back to see Timothy charge at Sajin. “My bet’s on Tim; loser has to do the rest of the morning paperwork?”

Minato looks at the fighters, watching as Timothy hurls a series of three consecutive attacks at the Captain. Sajin was holding firm, not giving an inch of ground at the Lieutenant’s attacks.

“I’m good with that; I’ll put mine on the Captain. Tim has the better zanpakutō, but they are not releasing, and the Captain’s strength is not something to take lightly. I’ll give it another two…maybe three minutes before he puts Tim down.” He commented.

“Deal.” Hinata confirms, holding her hand out to him.

He glances at her with a smirk, taking her hand and giving it a solid shake. “Enjoy the extra work, Miss Ogawa.”

She smirks back at him. “I should be saying that to you. Have you no faith in our mutual friend?”

He raised both brows at her. “Oh, I have faith in Tim, don’t get me wrong on that; but when it comes to simple blade skill, the Captain is definitely the better fighter.” He clarified. She scoffs at his comment, then they both turn back to see Timothy now on the defensive. “See, told you.” He commented

Timothy was stepping side to side, backing up a bit with each step as Sajin swung down, sideways, down again, up, then diagonally in rapid succession; tossing in an occasional swing of his fist in an attempt to throw Timothy off.

**_“Use his next fist throw to your advantage, Tim.”_** Susan spoke up for the first time in days.

_“Not now, I’m still not in a good mood with you.”_ He tossed back

He heard her scoff in annoyance. **_“I’m aware of that, but you can put that aside for now in order to win against him.”_** She pointed out.

Timothy grunted when Sajin wailed on him with an overhead attack, putting a great deal of force behind the strike. He then noticed the Captain rearing his arm back in preparation for a punch.

**_“Worry about this shit later, Tim! Dodge to the side and grab his wrist, twisting to the side as you do! Now!”_** she demanded.

He scoffed again, but did as she instructed. As Sajin’s fist thrusted forward, Timothy took a swift step to the side, letting the extended arm swing by on his left. Reaching out and grabbing tightly on the larger man’s wrist, Timothy twisted around to the left, ducking down a bit as he did.

Sajin’s eyes widened a bit at Timothy’s sudden move, seeing what he was about to do. He rotated his blade around and thrusted down and across his chest towards Timothy’s side.

Timothy swung out at Sajin’s leg, but caught the man’s incoming blade. He released the man’s wrist and rolled to the side, hopping back a few times when he came back to his feet where the two of them were now yards apart.

He takes a moment to catch his breath as Sajin turns to face him, his zanpakutō held to his side. Timothy looked at the man’s leg where he had swung at; but saw that he had only managed to rip open the sleeve on the large man’s hakama.

“Tsk, should that count as a hit?” Timothy mocked.

Sajin grunted back and pointed at him. “Only if that does as well.”

Timothy’s eyes widened at his words. He raised his sword arm high and reached across, pulling the fabric of his kosode around. He looked behind him the see two small rips, about six inches apart, on the back of his top; obvious that he was just barely missed by a stab from the man’s blade.

“Damn.” He mumbled, then released his top and turned back to the larger man. “You got me too.” He observed a little louder to him.

Sajin nodded in returned. “So, do we both win, or do we both lose?” he inquired.

Timothy stood straight, letting his sword arm drop to his side as well with a smirk. “Weelll, I was in rough shape when we started this match; so, considering that, I guess ‘I’ win.”

Sajin narrowed his gaze and pointed at him. “You know that does not count, Tim. Do not try to play that game with me; or would you prefer to go another round?”

The Lieutenant snickered as he sheathed his zanpakutō. “Nah, I’m good with a draw for now. Perhaps another day, Captain.” He offered.

Sajin nodded with a grunt, then sheathed his blade as well before walking up to the Lieutenant, holding his hand out.

“Well done, Tim. I am impressed with the improvement of your raw skills.” Sajin complemented.

Timothy took the large hand and shook it. “Thanks.” He returned, then dropped his hand. “Well, now that we got our stress out of the way, I think we should get back to the mountain of paperwork waiting for us.”

Sajin nodded in agreement, then disappeared with a flash of shunpo. Timothy was about to follow him, but stopped when he saw Hinata and Minato walking towards him from the dispersing crowd.

“Hey Minato…Hinata…” he greeted, her with a low mumble.

She gave him an evil glare as the two came to a stop next to him. “You know I’m still mad about yesterday, right?”

Timothy sighed heavily as he waved her of nonchalantly. “Yeah yeah, you’ll get over it.” He moaned, then folded his arms in his sleeves. “So how you two doing this morning?” he asked to Minato.

The male officer raised his hand, tilting it side to side. “Going ok I guess. So, what was that all about?”

Timothy shrugged his shoulder. “Just a bit of stress relief, that’s all. Little bit of fun to lighten our moods. The Captain had a pretty rough night last night; helping Tetsuzaemon out over at the 5th.”

Minato nodded. “That bad huh?” he inquired.

Timothy rose a brow and nodded quickly. “Oh yeah. By what the Captain tells me, he was backed up by six days.”

Minato whistled with eyes wide. “Wow! I feel really bad for him.”

The Lieutenant scoffed. “Don’t we all? Anyway, could you give me and Hinata a few minutes? She’ll be back up there shortly; I just need to discuss the team training for later today.”

The 6th seat glanced between the two a few times, then Hinata spoke up. “I’m not going to kill him; I think he got what he deserved.” She said with a mean look directed at Timothy, who quickly nodded.

Minato sighed in defeat, then turned to her. “See you back in the office.” He stated, then disappeared with shunpo.

Hinata turned to Timothy as she crossed her arms with a heavy sigh. “So, what is it you wanted to discuss about the training?” she asked with an annoyed tone.

Timothy groaned. “Well…I didn’t. I actually wanted apologize for yesterday.” He admitted, where she rose a brow at him. He sighed again as he prepared his next words. “I know that that was a little…” he started, but her narrowing gaze made him rethink his words. “…I mean, a great deal too far. But in all honesty, you needed the push, and the guys needed to see for themselves not to take you lightly. I did that so you would get past your being timid, your stage fright, or whatever you want to call it; so that way you would be more assertive when dealing with the members.” He informed cautiously.

She closed her eyes with a heavy sigh. “I accept your apology, and I thank you for helping me; but you could have found a better way to do it.” She pointed out.

He nodded at her. “That’s true, but unfortunately, it was the most effective way, instead of spending days trying to get you to get past being shy while ‘in the spotlight.”

She rose a brow at him. “In the spotlight?”

He sighed in defeat. “It’s a term, meaning being put on the spot. I thought you were only here for seven years?” he inquired.

She nodded. “Yes, but remember, when a soul passes on from the world of the living to the soul society, that person losses all memories of their previous life. It’s a very rare case that someone will ever remember anything about their life before here. In fact, you’re the only person I know that kept his memories from the previous life.” She clarified.

Timothy nodded back. “Yeah, that’s true. I actually know of one other person besides myself that kept his memories.”

She tilted her head a bit. “Really? Who is that?”

Timothy chuckled with a small smile as he lowered his head. “Another soul from Rukongai. His name is Albert Müller. I never thought of him as much of a friend while I was there, but now that I look back, he actually is a good friend. We stayed together while I lived in Fallen Tree. He tended to be annoying, but no matter how much I tried to keep my distance from him, he always looked out for me.”

She gave him a small smile. “Sounds like he’s a good friend.” She observed.

Timothy nodded. “Yeah, he is I guess. Anyway, let’s get back to work. We’ll do some team training here in a few hours.” He notified.

She nodded back. “Sounds good.” She concluded, then they both vanished with shunpo towards the headquarters.

** World of the Living, Karakura Town, Present **

The wind blew gently while the birds sang their tunes at the small shrine where Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck rested after her ordeal in Hueco Mundo. She was still in the same spot where she had fallen asleep several hours before.

A few small tree birds hopped around the floor, pecking at any random seeds or twigs that had blown into the open building. One of the birds hopped over, now standing next to Nel’s sleeping form, and started to peck at her loose, teal hair that was spread out on the floor.

It hopped a few inches closer, now next to her face, and pecked once at her cheek that had dirt on it. Her eyelids flinched with the small bit of contact, but she still slept. The bird pecked twice more at the piece of dirt, this time drawing her from her sleep.

Her eyelids flinched again, then slowly opened, revealing her hazel eyes to the warm beam of sunlight that came through a hole in the ceiling. She blinked a few times to clear her vision, then halfway opened them to see through the door that it must be sometime in the mid-morning.

The bird pecked her cheek again, annoying her; so, she raised her hand and gently brushed the creature away. It jumped up and quickly flew out the open door with the rest of the birds in the building.

She dropped her hand and pulled her other arm out from under her head, slowly pushing herself up into a leaning position. She winced in pain as she did so, but after a long breath, she pushed herself up all the way to a sitting position.

Once she did, she suddenly became lightheaded and pulled a hand to the side of her head to let the dizziness fade.

_‘How long have I been sleeping?’_ she wondered as the swirling in her head died down.

After a few more seconds, she dropped her hand and looked out to the open door. “Is it the next morning…or have I been out longer than a day?” she mumbled to herself.

She then unbuttoned her top and pulled it open to reveal her wound. She looked down at her improvised dressing to see that parts of it had been soaked through, but the bleeding seemed to have stopped. She reached up with her off hand, the other holding her top open, and began to gently pull the middle of the dressing away from the wound.

It stung quite a bit as the blood that had soaked the fabric had solidified and essentially ‘glued’ it to the wound. She bit her lip and slowly peeled the bandage away to reveal, to her surprise, that the wound had not healed all the way.

The bleeding had indeed stopped, only a few spots oozing when the clotting had been pulled away with the dressing. The areas around the injury was a very deep purple, extending out about two inches from the site.

Normally, Adjuchas class hollows and above, to include Arrancar, can use their spirit energy to quickly heal any wounds that they receive in combat. The healing process is fairly quick, usually only taking a few days to a week to recover enough to fight again.

With the wound she received, even though she wouldn’t be fit to fight, should have been better healed than it currently was. But where Adjuchas and Vasto Lorde would heal using their hollow powers, an Arrancar’s healing was slightly different. An Arrancar’s hollows powers are essentially removed from them, and sealed within their zanpakutō; in her case, Gamuza.

When the powers are sealed, they gain their own spiritual presence, similar to that of a soul reaper’s zanpakutō spirit. It is actually the Arrancar’s hollow spirit that does the healing for them, allowing them to concentrate on other matters.

Nel reached down and hesitantly drew Gamuza from its sheath. Tears began to well up in her eyes again as she saw that Gamuza was still broken; the broken point just shy of a foot from the guard.

“Gamuza…please answer me.” She pleaded to the spirit; but received no answer.

She closed her eyes and lowered her head as she rested the arm holding her blade on her lap. Now she knew why her wound had not healed at the rate it should have. Somehow, Gamuza was no longer there; and without the spirit to heal her, her body had to heal on its own; which would take several days to weeks.

Tears began falling from her eyes and running down her cheeks as she wondered if Gamuza was truly gone forever. Without Gamuza, she would be unable to call upon her Resurrección; meaning that without her hollow powers, she was essentially nothing more than an empty soul, only able to use her cero, sonído, and a small garganta in an emergency.

But with the faint amount of spirit energy that she currently had, she knew that it was very doubtful that she would be able to do that for long before she collapsed from spiritual energy exhaustion.

At her current power, she guessed that she would be lucky to be able to perform a half dozen ceros before that happened; she would most likely pass out from using a garganta more than once.

Without her hollow powers to reinforce the replenishment of her spirit energy, it would take a long time while in the world of the living, where the amount of reishi was very limited, before she would be at her max again; or at least the max she could attain without Gamuza.

Hesitantly, she placed Gamuza back in its sheath, keeping her hand on its hilt for a moment before letting it drop back down onto her lap again. She released the bandage that she was still holding open a bit, letting it fall back into place.

Pulling her lap hand up, she slowly closed and buttoned up her top again, then clasped her hands together, setting them in her lap. She took a deep breath, then cleared her mind to try and speak inwardly with Gamuza.

Like soul reapers, Arrancars also had their own inner world where their hollow powers resided. Normally she just had to be in a calm state to enter her inner world; but now, regardless of how hard she tried, she couldn’t seem to get inside. It felt to her like it wasn’t even there.

She dropped her head more as she clenched her teeth tightly, more tears falling down her face and dripping onto her clasped hands.

“Why…” she whispered in a hoarse voice. “Why does the world have to be so cruel?” she asked herself, then buried her face in her hands. “What could I have possibly done to deserve this?” she asked further.

She raised her head back, lightly banging it against the wall. “What did Pesche and Dondochakka do to deserve me killing them?” she pleaded. “Was I not loyal enough? Did I not do what was asked of me? What was required of me? Why did they have to suffer because of me?” she continued in a slightly raised voice. “Why…why did I get to live, and they had to die? Why?!” she lowly yelled.

She then redrew Gamuza and quickly held its shortened blade to her chest, ready to perform seppuku. Holding the blade less than an inch form her skin, her hands began to shake violently as she fought herself between committing the suicide, and the will to live.

Her teeth clenched even harder as she continued to press the blade closer to her skin, the pointed tip from where the blade had broken now touching, and beginning to press into her skin. She very faintly hissed as the blade broke the skin, a small bit of blood oozing out and beginning to absorb into the fabric of her shirt.

The blade’s movement stopped as more tears flowed from her eyes. The blade held its position for what had seemed to her like eternity. With her resolve to commit the act finally breaking, she pulled the blade away from her chest and slammed the end of the hilt down on the floor to her side, screaming out in agony as she did.

Her body slid to the side along the wall, Gamuza falling from her grip and onto the floor with a dull clang, where she landed on her side. Her shoulders trembled as she silently sobbed. After a moment, she reached out, grabbing Gamuza, and pulled the broken weapon closer to her, cradling it to her chest.

“Pesche, Dondochakka…I will avenge what I have done to you.” She whispered, and clutched the hilt tighter. “I will make sure that cruel man dies…before I end my life for my actions. I promise.” She swore to her slain friends.

She then opened her eyes, now filled with resolve, as she slowly began to push herself up to a sitting, then to a standing position. She held Gamuza to her side as her hands shook with anger. She looked up to the doorway and began slowly walking to leave the small building, stopping at the doorway.

“I swear it!” she claimed in a low and stern voice, then began walking towards the city.

** Squad 7 Training Grounds, Seireitei, 4 Hours Later **

“Come on! Quit trying to get ahead of each other to get at me and work ‘together’!” Timothy yelled at the members of his team.

They were all near the wooded area behind the barracks practicing their teamwork. Timothy had picked out two of the members from the team to side with him; while the rest, with Hinata leading them, to try and take the trio down.

It was currently eight against two, after one of the members on Timothy’s side had been ‘defeated’, but Hinata’s side was having extreme difficulty landing ‘defeating blows’ on him.

“For the love of…I’ve left myself open three times so far, and none of you have even tried to notice it!” he berated further.

Timothy hadn’t even used Susan’s abilities yet, only using quick flash steps to dodge the oncoming attacks.

“You two, keep him pinned! We’ll get his flank!” Hinata commanded as she pointed at two of the team members.

The two soul reapers nodded and flashed at Timothy, one swinging at catching his blade, while the other kept Timothy’s other ‘teammate’ busy. Hinata, with the rest of her team, charged in, ready with their weapons held for side cuts.

Timothy glanced over his shoulder, then turned back and quickly punched the man’s face. Using the man’s surprise, he grabbed the front of the man’s shihakusho; pulling him forward and throwing him at Hinata’s team with all his strength.

The man’s body flew through the air and crashed into two of the men to Hinata’s left, knocking them down. Timothy then bent down, holding his free hand to the ground.

“Bakudō #21, Sekienton!” he chanted.

The ground suddenly exploded in a thick, red cloud of smoke in front of Hinata’s team, the wind blowing it to now cover her entire team in the smoke screen. She and her team suddenly stopped their assault, keeping their guard while they waited for the smoke to clear.

“Keep your guard!” she instructed, but then widened her eyes when she felt Timothy now behind her.

“Bakudō #4, Hainawa.” He spoke calmly.

He threw his free hand towards her, a yellow bolt of energy flying out a wrapping around her, locking her in place. But the spell quickly fell apart with a shattering effect as the thin barrier he had taught her broke apart.

He grinned a bit at seeing her use the technique to her advantage, but then bared his teeth at her as she turned around.

“Too late. Bakudō #1, Sai!” he chanted further.

Her arms were then pulled back by an invisible force, locking her wrists together behind her back. She growled at him and began fighting against the spell, knowing it too be heavily weakened because he only called out the name of the spell and not the number or incantation.

He quickly flashed away to where he was before, and held out both hands to where Hinata’s group was.

“Disintegrate, you black dog of Rondanini. Look upon yourself with horror and tear out your own throat.” He chanted calmly, waiting a few seconds more to get a clear view of his opponents. Bakudō #9, Hōrin!” he finished.

An orange rope of energy shot out from his free hand straight at Hinata, just now breaking his previous kidō. The rope wrapped itself around her, then he held his sword hand out to the opponent fighting his teammate; his index and middle fingers extended.

Another rope shot out from his fingers to the man and wrapped around him as well. Pulling on that line, he pulled the man away from his teammate and right towards Hinata. The two bodies crashed together, and the two ropes joined to bind them both together.

Timothy then dropped his arms to his sides with a sigh. “Stop!” he called, ending the fight.

With a flick of his wrist, he dropped the kidō binding Hinata and the other member together. With a wave of the hand, he gestured for everyone to come closer to him as he sheathed his zanpakutō.

“Huddle up and take a breather everyone.” He instructed, then turned to Hinata. “Nice work keeping your barrier up during the battle, Hinata. I’ll admit, I had no idea that you did have it up. Nice one. But you did make one mistake when you released it.” He pointed out to her.

She sighed heavily and placed a hand on her hip. “And what’s that?” she moaned.

“You released it too late. The kidō had the time to do its work and put you in a bad spot; that gave me the opening to hit you with a second. You knew I was sending a Hainawa at you, so you had the time to drop the barrier after I sent the kidō at you, but before it got to you. If you had done so, you would have been able to counterattack. Just keep that in mind for the future. Other than that, good planning and strategizing; but be more assertive when issuing your orders.” He advised.

She nodded with a sigh, then he turned to the others. “The rest of you need to work a bit harder on your teamwork; rely more on each other and trust your buddies to ‘help’ you, not get in your way. Towards the end you did okay, but just work a little harder on it is all. Good job overall, everyone. Take another fifteen minutes, then well go at it again. This time I want you all to release your swords if you can, but don’t use your zanpakutō’s abilities. I want you all to get used to working with your specific, and unique weapons, while getting used to working with and around your buddy’s weapon.”

He paused and turned to Hinata. “Hinata, a word please.” He said.

She nodded at him, then they both walked away to get some distance from the rest of the team. Once they were a few dozen yards from the group, he turned to her.

“Like I said, pretty good overall, just get more stern with them; make them understand the urgency behind your orders.” He commented.

She sighed heavily. “Got it.”

He nodded lightly. “So, what do you think so far? Plan to keep on with the training and possibly become an officer?” he asked pleasantly.

She hummed with thought as she rested her hands on her hips. “It’s aright so far; not as bad as before, but still not easy.”

“Not supposed to be.” He pointed out.

She nodded back. “I’m aware, but it is a bit harder than I had thought at first. I guess I’ll get used…”

She was interrupted by Sajin flashing into place next to Timothy with a very stern look on his face.

“Tim, get the team ready immediately! There has been a possible sighting of the hollow we’ve been looking for in Karakura Town!” he instructed firmly.

Timothy’s eyes widened, then he quickly turned to Hinata. “Get everyone to the senkaimon and ready to go, I’ll get the permission to go!” he instructed.

“Permission has already been granted; you are to leave immediately after you get there! We have received a report that the substitute soul reaper, Ichigo Kurosaki, is already on his way to engage the hollow! You are to assist him in any way you can! Now go!” he demanded.

Timothy nodded and flashed back to the group in the distance, Hinata following.

“Get up! We’re heading to the world of the living immediately! Get you asses to the senkaimon as fast as possible and stand by, go!” he yelled.

Everyone quickly stood up and disappeared with shunpo. Timothy then turned to Hinata. “Remember what I told you, Hinata. This is the real deal this time, so don’t be hesitant. Got it?” he asked sternly.

She scoffed at him. “I got it.”

He reached up and smacked the back of her head, shocking her. “I ain’t joking around Hinata! This fucker already killed Hetoku and his team; and I will not let it do the same to mine! Clear?!” he yelled at her.

She widened her eyes at his demeaner; but nodded. “I’m going to kill you for that you know!” she warned.

Timothy growled at her. “Worry about that later; for now, let’s worry about doing our job and getting ‘everyone’ home…‘alive’!” he stated.

She gave him a stern look and a solid nod. “Yeah.” She responded.

He nodded back before they both vanished with shunpo towards the senkaimon near the Squad 1 headquarters.


	14. Hollows and Arrancars

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 14

**(Hollows and Arrancars)**

** World of the Living, Karakura Town, Present **

****

Ichigo Kurosaki flew through the air in repetitive flash steps as he headed towards the hollow near the edge of the city. He was still in one of his afternoon classes when the alarm in his substitute soul reaper combat pass had gone off, so he quickly excused himself from class and left his body, hiding it in some bushes on the school grounds.

Luckily for him, the hollow appeared during his English Literature class; his least favorite by far. It was sometimes a struggle for him to pay attention to the teacher while she taught her class; considering that it was a boring class that was in the afternoon right after lunch period, and the occasional nightly hollow excursions he had to do; like last night.

He was a little on edge after his large, cleaver-like zanpakutō on his back, Zangetsu, had told him that he felt something odd about the hollow’s spiritual pressure. Ichigo himself couldn’t feel any difference in the pressure, his ability to sense spiritual pressures being lackluster at best; but he knew that Zangetsu would never steer him wrong.

_“So, what’s so different about this hollow’s spiritual pressure, old man?”_ he asked his zanpakutō spirit.

**_“I cannot answer that at this time, Ichigo. I would advise you use caution while engaging it.”_** Zangetsu answered.

_“Tsk, great. First that guy Hiroku…or whatever his name was, and now some weird ass hollow. Any more surprises I should be aware about?”_ he complained.

**_“You know as much as I do at this point, Ichigo.”_** His spirit stated.

_“Whatever, this guy should be just up ahead, right?”_ Ichigo asked.

**_“Yes, a few more blocks and you should see him.”_** Zangetsu affirmed.

“Right.” The orange haired teenager said aloud with a scowl.

After steeping of the top of a building, he flashed into place to see a slightly larger than human sized hollow with four arms and a grey body going after a lone male soul. He reached back over his shoulder and grasped the hilt of Zangetsu, its wrappings unfurling and shortening in length as he drew it from his back.

“He don’t look so tough.” He commented to himself.

He blazed forward with his blade held behind him as the hollow got close to the soul, ready to swing down to kill it. Ichigo swung sideways as he came to a stop in front of the hollow, cutting it across its abdomen.

The hollow gave out a slightly feminine roar in pain, causing Ichigo to smirk a bit; but his smirk quickly fell when the cut he had just made quickly began to heal itself. Within a matter of only a few seconds, the hollow’s injury was completely healed.

“What?!” he choked out.

The hollow looked at him and swung its two left arms to hit both Ichigo’s head and side. He reflexively held his giant blade facing down and against his side. The two clawed hands struck the side of the blade, the force of the attack throwing Ichigo off his feet on onto the ground a few yards away.

The soul ran off to find cover as the hollow turned to face her new prey. She glared at him as he got back to his feet, coughing.

“Well, look what we have here; a soul reaper that’s come to be my lunch.” She commented.

Ichigo stood up and got into a wide and tall stance, a deep scowl on his face.

**_“Ichigo, be careful with this hollow; I can feel the spirit energy around it being pulled towards it.”_** Zangetsu warned.

Ichigo’s eyes widened a bit. _“What? What do you mean? And how the hell did it heal itself like that?”_ he asked in worry.

**_“The hollow is somehow absorbing the spirit energy around it; and with your inability to control your spiritual pressure, it is only making the matter worse. It would seem that this hollow is using that energy to heal itself at a rapid pace. You must be careful to not exert too much spiritual pressure while you fight against it. Doing so will only allow it to heal that much faster. I recommend that you defeat this foe quickly, Ichigo.”_** The old man advised.

“Tsk, just great!” he growled.

The hollow narrowed its gaze at him and chuckled. “My, you seem to have quite a large amount of spirit energy. I can feel it flowing from you like a raging river; it makes my skin tingle with delight. Please do me the favor of dying quickly, so I can enjoy feeding on it that much faster.” She said in a happy voice.

Ichigo’s scowl deepened. “Tsk, I don’t think so, hollow scum! Time to end this!” he stated.

“I couldn’t agree more.” She returned.

The two beings then charged at each other; the hollow readying to swing down while Ichigo readied to swing up. A quick change of direction with Zangetsu’s blade allowed Ichigo to slice one of the hollow’s hands off at the wrist.

The hollow roared in pain and swung with both arms on the other side, with Ichigo again getting batted to the side. Fortunately, he managed to stay on his feet, sliding across the ground to a halt. The hollow was holding one of its remaining hands on the injured limb.

Ichigo was shocked again as he watched the hollow’s missing hand started to regenerate itself within a matter of seconds.

“This is bullshit! How the hell am I supposed to kill something that keeps fixing itself?!” he complained loudly.

The hollow’s hand finished its reconstruction, then she turned to him. “You are starting to annoy me.” She pointed to him.

“I’m’ starting to annoy ‘you’?! You keep healing yourself!” he yelled as he pointed back.

“Shut up! I’m done playing games with you!” she yelled back.

She charged at him again with all four arms out stretched, moving to try and stab him through. Ichigo scoffed and held his blade up again in a defensive posture. Three of the hollow’s arms were stopped by his blade, but one got by and grazed the side of his sword arm.

Ichigo grunted in pain and got ready to move to counterattack. But a sudden crash from behind him stopped him. He glanced over his shoulder to see a red skinned version of the hollow in front of him, about to stab him with its two right hands.

“Damn!” he growled out. _“I can’t dodge it!”_ he panicked.

“Hadō #33, Sōkatsui!” a voice yelled to his right.

A blue bolt of raw energy suddenly impacted the grey skinned hollow, throwing it to the side a few yards away.

“Hadō # 31, Shakkahō!” a different, and feminine voice yelled further, also from the left.

A red ball of fire energy sailed through the air and towards the female hollow to Ichigo’s front. The hollow jumped away backwards, the kidō just missing her and sailing into a nearby tree.

Ichigo turned to the direction of the voices to see at least ten soul reapers running in his direction, led by a short man with blondish hair.

Timothy drew his Susan’s zanpakutō, the others drawing theirs as well, and pointed at the red skinned hollow.

“Hinata, take six members and go after the red one; I’ll take the other five and help the substitute with the grey one! And remember, no kidō! We managed to catch em by surprise this time, but that won’t happen again!” he instructed.

She nodded at him with a stern look and pointed at her chosen team members. “You six, with me!” she commanded.

“Yes maam!” they replied in unison, then followed her to their target.

Timothy turned to his team. “Again, don’t use kidō, or it will just heal itself! Yuka, I want you to hold back for communications; and put a request in for an area freeze around me, Hinata, and the substitute! Fifty units each!” he instructed.

She nodded at him and stopped in place to relay the order. Timothy turned back to the front and held his blade in front of him.

_“You ready?”_ he asked Susan.

**_“Yeah, but remember that you ‘can’t’ release me!”_** she reminded.

_“Got it!”_ he confirmed. “Tease, Moeru Kitsune!” he called out.

His blade began its transformation as Susan spawned her flames, scattered around the battle field. The blade finished its transformation as Timothy darted forward, swinging at the female hollow.

The hollow dodged to the side and swung out at him, but one of his team members swung out as well, cutting the hollow’s lower left forearm. She growled from the pain and struck out in retaliation.

“Damn you!” she yelled.

Another member blocked the attack while the two remaining team members each got a hit in on her side. She howled more, then faced the two and prepared a red cero.

“Look out!” the second member yelled.

The two members the hollow was targeting flashed away as the beam of energy erupted from the hollow’s mouth, hitting the ground and creating a small crater. Timothy then turned to Ichigo.

“I’m Lieutenant Durn from Squad 7; we’re here to give ya a hand!” he introduced.

Ichigo nodded and jumped in on the fray. Timothy turned back to the hollow and was shocked to see that all of its injuries were completely gone.

“You have got to be kidding me!” he yelled, then vanished into one of his flames.

He reappeared a few feet behind the hollow and prepared to stab out. But stopped when the flame he appeared from suddenly vanished. He glanced behind him to see that it was gone, then looked around to see the rest of his flames had vanished too.

He looked down at his blade. “What the hell are you doing?!” he yelled.

**_“It’s not me! The flames are going out on their own!”_** she yelled back in a panic.

His eyes widened, then he quickly looked back at the hollow. “Is it absorbing the flames as well?!”

**_“I think it is, that’s the only thing I can think of that explains it! And if that’s the case, you can’t use my abilities!”_** she warned.

Timothy growled at the sudden change in the scale. “Shit! Do you think it’ll affect the other’s releases?!” he asked.

**_“No idea, Tim; but I would recommend against it!”_ **

He moaned in annoyance, then turned to his teammates. “Guys!” he yelled, getting their brief attention. “Don’t release your zanpakutōs! The hollow is affecting mine! It might affect yours as well!” he instructed.

“Yes sir!” they answered back, then continued their assaults.

He then turned to Yuka. “Relay that to Hinata’s group as well!” he ordered.

She nodded, then flashed away.

Timothy turned back to the hollow when Ichigo flashed in next to him, a scowl on his face and pointing at the creature.

“Care to tell me what the hell this is about?! The damn thing keeps fixing itself!” he demanded.

Timothy turned to him. “That hollow is one we’ve been looking for over a week after it killed several squad members. It can somehow absorb spirit energy to heal itself. And what about that grey one? We were only told about the one.”

“No idea, it just showed up outta nowhere! I didn’t even sense it!” the substitute growled.

“Neither did we; it was like it wasn’t even there. And what the hell is your problem? Why the hell are you spewing your spirit energy everywhere? All you’re doing is helping the hollow at this point.” Timothy barked.

Ichigo turned to him with a growl. “Oh, shut up! It’s not ‘my’ fault I can’t control my spiritual pressure!”

Timothy sweat dropped at his statement. “You have ‘got’ to be fucking kidding me! You mean to tell me you don’t know how to control your ‘own’ spirit energy?! Are you stupid or something?!”

Ichigo’s temper then flared. “What the hell did you say?!” he asked with a fist held up.

“You heard me! How can you be so stupid to fight a spirit energy absorbing hollow when you can’t control your own?!” Timothy shot back.

Both men glared at each other, ready to drop down. Timothy finally scoffed and turned back to the hollow, now holding off three of his team members.

“Whatever, lets just kill this thing quickly so we can take care of the other one!” he said with a growl.

“Fine!” Ichigo growled back, then they both charged at the hollow.

** With Hinata **

Hinata quickly stood back up after being flung to the ground from the grey hollow’s counter attack. She wiped a bit of blood from her mouth with the back of her free hand and was about to charge back in when Yuka flashed in near her. She turned to her friend.

“Tim said not to release you zanpakutōs against the hollow! The other one is somehow affecting his release and making it stronger! Also, an area freeze has been placed around you, fifty units; so you don’t need to worry about the souls nearby!” Yuka yelled.

Hinata nodded in understanding. “Alright, got it!” she answered, then turned back to the hollow.

_‘No sword releases?! This bastard’s is tough as hell; so how are we supposed to kill it?!! What’s worse, I can’t even feel it! If I wasn’t actually looking at it right now, I wouldn’t even know that it was there!’_ she pondered in her head.

“Issei!” she called out, gaining his attention. “Take Junya and Mori; distract it on the left and we’ll hit it from the right!”

The friend nodded firmly and left to do his task. Hinata then turned to other two members. “You two, with me!” she followed.

The two members nodded and flashed away with her to get into position.

Issei, Junya, and Mori paired together and started attacking the hollow in full force; switching out with each attack to prevent it from getting a chance to counter. It seemed to them that this hollow had a much tougher skin than the other one.

Where the grey one would take damage somewhat easily and would try to dodge attacks, this one was instead using its arms to block their attacks; their blades only causing mild cuts. But they also noticed that this one for some reason ‘wasn’t’ healing itself.

Issei came in low while Mori jumped off the ground for a high attack. Issei swung at the same time Mori did; but the hollow used its lower right hand to catch Issei’s blade, and its upper left arm to block Mori’s.

Junya came in from the right side at a run to try and run his blade into the hollow’s flank. The hollow saw this, so it dropped its upper right arm down; letting Junya’s blade run into it a few inches; the hollow grunting in pain.

Hinata saw this as the perfect opportunity, so she and her two teammates dashed out at full speed right back the hollow’s back. The hollow glanced over its shoulder, seeing the imminent danger; so, it quickly pushed Mori back with force, tossing him back to the sky.

It then swiftly pulled its arm away from Junya’s blade, immediately grabbing it afterward. Turning its body and pulling with its two right arms, Issei and Junya were pulled from their places; and thrown towards the incoming group.

Hinata gasped and dropped to the ground, Junya’s body flying past her overhead and into a tree; while Issei’s body flew into one of the other members, sending them both onto the ground hard.

The hollow darted forward, right at the other standing member and swung down with both left hands; the claws slashing across the man’s chest and throwing him back. Hinata quickly got back up and went at the creature as Mori returned from behind it.

Hinata swung down on it’s now outstretched right arms, cutting deep into the lower one. Mori came up and swung down at the exact same spot, landing on Hinata’s blade, still inside its arm; the extra force proving just enough to finish the job and cut the lower right hand off midway down the forearm.

The hollow yelled out in pain as it swung down with its other right hand in a fist, catching Hinata in the shoulder in sending her straight down to the ground. Mori struck out at the hollow’s exposed back, giving it a mild cut along its back from shoulder to hip.

It then reached back around with its lower left arm, grabbing Mori’s blade, then thrusted its right fist at his face. Unable to move without letting go of his zanpakutō, Mori was forced to take the force of the hit; causing him to release his grip on the sword and falling to the ground.

The hollow, still holding Mori’s zanpakutō by the blade, lurched forward and rammed the blade through his stomach, effectively pinning him to the ground. Mori yelled in pain from the attack and grabbed the blade with both hands.

Junya, now recovered from his collision with nature, ran up to the hollow with Issei right next to him.

“Go low, I got high!” Junya said, getting a nod from his friend.

Junya leaped into the air, holding his sword to the side, while Issei ran in for a stab at its abdomen. The hollow turned to see the attack, growled, then grabbed the hilt of Mori’s zanpakutō.

He yelled as the hollow yanked it from his body. It then turned and kicked out at Issei, causing him to jump to the side; forcing him to abandon the attack. Looking up, it saw Junya with his eyes wide after seeing that he was now wide open.

The hollow scoffed, then swung high and to the side, the blade sailing right across the man’s chest. The attack sent Junya back with a gasp as a stream of dark red blood erupted from the open wound.

“Junya!” Hinata yelled, now back on her feet and slightly dazed.

** With Timothy, 10 Minutes Earlier **

Timothy and his group, along with Ichigo, were having a very difficult time trying to land a lethal blow on the grey skinned hollow. It would take damage easy enough, but the problem was that it just kept on healing itself before they could land another hit.

One of the members were down and unconscious, the other had a bleeding gash on his sword arm and leg, Kenta was bleeding from a cut on the top of his head with blood running down the side of his face, Timothy had a similar cut on his head and a wound on his right flank, and Ichigo had a long slice on his chest.

All of the standing individuals short on breath.

“This bastard just won’t stay down!” Kenta growled as he swung down, cutting its lower left arm of at the midway point of its upper arm.

Ichigo immediately swung out at its back as the arm began to heal. The hollow swatted his blade away and was about to swing down on him with a fist, but Timothy jumped in and blocked the attack with his blade held out.

“Don’t let up!” he yelled to the others.

“Get back!” Ichigo yelled as he held Zangetsu above his head with both hands.

Timothy glanced back to see the substitute’s blade edge starting to glow. He gasped and quickly shunpoed a few yards away.

“Getsuga Tenshou!” Ichigo yelled out, sending a bright, blue, giant burst of energy straight at the hollow.

“You idiot!” Timothy yelled at him.

The large force of energy sailed straight into the hollow, creating a giant explosion. Timothy held his arm up to shield his eyes from the debris that the force of the attack started kicking around.

Dust covered the area as Timothy flashed over to stand next to Ichigo. “Are you fucking stupid?! The hollow absorbs energy! What the hell do you think that attack is gonna do to it?!” he yelled in the teen’s face.

Ichigo glared at him. “Shut the hell up! Your attacks didn’t do anything! At least ‘I’m’ trying!” he yelled back.

Timothy slapped a hand to his forehead. “For god’s sakes, how can ‘anyone’ be this incredibly stupid?!” he blasted out.

“Why I outta…” Ichigo started, but stopped when the female hollow started laughing.

Both men turned to see that, while the substitute’s attack had caused a good amount of damage, the hollow was quickly regenerating. Timothy quickly turned back to him with a hand gesturing to the creature.

“See what I mean?! You only helped it heal faster!” he accused.

“I’ll have to agree with your friend, orange haired soul reaper.” The hollow spoke out, getting their attention back. “Hit me with that as many times as you want; I don’t mind the extra boost. I rather enjoy it; it makes me want to eat your soul even faster.”

“Shut up!” Ichigo yelled to her.

Timothy turned to him. “No, ‘you’ shut up! Why don’t you make yourself useful and go sit behind a tree somewhere?!”

Ichigo growled at him, then turned back to the hollow. “I’ve had enough of this crap.” He moaned loudly, then held Zangetsu out in front of him, his free hand now resting on his right forearm. The wind started swirling around him as his spiritual pressure began to rise at an alarming rate.

Sensing what he was doing, Timothy quickly jumped back away from him.

“Don’t release, you fool!” he yelled out after he landed a few yards from him.

“Bankai!” Ichigo yelled out.

Timothy’s eyes widened as Ichigo became engulfed in a swirling mass of pure spirit energy. The wind blew past Timothy at high speeds as everything started to get pushed away from Ichigo’s position.

After a moment, the mass of energy vanished, revealing Ichigo, who was now wearing a black overcoat that looked similar to the standard shihakusho, with the back extending down to his ankles.

His zanpakutō had also changed in shape, but not the way that Timothy had expected. What was once a giant cleaver, was now what appeared to be a standard zanpakutō. The hilt, guard, and entire blade was all a solid black.

“Tensa Zangetsu.” He called out sternly.

Timothy was now confused as hell. “Please tell me that your bankai isn’t as pitiful as the blade looks.” He pleaded.

Ichigo turned back to him again. “Shut up! I ain’t got time to argue with you any further!”

Timothy scoffed at him. “Then stop being an idiot!” he demanded.

“Just…shut up and watch!” the substitute said, then vanished from sight.

Timothy’s eyes widened. “What the?!”

His attention was drawn to the hollow when it suddenly started screaming in pain. He looked to see that its lower left, and both right arms were now separated from its body at the shoulders.

“How…” he chocked out, then caught a very brief glimpse of Ichigo’s form passing by behind the hollow.

Dark blood erupted from the hollow’s back, causing it to yell even more. Ichigo then flashed into existence right next to Timothy. The Lieutenant turned to him with shock.

“What the hell was that?!” he demanded.

Ichigo turned to him with a scowl. “My bankai gives me a ridiculous amount of speed; there’s no way that hollow could ever keep up with me.”

Timothy was now very pissed. “Why the hell didn’t you start out with that, stupid?! This would have been over a long time ago!”

“Look out!” Kenta yelled.

Timothy turned just in time to see the hollow was now right in front of them, its regenerated arms swinging down on both of them. Timothy held his blade up to block, but once again its arms were separated from its body; and Ichigo no longer standing next to Timothy.

“You bastard! I’ll kill you!” the hollow yelled as it swung its remaining hands down on Timothy.

He held his blade out to block the attack, but then noticed Ichigo was now charging through the air towards the hollow from behind.

“It’s over!” he announced.

With a swing that Timothy barely caught sight of, the hollow’s body split apart down the middle. The female hollow let out a dying yell as it began to dissipate as its body fell backward.

** Outskirts of the Park, 2 Minutes Earlier **

Nelliel entered the park to hear people yelling and what sounded like a hollow yelling in pain. She had sensed the numerous amounts spiritual pressure signatures a few minutes ago, so she decided to investigate.

She may have been betrayed by Aizen, but soul reapers were still considered her enemies; and she knew that she would need to help the hollow defend itself. Afterall, she was once a hollow herself at one-point years ago, before she evolved into a Gillian, so they were technically kin.

She came to a wooded area and could sense at least ten soul reapers in the clearing just ahead of her. She drew Gamuza from its sheath and walked quietly while suppressing her spirit energy to avoid being detected.

In her current condition, there was no way that she could take on more than a couple at a time; so a surprise attack, as much as she hated it, would be the only option.

She walked along quietly, using the trees as cover and jogging from one to the next until she could now start to see the battle ahead of her. She came as close as she dared and hid behind a tree, glancing around it to see the situation.

She counted six soul reapers fighting a single, red skinned hollow, likely an Adjuchas judging by its looks and spiritual pressure. One of the soul reapers was lying on the ground, out cold; while the rest were in pretty rough shape.

This surprised her, considering that two of them had high spiritual pressures; the orange haired one having the most, and it was enormous. Watching the battle for a few seconds longer, she could then see why they were having such a hard time fighting it.

Every time that one of them landed a hit on the Adjuchas, it quickly healed itself right back up, like it was never touched in the first place. Using her pesquisa, she could feel that all of the surrounding spirit energy, especially the energy emitted from the soul reapers, was flowing towards the Adjuchas.

_‘That’s strange…it feels like that Adjuchas is somehow using the spirit energy around it. Is that how its healing so fast? It’s obviously not the standard instant regeneration…’_ she mentally observed.

She looked at the other soul reaper with high spiritual pressure standing next to the orange haired one. It looked to her like the two were arguing between each other. The man’s head was turned away from her, so she couldn’t see his face.

With two of the soul reapers bickering with each other, obviously distracted, and the other two in bad shape, she figured this was the best chance to jump out and help the Adjuchas. She brought Gamuza up and held it ready for her attack.

She was just about to jump out, when the unknown man suddenly turned his head just enough to where she could now see his bleeding face. Her eyes widened as she came to recognize who the man was.

It was the same man that she had seen in the recordings during Aizen’s meeting a couple days ago; the man that Aizen had cruelly used his wife as a test subject with the Hōgyoku.

Her sword arm began to droop down as feelings of regret and sympathy began to flood her mind. She remembered how horrible she had felt for the man that he had to endure such a travesty. To have everything taken from him and placed in a world of suffering.

She immediately felt that she couldn’t raise her blade against him. After everything that Aizen had done to him, it felt wrong to try and kill him. She pulled back from view and lowered Gamuza to her side with a heavy sigh.

_‘I can’t kill him…not after everything he’s been through. It wouldn’t be right.’_ She concluded.

“Bankai!” a young and deep voice yelled out.

Nel immediately turned back to see a vortex of raw spirit energy swirling around were the orange haired soul reaper was standing a minute ago. The man she had felt bad for was now standing a few yards away from where she was, his back to her and holding his arm up to shield his face.

_‘This spiritual pressure is enormous!’_ she observed as she looked at the, now vanishing whirlpool.

Her eyes narrowed a bit as she looked closely at the orange haired reaper’s new form. His kosode had changed into a sort of black jacket, with a tail that dropped down to his ankles; and his large zanpakutō was now much smaller than before.

_‘Why is his weapon so small? What purpose does it serve to be that small?’_ she wondered.

She was shocked when the young man suddenly vanished and three of the Adjuchas’s arms were now falling to the ground. Not even a split second later, the man was now right next to the other man. Her eyes widened in amazement at the man’s speed.

_‘He…he was so fast that…I never even felt him with my pesquisa! My pesquisa is the second highest, second only to Ulquiorra, and he got past it?! To be able to do that, his speed has to be astronomical!”_

She watched as the two men started arguing with each other again. The Adjuchas, its arms now recovered, charged at the two men while distracted.

“Look out!” one of the other men called out, getting the two bickering men’s attention.

The fast soul reaper then vanished again as the Adjuchas started to swing down on the other man. The man attempted to block the attack, but it proved to be a pointless gesture as two of the Adjuchas’s arms were once again removed from its body.

“You bastard! I’ll kill you!” it yelled out.

The orange haired reaper suddenly appeared high above the Adjuchas, flying down to slice the poor creature in two.

“It’s over!” he yelled as he swung down; the Adjuchas splitting in two and disappearing as it was purified.

_‘Unbelievable…I can’t believe he’s so fast.’_

She continued to observe the group as the speedy soul reaper walked over to the man she recognized to talk for a minute, likely arguing again; then they ran off further into the clearing and away from her in a hurry.

_‘If they are hurrying like that, it must mean that there’s another battle somewhere nearby. I can feel more spiritual pressures in the distance, but I can’t sense who they are fighting. I should follow them and get a closer look at this.’_ She concluded, then carefully started moving from tree to tree.

** With Hinata **

Hinata was starting to panic as she looked around at her teammates. Two of the members were unconscious on the ground, Mori and Junya were both in very bad shape, and the last member had been killed.

It was now down to her and Issei; neither of them in good shape either. The hollow had a decent amount of damage inflicted on it, but it didn’t look like it was going to go down any time soon. She looked over to Junya, who was laying on his side with an open wound on his chest and bleeding profusely.

_‘This is bad…it’s only me and Issei left, and we don’t stand a chance against that thing. Junya and Mori need immediate medical care…but what can I do?”_ she fretted in her head.

She was brought out from her thoughts when the hollow darted towards them, its two left arms stretched out behind it to swing out at her. Issei dashed ahead in order to cut off its movements and allow Hinata to get a hit in.

Seeing his intent, she dashed forward as well, but a bit to the right. The hollow turned to Issei and swung out at him, Issei holding his blade up and blocking the attack. The force pushed him back a bit, but it still left the hollows flank open enough.

Seeing her chance, Hinata suddenly changed direction midstride straight for the hollow’s side. The hollow saw her coming, but didn’t react quite fast enough. Hinata’s blade caught the hollow’s side, cutting it just under the ribcage.

But this turned to be bad luck for her because her blade caught the lower rib, stopping its movement. She lightly gasped to see that her blade was now stuck in the hollows side, leaving her effectively trapped against it.

The hollow rotated its torso a bit and raised its upper left arm to bring it down on her head. Her eyes widened as she quickly tried to think of what to do. If she held on to her zanpakutō, the hollow would no doubt land a critical blow on her; but if she released her blade, she would be without a weapon.

She was broken from the thought when she saw the hollow’s fist flying towards her at full speed, right for her face.

_‘Shit!’_

The hollow’s fist was now mere inches from her, but somehow it never made contact. She widened her eyes more to see that the fist, instead of flying for her face, was now dropping to the ground.

_‘What?’_ she thought.

The hollow roared in pain as it slapped its remaining right hand over the area where its upper left hand ‘used’ to be. It turned to see Ichigo standing tall a few yards away from it, his zanpakutō to his side.

“Hinata!”

Her state of shock was broken when Timothy yelled to her. Now seeing the immediate danger she was in, she quickly tugged on her sword, trying to free it. Luckily, the hollow’s movement caused certain muscles in its side to loosen up a bit, allowing her to be able to pull it free.

She then flashed away, now standing right next to Timothy and Kenta who were looking at her rough shape with concern.

“You alright?” Kenta asked, but she shook her head.

“No, Junya and Mori need medical care now! And I’ve also lost one of my team members!” she cried out.

Timothy nodded, then turned to Ichigo. “Hey! Substitute!” he yelled, getting Ichigo’s attention. “Hurry up and kill that fucker, we’ve gotta get these casualties outta here!”

Ichigo nodded, then disappeared in a flash. Hinata’s eyes widened at the ridiculous speed the teen possessed. Before she could say or comment about it, the hollow suddenly yelled out in agony.

She turned to see that the foul creature was now reduced to a single hand, its lower left. Ichigo then appeared right behind it, ready to cut it in two just like the one before. The teen swung down hard at the hollow’s head, but just a few inches before the blade made contact, the hollow vanished with an audible ‘buzz’.

Ichigo recovered his swing and landed on the ground, now looking around like everyone else at this point.

“Where’d the hell it go?!” he asked in surprise and annoyance.

Everyone was looking in every direction as they got into their guard stances.

“I can’t feel it…” Timothy stated.

Hinata glance to him and nodded. “Yeah, this one can somehow remain undetectable.”

Timothy growled. “Now I know how these guys must have killed Hetoku. The grey fucker must have distracted him while the red one, unable to be detected, came up behind him and took him out.” he observed.

She nodded back. “I think that’s the case as well. But I also noticed that this one wasn’t healing itself, and it didn’t feel like it was pulling spirit energy to it, like the other one. I think this one just has a tougher skin, but can’t absorb spirit energy.”

He nodded back. “I noticed that too.”

Hinata turned to him fully, lowering her blade. “But Tim, we can’t stay here; Junya and Mori ‘need’ medical care ‘now’!” she pointed out.

Timothy lowered his guard as well. “Agreed; Yuka.” He called. She flashed into place next to him, then he turned to her. “Get a senkaimon here immediately. Tell them I want the exit placed directly at Squad 4’s doorstep. Also, have a message sent to Squad 4 telling them to prepare for two critical patients and five with multiple lacerations and head injuries.” He instructed.

She nodded and pulled out her communicator as Timothy turned back to Hinata. “You take everyone back as fast as possible. I’m going to stay here with the substitute and see if we can find the hollow. If it’s true that it can’t absorb spirit energy like the other one, we should be able to handle it. If I’m not back within an hour, tell the Captain I’ll send him a message soon.”

She nodded as she sheathed her zanpakutō, then ran off to start getting the injured ready for the return trip. Timothy turned to Ichigo as he walked up, no longer in his bankai and clutching his head.

Timothy rose a brow at him. “You alright?”

Ichigo scoffed, but nodded slightly. “For the moment. I’m gonna have to leave; I left my body back at school, and I know I’m gonna hear it from my teacher for being gone so long.”

The Lieutenant sighed and nodded. “Could you spare ten minutes to help me look around for that fucker?”

He scoffed again. “Yeah, I’ll help ya out for a few. But that’s it.”

Timothy turned to see a senkaimon appear a few feet away from him, then open up. He then glanced back to Hinata and Kenta.

“Hurry up and get going.” He called out, then Yuka walked up to him.

“Squad 4 received you message, and have their emergency personnel standing by.” She relayed.

Timothy nodded and pointed to one of the downed members. “Carry him back.”

She nodded back and ran over to the man he pointed to.

A few minutes later, everyone had walked into the senkaimon, with Hinata taking up the rear, carrying Junya on her back and her shihakusho soaked with his blood. She paused to look at him with worry.

“Be careful Tim.” she pleaded.

“Don’t worry about me, hurry up and get him to Squad 4.” he demanded.

She nodded, then walked into the senkaimon, the portal closing behind her and fading away. Waiting a few more seconds, Timothy turned back to Ichigo, who is clearly annoyed.

“You good?” Timothy askes.

Ichigo sighs, then nods back. “Yeah, let’s just get this over with.”

“Alright, let’s split up. You head out towards the east, I’ll head west. Head out about a half mile or so, then circle around clockwise. Hopefully, we’ll find it soon.” Timothy instructs.

Ichigo moans and turns to him. “Yeah yeah, whatev…” he suddenly stopped midsentence as his eyes widened when he saw the large red hollow standing right behind Timothy with its remaining hand pulled back to run him through from behind.

“Look out!” he yelled, as he brought Zangetsu up to charge in and block the attack.

But as he did so, the realization hit him that there was no way he was going to get there in time; and Timothy had his back fully to the hollow’s incoming attack. Timothy gasped as he quickly turned over his shoulder to see the incoming attack, aimed straight for his back.

_‘Shit!’_ he thought in panic.

“No!” a strange voice called out.

** With Nel, 3 Minutes Earlier **

Nelliel continued to observe the group of soul reapers from behind a tree about fifty feet away. The battle had just ended when the red Adjuchas that looked just like the grey one had retreated using a sonído.

As she looked around at the different soul reapers, she could instantly tell that one had been killed; and judging by the fading spiritual pressures of two more, she knew that they were not far behind.

She watched as the blonde man, the one that Aizen had tortured, spoke with one of the female members for a moment before another female appeared next to him. The man spoke a few words to her, most likely instructions, then she pulled out a small device; holding it to her ear.

After speaking with the first female for a few seconds longer, the woman took off and ran to one of the dying members. A couple minutes later, Nel saw the soul reaper’s senkaimon appear near the blonde man.

She faintly heard the man give out more instructions before his team walked into the portal. The portal then closed its doors and vanished, leaving the blonde and orange haired men the only ones left.

The two men waited for a few seconds before they began speaking to each other, likely coming up with a plan to find the remaining Adjuchas.

But Nel’s eyes became wide with shock and worry when the Adjuchas suddenly appeared right behind the blonde man; its last hand ready to jab into the man’s back. The younger man had noticed the Adjuchas, but Nel knew that there was no way that he would be able to save his friend.

_‘He won’t make it!’_ she concluded.

“No!” she yelled aloud.

With a buzz of sonído as fast as she could manage, she quickly reappeared between the man and the Adjuchas; holding Gamuza in a guard to block the attack.

The hollow’s outstretched fingers collided with the side of the blade. Normally, she would have been able to withstand the attack without so much as flinching, not even letting her blade fall back a millimeter; but with her extremely weakened state, she didn’t have the strength to hold out against the force of the strike.

Her blade was forced back against her chest, two of the hollow’s clawed fingers digging deeply into her chest just under her breasts. Her eyes became wide as saucers as she gave out a breath of pain; her body being pushed back and into the man behind her.

She barely felt one the man’s arms wrap around her upper body and shoulder, bracing her against him as they both fell back a bit from the force of the blow. The man used his other hand to grab ahold of the Adjuchas’s wrist, pinning it against them.

“Kill it, NOW!” he yelled near her head.

Not even a split second later, the orange haired reaper was behind the hollow and swinging down. The hollow tried to pull away from Nel’s body, but the man behind her held on tightly; not daring to let the creature go.

The young teen’s blade made contact and cut clean through the Adjuchas’s head. It gave out a loud death cry as it began to vanish from existence; the blonde man releasing its wrist at the last second and allowing the hand to withdraw from Nel’s body.

She gasped in pain as the hand pulled from her, and her sword arm fell to her side before Gamuza fell from her grip. Her vision began to fade as the little bit of strength she had left her. Her body quickly started to go limp, causing her to drop out of the man’s hold before collapsing on the ground.

“Hey, substitute! Help me!” she heard the man yell, his voice now droning out as her vision completely failed, leaving her in darkness as her consciousness left her.

Timothy quickly returned Susan’s blade to its sheath as Ichigo replaced Zangetsu onto his back before turning and dropping down to a knee next to the woman who had saved him. He rolled her onto her back just as Ichigo knelt down next to him to see the damage the woman had received from the hollow.

“It looks bad.” Ichigo observed.

Timothy carefully unbuttoned her top and opened it just enough to see the damage without exposing her breasts. He rose a brow when he saw that she already had a bandage on her chest made from what appeared to be part of her clothes.

He looked down at her legs to see that the fabric of her pants had been ripped off from a little bit above her knees. The lower half of her top was also ripped off, telling him that she had indeed used her clothes as makeshift dressings.

“Worse, I think she’s been attacked before. Look at this.” Timothy stated.

Ichigo hesitated, a blush combing his cheeks at seeing her chest nearly uncovered fully.

“I’ll…uh, take your word for it.” He said as he turned his head away.

Timothy turned to him with a stern look. “This ain’t the time to be a prude, you fool! She’s dying after saving our asses! Now get over here and give me a hand!” he demanded.

Ichigo scoffed and hesitantly turned his head back to her, blushing even further upon looking at her chest again. Timothy growled, then planted his fist on the top of the teen’s head.

“Quit your damn blushing and help me!” Timothy demanded further.

Ichigo looked at him and clenched his fists. “I’ll get you for that!” he growled, then turned to the dressing Timothy was pulling aside; trying his absolute hardest to not think about the woman’s near bare chest.

“What the hell happened to her?” he asked with wide eyes.

“No idea, but her skin is pail as hell; likely from severe blood lose from the look of that wound. If we don’t treat this new one soon, she’s dead.” Timothy pointed out.

Ichigo turned to him. “Who the hell is she? She’s not a soul reaper, is she?”

Timothy shook his head. “No, but she ain’t human either. Plus, there’s that sword of hers and this skull thing on the top of her head.” He said as he pointed at the mentioned adornment.

“Is she a hollow?” the teen asked.

The Lieutenant turned to him in disbelief. “Does she ‘look’ like a hollow to you? I don’t know about you, but I have never seen, or even heard of a hollow that looks exactly like a human woman. But that’s beside the point; we need to figure out how to help her. I can’t take her back to the soul society without knowing what she is, and I don’t know any medical kidō. You?”

Ichigo shook his head. “I don’t know how to use kidō, never tried.”

Timothy growled and turned back to her. “Well we’ve gotta do something…”

Ichigo finally let out a sigh. “I know someone who could help, I was just hoping I wouldn’t have to deal with him.”

Timothy quickly looked at him. “Who?” he half pleaded.

The teen scowled deeply. “His name’s Urahara; he has a candy shop, or whatever it is, about a half mile from here. I can give Orihime a call and have her meet us there.”

The blonde rose a brow. “Friend of yours?”

Ichigo nodded. “Yeah, she’s got this cool ability to heal any wound really fast.”

“Good enough for me. You call her while I pick up the woman.” Timothy concluded.

“Crap…” Ichigo said as Timothy started to pick the woman up.

“What?” he moaned as he turned to the teen.

Ichigo scratched the back of his head in embarrassment. “My phones with my body back at school. It will probably take a bit longer to get her there.”

Timothy growled at him. “Whatever, just lead me to this Urahara guy and use his phone to call her! Now help me get her on my back.” He demanded.

Ichigo got up and walked around behind the woman as Timothy buttoned up top back up and returned her weapon to its sheath. Spreading her legs apart and kneeling down between them with his back to her, Timothy nodded for Ichigo to lift her up and set her on his back.

“Careful, those previous wounds are still fairly fresh and looked like they can still rip open. We can’t afford for that to happen.” Timothy notified.

The teen nodded, then lifted up her upper body; readjusting her arms to rest on both shoulders and resting her head on Timothy’s right shoulder.

“Alright, hold her body against me while I grab her legs up.” Timothy instructed further.

Reaching down, Timothy snaked his arms under the woman’s knees, lifting them up and holding them against his flanks.

“Alright, I’m gonna try to stand up.” He said.

Going slowly so he wouldn’t lose his balance, Timothy came to a standing position. Giving her body a quick shuffle, he repositioned her to where her body was now more secure to him. He could already start to feel her blood being soaked into his shihakusho, telling him that they needed to move quickly.

Timothy turned around to face Ichigo. “Alright, lead the way; and try not to go too fast. I’m not exactly a master at shunpo, and I’ve never carried anyone while doing it.”

Ichigo nodded, then both men, with the woman in tow, disappeared in a flash step.

** Squad 4 Medical Center, Seireitei, Present **

“Take these two to intensive care immediately.” Captain Unohana instructed the members pushing Mori and Junya, now lying on stretchers. She then turned to her Lieutenant. “Isane, please ensure that the others are treated quickly, and send word to Captain Komamura that his team has returned.”

Isane swiftly nods to her. “Yes maam!” she answers and runs off to complete her job.

Unohana then turns to Hinata, who was overseeing that her team was received properly. “Miss Ogawa, please have one of my staff treat your wounds.” She insisted.

Hinata turned to her and bowed. “With all due respect Captain, I would like to make sure my team is taken care of first.” She replied as she rose.

Unohana smiled at her warmly. “That will not be necessary. Your team members are already being looked after; so please have yourself looked at. What has become of Lieutenant Durn? Did he not return with you?”

Hinata shook her head. “No, he stayed behind to try and find the last hollow. The substitute soul reaper was with him.”

The Captain nodded. “I see, so he is with Ichigo Kurosaki? In that case, he should be just fine. They are both strong warriors, and not likely to be taken down by this hollow. Now please, go ahead and get those wounds treated. I will alert Captain Komamura of any changes.”

Hinata shook her head. “Please Captain, Tim put me in charge of the team when he is not around; so please keep me informed as well.”

Unohana smiles deeply at her. “Of course.” She finishes.

The younger woman bows at her superior, then leaves to find someone to look at her injuries.

** World of the Living, Urahara Shop, Present **

“Hey! Hat n clogs! Open up!” Ichigo yelled as he pounded on the sliding door.

For some odd reason that Ichigo couldn’t fathom, although he should have expected it, the shop keeper locked his front door and had a sign out front that said, ‘CLOSED FOR THE DAY’. Just like the lazy man tended to do, he managed to pick the worst time to have his shop closed.

“Is it really just our bad luck the guy’s closed today?” Timothy dead panned.

After another minute, they heard the clicking sound of the lock being undone, then the door slid open; revealing a blonde man with a white and green striped hat and a careless smile.

“Well, good afternoon Ichigo! How can I help…” he started, but was interrupted by Ichigo’s fist being planted on the top of his head.

The shop keeper huddled on the ground clutching his head and moaning lightly. Ichigo’s anger jumped a few notches.

“Quit playing around hat n clogs! What the hell are you closed for in the middle of the day?!” the teen demanded.

Urahara stopped his moaning and looked up at him. “Come now, did you really want customers to show up while we take care of your lady friend there?” he asked calmly.

Timothy’s brow rose. “You knew we were coming?” he asked in surprise.

Urahara shot back up with a wide smile, his hat covering his eyes and now holding a fan to his face.

“Of course not! It’s just a simple coincidence!” he mockingly assured.

Ichigo and Timothy both sweat dropped. “Sure it is.” They moaned in unison.

“Hm. Come on inside and set the cute lady in the back room.” The shop keeper said as he walked inside the store.

Timothy glanced at him. “Is he always like this?” he asked, praying against the answer he was sure to come.

“Unfortunately.” Ichigo confirmed, then walked in as well.

The Lieutenant gave a heavy sigh, but nodded and followed the teen inside the shop as well, Ichigo closing and locking the door behind him. He followed Ichigo as he led him to a small dining area, then turned left to a hallway with rooms on either side.

Walking in to the first room on the left, Timothy saw a small futon laid out on the floor in the center of the room.

“Just set her down over there and I’ll get Tessai to begin healing her.” Urahara instructed.

Timothy nodded, then walked over to the futon and turned his back to it. With Ichigo’s help, they gently laid her back down onto the soft bedding, then Timothy turned to see that she had lost all color in her face.

“This is really bad. You need to get your friend over here now, substitute.” Timothy advised.

The teen turned to him with a scowl. “My name is Ichigo, not substitute.” He clarified.

Timothy nodded and held out his hand. “Sorry, but you never did say your name before now. Again, I’m Timothy Durn; but you can just call me Tim.”

Ichigo took the man’s hand and shook it. “Got it. I’ll go call Orihime now. She’s probably about to get out of school. I need to see if Chad can grab my body and drop it off here.”

“Another friend of yours?” Timothy asked, getting a nod back.

“Yeah. He’s a big guy, but he’s as gentle as they come.” He answered and left the room.

Timothy turned back to the woman, now getting a good look at her features. He was surprised by her bright teal hair that was spread out on the bedding. She had a soft face with a pinkish red line that ran across her face under her eyes and over the top of her nose.

As his eye went down a bit further, his face lit up bright red as he noticed the rather large assets on her chest. He quickly turned away and tried to think of something else to get rid of the blush.

He had noticed the large curves of her chest when they were in the park, but because of the situation they were in he didn’t have the time to worry about such things. The woman had saved him, and he needed to do what it took to help her live.

He turned around when he heard footsteps enter the room to see a rather large, and broad-shouldered man with glasses and a large, thick mustache. The man walked up, kneeling down next to him, and began to heal the woman with his kidō.

“My name is Tessai, I’ll look after her until Miss Inoue arrives.” He advised.

Timothy nodded. “Timothy Durn, but Tim is fine.” He returned.

Tessai looked at him and nodded back. “The boss would like to speak with you in the dining room. I have put some tea out if you would care for some.”

Timothy sighed heavily. “Tea would be excellent right now. Thanks for your help, Tessai.” He said with a bow of the head.

The man nodded again and turned back to the woman. Timothy turned and was about to get up, but then saw the woman’s weapon still tucked in her sash.

_‘Best not to leave her armed for now, at least until we figure out who, or what she is.’_

Reaching over to her side, he pulled the weapon from her sash before standing up and bowing to Tessai once again.

“Thanks again for the help.” He said.

Tessai nodded, then Timothy left the room, closing the door to a crack. Walking through the hallways, the woman’s weapon in his hand, he came back into the dining area to see the owner sitting down at the back, sipping tea.

“Ah, welcome back kind sir. Please, have a seat.” He said as he gestured in front of him.

Timothy nodded, then walked over to one of the pillow seats. He slightly winched in pain as he came to a sitting position, setting the extra weapon down next to him.

“Do you need some healing, mister soul reaper?” he asked joyfully, keeping his cheeky smile.

Timothy waved him off and sighed. “I’ll be fine for now, it’s nothing too bad. I’ll let Tessai, or Ichigo’s friend fix me up after the woman is better.”

Urahara nodded, then set his cup down and unfurled his fan, starting to lightly fan himself.

“So, might I ask your name?” he pressed.

Timothy scoffed at himself. “Yeah, sorry about that. It’s been…a busy day. I’m Timothy Durn, the Lieutenant for Squad 7. Urahara, right?”

The man grinned a bit. “You are correct. Kisuke Urahara; the proud owner of the Urahara candy shop! Need any unique soul reaper items during your stay, look no further! We handle…” he advertised, but was stopped by Timothy waving him away.

“Yeeeaahh, I’m good. Anyway, thanks for giving us a hand with this.” The Lieutenant said.

Kisuke lightly chuckled as he fanned himself more. “So, tell me, what brings you to the world of the living today?” he asked nonchalantly.

Timothy sighed heavily as he ran back through the day’s events. “My team and I came here to find and kill a hollow that the soul society has been looking for for about two weeks now. It turned out that it was a ‘pair’ of hollows, not one. The two had killed a seated officer and multiple other members from my squad.”

Urahara lowered his face a bit to conceal his mouth. “All this for a hollow? Isn’t there more to it?”

Timothy nodded. “I would guess that the hollow’s ability had played a role in its importance. This hollow somehow had the ability to absorb spirit energy.”

This caused Kisuke to raise a brow. “Interesting…that ‘is’ quite unique. So, I’m guessing you were successful?” he inquired, already knowing the answer.

The Lieutenant lowered his head a bit. “Not entirely…it killed one of my team members…maybe two more.” He said in a low voice.

Urahara’s look softened a bit. “I’m sure they will be fine, mister Durn.” He tried to reassure.

“Tim is fine, Kisuke. Anyway, we managed to kill one of them, but the other took off. I sent the rest of my team back to the soul society to get medical care while I stayed behind to try and find the bastard. Damn thing waited until I was distracted talking with Ichigo until it showed back up, trying to get me from behind. Almost succeeded too.” Timothy said.

Kisuke lowered his fan a little, his mouth now exposed. “I’m guessing this is where the woman comes in?”

Timothy nodded and crossed his arms into his sleeves. “Yeah, she took the hit for me, then Ichigo got behind it and killed it.”

Their conversation stopped for a moment when Ichigo walked into the room. “Orihime’s on her way; she’ll be here in about ten minutes.”

Urahara nodded, then Ichigo sat down next to Timothy. “So, spill it Kisuke, I know you know something about this.” The teen demanded.

Timothy turned to the shop owner with wide eyes. “You do?” he asked in surprise.

Urahara waved Ichigo off with a smile. “Now why would you think I know anything about this, Ichigo? I’m just a humble shop owner.”

“Cut the crap, hat n clogs! Every time that something happens, you’ve got your nose all over it! Now quit messing around!” Ichigo growls out.

Kisuke’s face instantly turned to a deep frown. “You’re so cold, Ichigo.” He observed, causing the teen to growl louder. “Ok, ok. The hollow you were facing was likely an Adjuchas class menos.” He informed.

“A what?” Timothy wondered aloud, never hearing the name before.

The shop owner snapped his fan shut and pointed towards the door while looking at Timothy. “As you know, the hollow you two fought were not your everyday average hollows. Standard hollows are everywhere, in enormously vast numbers. They can range from many different sizes and shapes, but typically they’re all fairly weak. Just about any soul reaper can handle them. With me so far?” he asked, getting a nod from them both.

“When a large number of hollows gather together, they can merge together to evolve into a single, much larger and more powerful hollow, called a Gillian; the lowest class of menos. As I said, they are very large and have far more power than typical hollows; but they are also very slow and incredibly unintelligent. Still with me?” Again, they nodded, so he continued.

“Once hollows have become a Gillian, it will start seeking out other Gillian to consume. Some Gillian may stay as such forever; but there are some that can, after consuming enough of the other Gillians, evolve into something further; an Adjuchas. Adjuchas are vastly more powerful than Gillian; and highly intelligent. They’re smaller in size, usually around the size of an adult human, but can be a bit larger than that sometimes. They also develop their own, unique abilities. What you fought today was most likely one of these.”

Timothy dropped his head a bit. “So, there are more of those?” he inquired with worry.

Kisuke waved him off. “Not likely. Menos class hollows rarely leave Hueco Mundo, unless a strong spiritual presence attracts them here. Those two are likely the only ones you’ll see for a while. And it’s a good thing too. As you have seen, Adjuchas are very powerful; powerful enough to have a slight chance against a Lieutenant, or even a Captain.”

Timothy and Ichigo’s eyes widened. “You’ve got to be kidding me.” Ichigo whined.

“Unfortunately not, Ichigo. But there are stronger ones still.” Urahara informed.

“Stronger than that?! Bullshit!” Timothy yelled in disbelief.

The owner looked at him. “Nope, not kidding. Although they are very rare, the next level is Vasto Lorde; the strongest in Hueco Mundo. Their intelligence far exceeds that of a human’s, and they are unparalleled warriors. They look similar to a human; the same height, body build, some even have facial features.”

He was stopped by the sound of tapping on the front door. “That must be Orihime.” Ichigo observed, then stood up and walked away to let her in.

He opened the door, where a teenage girl with long, thick, orange hair, slightly darker than Ichigo’s walked in. She swiftly jogged up to the table where Timothy and Kisuke sat.

“Ah, thank you for joining us, Miss Inoue. Tessai is in the back with our patient. Please see that she is taken care of.” Urahara said with a wide smile.

She nodded at him, then turned to her friend. “Hey Ichigo, Chad took your body to my place; so you can come get it when your done, ok?”

He smiles and nods back. “Thanks, Orihime.”

She smiles back, then takes off into the hallway. Timothy waits until she is in the room before turning back to Kisuke.

“So that woman, is she a Vasto Lorde? It looks like she has a hollow mask on the top of her head.” He asked.

Urahara gently shook his head. “No, I’m afraid not. She had a zanpakutō with her, didn’t she?”

Timothy nods, then grabs the weapon and draws the blade for him to see. “Broken too. Whatever happened to her, she was in a rough fight.” He observed.

“I see…then that confirms my suspicions.” Kisuke stated in a low tone.

Timothy returned the blade to its sheath and sets it on the table. Ichigo gives the man a glare.

“What do you mean?” he asked sternly.

The shop owner droped his fan hand to his lap as he dropped his head. “Tell me Tim, do you know about the Hōgyoku?”

The Lieutenant’s eyes widened, then turned stern as he glared at the man. “Yeah, why? What’s that got to do with this?” he demanded in a growl.

Urahara’s gaze returned to him. “Judging by your expression, it seems that you know it quite well.” He observed.

Timothy growled evilly at him. “That is ‘not’ something we will get in to, now tell me what that…‘thing’ has to do with this.” He demanded again, but much firmer.

Kisuke sighed in defeat, then opened his fan and blew air at his face. “As I’ve said, the Vasto Lorde are the strongest in Hueco Mundo; there is no evolving past that stage. But that was until Aizen took ‘his’ Hōgyoku there.”

Timothy rose a dangerous brow. “Wait, by ‘his’, do you mean to tell me that there are ‘two’ of those things?!”

Urahara nodded slowly at him. “Yes, I’m afraid so. I had created my own a long time ago. Aizen used my research to do the same and make his own. The one he stole in the soul society was mine that I tried to hide.” This statement earned a loud growl from Ichigo. “Over the years, long before he stole mine, he used his Hōgyoku on the Vasto Lorde that he came across. By using its power, he essentially forced a further evolution upon the Vasto Lorde. He was somehow able to use it to remove their hollow essences from their bodies, then seal those powers in a zanpakutō.”

He then closed his fan and pointed it in the direction of the room where the woman was. “If my theory is correct, that woman in there is one of these newly evolved Vasto Lorde, what are called Arrancar.” He then pointed at the weapon on the table. “And this is the zanpakutō that contains her hollow powers.”

Timothy held up an open palm. “That doesn’t make sense; if she’s a Vasto Lorde, or Arrancar, or whatever, why the hell would she jump in front of an attack to save me? Hollows, menos…Arrancar, they all would jump at the chance to kill a soul reaper. So why save one? Why would she save me?” he asked in confusion.

Kisuke returned to fanning himself. “I can’t really answer that one. We’ll just have to wait until she wakes up to ask her.”

Ichigo slammed a hand on the table. “Why the hell would we wait for her to wake up? If she as strong as you’re saying, we can let her stay alive.” He pointed out.

“The soul society would greatly agree with you, Ichigo. But there is something you should keep in mind; Arrancar are vastly different than hollows or menos, besides the impressive jump in power. When a soul becomes a hollow, their soul essentially becomes empty; hence the name ‘hollow’. They lose all of their emotions, except for hunger, anger, and hatred. But something changes when they are forced to become an Arrancar. They somehow regain their human emotions, basically almost becoming human again.”

He looked to see that he was having a hard time understanding. “Think of it like this Ichigo; they are pretty much a human with a hollow hole, a mask, and a zanpakutō housing their hollow powers. They think, act, even eat the same food as a human. They regain their individual ‘being’ so to say. And besides, Tessai put up one of his strongest barriers the moment you stepped through the door with her. She couldn’t leave no matter how hard she tried; she won’t even be able to use a garganta in here. And seeing how her zanpakutō is currently broken, I don’t believe she has access to her sealed hollow powers.”

Timothy jumped in. “You said their hollow powers are sealed in the zanpakutō; so I’m guessing that they can release them again, just like a soul reaper’s release?” he inquired.

Kisuke smiled at him. “Very astute, Tim. Yes, an Arrancar ‘can’ release their zanpakutō similar to how a soul reaper does; but for them it’s called Resurrección. When they release, they regain their former powers to use at will. But at this point, I don’t have anything further than that. For now, I would advise we talk to her once she wakes up. She may be able to give us some information about Aizen’s intentions.”

Timothy rose a brow. “Why would she do that? Isn’t she working ‘with’ Aizen?”

Urahara shrugged his shoulders. “One can only guess at the moment. But think about the situation; she saved you from being killed ‘by’ an Adjuchas, and let that Adjuchas get killed instead. She was also severely wounded from another fight before you found her; and judging by the way the old wounds looked, it was only a few days ago. With that last one in mind, why didn’t she return to Hueco Mundo? Why stay here and nearly die from the injuries; which she should have, if not for bandaging herself? I believe that there is something else going on, and we can only get the answer by asking her directly.” He concluded.

Ichigo leaned back from the table, crossing his arms with a growl. “I don’t like it.” He stated.

Timothy turned to him. “Neither do I, but the guy does have a point. I think that we should look into this.” He then turned back to Urahara. “If you don’t mind, I’d like to stick around for a few days or so to figure out what’s going on. If she did work for Aizen, we simply can’t pass up this opportunity to get some information on him.” He commented.

Kisuke nodded. “That will be fine, Tim. I’m sure Ichigo would appreciate a few days off from his soul reaper duties.” He said, smirking at the teen.

Ichigo growled at him. “Shut up!”

Timothy held out a finger, pulsing a bit of spirit energy into it. A few seconds later, a hell butterfly appeared from nowhere and landed on his finger.

_“Captain, I report that the hollow had been killed; but there was a second one as well. Hinata can give you the full details in the matter. However, something has come up that warrants looking into. Requesting a few extra days in the world of the living to look into the matter.”_

After giving the insect its message, he mentally told it where to go and let it fly off. After the butterfly disappeared again, he turned back to Urahara. “I’ve requested from my Captain to remain here a few days. I’ve left out the details regarding the…woman. If the soul society found out about her, they would likely come over and kill her without a second thought.”

Kisuke nodded. “I agree; for now, we should keep this between ourselves.” He turned to the teen. “Ichigo, you should probably head back home. I’m sure the teacher has contacted your father about your ‘disappearance’.” He advised.

Ichigo nodded and stood up, where Timothy turned to him. “Thanks for the help, Ichigo.”

The teen nodded. “Yeah, and sorry about your loss. I hope the other two make it out alright.” He offered, getting a nod in return. He then turned to the hallway. “Hey, Orihime. You done yet?” He hollered.

“Yeah, I’m coming!” she yelled back.

He turned to the shop owner. “Later Kisuke. Keep me updated on the Arrancar or whatever.” He said just as Orihime walked in from the back room.

She turned to face the men still sitting down. “Don’t you need healing as well, sir?” she inquired to Timothy.

He waved her off gently with a smile. “It’s Tim, and it’s not that bad. I’ll ask that Tessai guy to help me out. Thanks though.”

The teen smiled and before bowing. “It’s nice to meet you. I hope you feel better. Bye.” She said.

He nodded at her with a smile, then the two friends walked away and left the shop. Timothy turned back to the owner as Tessai walked in as well.

“She is stable now boss, but it may be a while before she wakes up.” He notified.

“Thank you Tessai. Would you please prepare a room for our guest here, and help him with his wounds?” Kisuke asked.

The large man nodded and walked back into the hallway.

“Thanks for the room. I’ll pay ya out of my pocket for it.” Timothy stated.

The owner simply waved him off. “Nonsense. You’re a friend of Ichigo’s, so I’ll let it slide. Let me know if you need anything.”

Timothy nodded. “Alright, but I still gotta wait and see if my Captain lets me stay here though.” He reminded.

Kisuke opened his fan again and waved it. “Of course. Care for some tea while you wait?”

He nodded again and sighed as he closed his eyes and waited for a response.

** Squad 4 Medical Center, Seireitei, Present **

Hinata stood in the hallway of the critical wing of the squad with Sajin, giving him a detailed report on what happened. His head was lowered as he was just told about the death of one of the members.

It was at this point that the hell butterfly carrying Timothy’s message appeared and hovered around Sajin’s head. He held out a finger, allowing the insect to land and deliver its message. Hinata waited semi-patiently until the butterfly had done its job.

“I see…permission granted. I expect a daily report on your findings. Good luck.” He said to the insect, then it flew off his finger and out a nearby window to do its job. Sajin sighed and turned to Hinata. “That was from Tim, he’s staying in the world of the living for a few extra days to look into something. He and Ichigo Kurosaki managed to kill the second hollow. Now please, continue.” He said calmly.

She was about to continue her report, but stopped when she saw Tetsuzaemon walking up. He came to a stop next to the Captain.

“I came as soon as I heard the team returned. Any casualties?” he asked.

Sajin sighed again and nodded. “One death, two more in critical condition. Miss Ogawa was delivering her report while we waited for word on their status.” He informed.

Tetsuzaemon turned to her. “How bad was it?”

“Bad. It wasn’t one, but two hollow’s we were looking for. The first one was just like the reports said; being able to absorb spirit energy. My group took on the second one, but it was really tough. Its skin was almost as hard a metal. Was made it even weirder was the fact that we couldn’t sense it. It was like it wasn’t even there. Tim and I both think that that was the hollow that killed 5th seat Hetoku; it must have snuck up on him while he was fighting the other one.”

Sajin nodded. “Then they must have been Adjuchas.” He stated, then turned to Tetsuzaemon. “Just like we thought.”

“Adjuchas?” she inquired.

The Captain turned back to her with a nod. “It’s a class of menos, much stronger that normal hollows. That was why I had so many members assigned to the team. I was hoping for eleven-to-one odds, but we never thought that a second Adjuchas would be involved. If we knew, we would have sent a lot more members, or I would have gone instead. Considering your opponent, you should be grateful that the casualties were not more severe.” He reassured.

They were stopped when they saw Captain Unohana approaching them from further down the hallway. Their thoughts turned sour when they noticed that she had a frown on her face. She continued walking up and stopped a few feet from them. Hinata and Tetsuzaemon gave her a polite bow, while Sajin nodded.

“Captain Unohana, please tell us you have some good news.” He pleaded.

She waited for a moment, then looked him in the eyes with sorrow. “I am sorry, but squad member Junya Sano has passed. His internal injuries were too severe to recover in time.” She sadly announced.

Hinata gasped with wide eyes as tears began to form. “Does…does Yuka know?” she choked out.

The woman turned to her. “She has not been informed yet; I assumed that you would want to tell her.” She offered calmly.

Hinata lowered her head as she hugged her arms to her chest, her tears running down her cheeks. After a few seconds, she nodded. “Thank you…I’ll…I’ll tell her. Please excuse me.” She finished with a quick bow.

She quickly turned and began walking away to find her friend, pondering and trying to come up with the best possible way she could tell her friend that she had just lost her brother, her ‘true’ brother by blood.

Sajin watched her as she turned the corner, then slowly turned back to the other Captain. “And the other team member?” he inquired.

Unohana sighed and closed her eyes. “It is too soon to tell at the moment. His injuries are not as severe at squad member Sano’s. I am afraid I must leave you now, so I may return to helping with his care.”

Sajin nodded at her. “If you require anything from us, please let us know.” He offered.

She bowed to him, then turned and walked back to the surgery room. Sajin turned his face front and lowered his head as he crossed his arms. Tetsuzaemon walked over to the wall and sat down in one of the chairs next to an empty room.

“Damn…and what about Durn?” he inquired.

“Tim is still in the world of the living, looking into something. He will return in a few days.” He informed.

The man nodded then stood back up. “I guess I better return to the squad.” He said with hesitation.

Sajin sensed it, so he turned to him. “I’ll keep you informed if anything changes, Tetsuzaemon.” He assured.

The Lieutenant nodded, then flashed away back to his squad, leaving Sajin alone in the hallway. He let out a deep sigh and began a slow walk towards hit squad as well.

As he came to the front entrance, he saw Hinata and Yuka sitting side by side in some chairs to the side of the door. Yuka had her head buried in her hands, her shoulders shaking and obviously crying. Hinata had her head lowered and was rubbing the sobbing woman’s back, trying to comfort her.

He closed his eyes and let out a very heavy sigh before walking towards them. He came to a stop standing in front of them where Hinata looked up at him, her eyes red from crying and her cheeks saturated with tears.

“Miss Sano.” He addressed calmly.

The woman looked up to him slowly, her teeth clenched, and her eyes flooded. “Captain?” she returned.

Sajin took a deep breath before continuing. “I apologize for your loss. From the report Miss Ogawa had given me, your brother fought well. The squad has lost two very good men.” He tried to comfort.

She dropped her head, then after a moment nodded. “Thank you…Captain.” She answered in a whisper.

He sighed again, then turned to Hinata. “Miss Ogawa, please remain here to receive any reports on the conditions of the other members.” He instructed calmly.

She nodded at him. “Yes sir.” she answered in a low voice.

He nodded back and walked towards the door. He then stopped for a moment and rested his hand on Yuka’s shoulder. “I am sorry.” He said again, then continued on.

The two women remained in their seats while Hinata continued to try and comfort Yuka.

** World of the Living, Urahara Shop, Present **

Urahara poured Timothy another cup of tea before Tessai came in and took the pot away to make some more. The shop owner and Lieutenant were enjoying a simple conversation, mainly Urahara telling him a bit more about Ichigo and his friends, and a more in-depth detailing about Aizen and the events leading up to his treachery.

“So, the man had this planed out for quite a long time, huh?” Timothy confirmed.

Kisuke nodded as he fanned himself. “Yes, at least for the past hundred years; but I am quite sure that it has been much longer than that. Aizen is a man with exceedingly high intellect, like myself. If you should ever come across him, do not take him lightly. He has a habit of having everything set in his favor, and a single misstep will play you right into his hands.” He advised.

Timothy nodded, then turned when he heard the sound of a hell butterfly enter the room. The insect flew over to him where Timothy allowed it to land on his finger and deliver its message. Kisuke waited patiently while Timothy listened to the message as Tessai came back into the room with a plate of snacks for them to much on.

After a few seconds, Timothy nodded and mumbled a reply before the hell butterfly left his hand and flew away. Timothy turned back to the man with a relived sigh.

“Good news I imagine?” Urahara inquired.

“Yeah, the Captain’s letting me stay here for a few days, as long as I give him daily reports on anything I find.” Timothy answered and picked up one of the small cookies.

“I assume you plan to leave out anything regarding our female friend?” Kisuke asked as he held his fan up to cover his mouth.

Timothy took a bite and nodded, chewing a bit then swallowing before answering. “Yeah, I think it would be a bad idea to let him know about her right now. As I said before, I’ll get you back with my own money once I return.”

Kisuke waved him off. “I already told you, don’t worry about it. You can stay here without any cost for the next few days. But I would like to ask, do you think you’ll have need of a gigai while you are here?”

Timothy rose a brow. “Gigai?”

Now it was Urahara’s turn to raise a brow. “You don’t know what a gigai is?” he wondered in surprise.

The Lieutenant shook his head. “No, sorry. I haven’t been a soul reaper for long, and this is the first time I’ve ever been back to the living world since my death twelve years ago.” He informed.

The shop owner lowered his fan back down to his chin. “I see. Well, a gigai is a faux body; a vessel for the soul reaper’s spirit form to use in order to temporarily become a human. It’s not normally used by the soul reapers assigned here for patrol duties, but rather for any soul reapers that come here on assignment where interaction with humans is required. If you are not already aware, humans cannot see you, or sense you; you are a spirit after all. Think of it like being a ghost; you can walk through walls and things similar to that. You can interact with your surroundings if you wish, but you can’t do so with humans.”

Timothy nods. “So, by using it I would become human again, but only while I’m using it?”

Kisuke gives him a short nod. “Correct. Normally, gigais are built and supplied by Squad 12 before the soul reapers leave for the world of the living; but since that’s not the case here, I can provide one for you. I’ll even give you a discount on it.” He finished with a broad, toothy smile.

Timothy rose a brow at him for a moment, then tilted his head back to think about it. It had been twelve years since he died, and now that he thought about it, his curiosity as to how much the world has changed since he died was starting to bug him.

He looked back at the man. “You know I won’t be able to pay you until I get back to the soul society, right?” he reminded.

“Of course. I’ll just send you a bill after you leave.” He assured.

The man’s smile and tone of voice was starting to make Timothy skeptical. _‘Why do I have a bad feeling about this?’_ he wondered.

“Seeing as how it’s a body, even a fake one, I assume that you would have to take care of it just like humans do with their own bodies; like eating, sleeping and all that stuff, right?” he asked.

“Yes, you would pretty much be a normal human while inside it and would have to take care of it; even while you are not in it. That’s why they are normally destroyed once the soul reaper is finished using it. Maintaining it during long periods of disuse becomes problematic.” Kisuke answered. He saw the younger man with a skeptical look, then sighed. “Ok, I’ll give ya a package deal; pay full price for the gigai, and I’ll toss in a mod soul for free. Sound good?” he offered.

“What’s a mod soul?” Timothy asked.

“Its official name is Kaizō Konpaku, but it’s usually called mod soul for short. It’s an artificial soul that is in the form of a pill that the gigai user swallows. The artificial soul then takes over the body, and forces the soul reaper’s own soul out. Its normally used when the soul reaper gets into a fight, allowing them to fight in their normal form while the mod soul keeps the gigai safe.” The owner schooled.

Timothy started scratching his jaw while he thought over the man’s new offer. He had only been a soul reaper for a couple weeks, and had not even gotten his first pay yet; and he didn’t even know how much it was going to be. For all he knew at the moment, this could very well be a purchase that would take months to pay off.

“I don’t know, Kisuke. I don’t know what my pay will be, and I have no idea what your body thing would cost in comparison. Besides, what purpose would the body serve if I have no money on hand to take care of it, or to get a few things?” he fretted.

Kisuke closed his fan and waved it at him with a wide smile. “Oh, come now Tim, I’m a respectable business man here. I wouldn’t do you wrong or cheat you in any way. And I’ll even loan you some money as well, so you can do the things you want to.” He pressed.

Bells started to go off in Timothy’s head, warning him that he was not in pleasant waters at the moment.

**_“Oh, come of Tim. Let’s go have some fun for once.”_** Susan begged.

_“Your idea of fun is usually not the same as mine, but you do have a point. It would be nice to see how things have changed and enjoy the living world for a bit.”_

“Alright, I’ll get the gigai and soul from ya. So, do they all look the same, or is there some variation?” he accepted.

“That’s the best part, the gigai is molded to be an exact replica of you. Your height, weight, skin color, body shape, hair, eyes, all of it. Though, if you want, I can make some special alterations to it. Perhaps better hair?”

Timothy rose a brow. “What the hell is wrong with my hair?” he asked in a stern voice.

The man opened his fan and covered his entire face, except his eyes. “Why, nothing my dear friend; nothing at all. Just an inquiry is all.” He mockingly reassured.

The younger man scoffed at him. “Whatever. I guess if they are supposed to be exact copies of the user, then I guess make it look like me.” He moaned.

Urahara chuckled at the man’s tone, then stood up and left the room. Timothy sighed heavily and placed his head in hand, shaking it.

“Why do I have the feeling that I’m going to start hating him soon?” he moaned, then sighed.

**_“Tim, now that things have calmed down a bit, we really need to talk.”_** Susan informed.

_“Not now.”_ He declined.

**_“Yes Tim, now. This is important and can’t wait any longer. Also, seeing as how this Urahara guy knows so much about that rock Aizen had, he needs to be a part of this too.”_ **

Timothy glanced down at the blade. _“You want me to tell him about you? What the hell for?”_

**_“Tim, your zanpakutō already told you about my situation; and it’s for that reason that we need to talk. But Urahara seems to know quite a bit more than he’s letting us believe. So, I think it would be best to talk to him about this.”_ **

Timothy let out a deep sigh. _“Are you absolutely sure about this? You know that once we tell him, we can’t take it back.”_

**_“I’m aware.”_** She confirmed.

The Lieutenant ran his hand down his face, then turned to where the shop owner went. “Hey, Kisuke! Could you come back here for a minute?!” he hollered into the hallway.

A few seconds later, the humble shop keeper walked back into the room. “Yes? Did you need something, Tim?” he inquired.

Timothy gestured for him to sit down. “We need to talk. Does Tessai know how to use barriers that block out noise or voices?”

Kisuke sat down as he nodded in affirmation. “Hey, Tessai!” he called out. The large man entered the room with the now refilled tea pot. “Could you put up a noise barrier around us? It seems Tim here has something privet to discuss.” He said with a smirk.

“Of course, one moment.” The man answered.

He walked back to the doorway where the kitchen was and held his hands together. He quietly mumbled an incantation that Timothy couldn’t pick up the words on. A few seconds later, a transparent, bluish hue, box-shaped barrier appeared around Timothy and the shop owner before disappearing from sight.

Urahara turned back to the young Lieutenant. “So then, what was it you wanted to discuss?” he asked.


	15. Sorrows of the Past

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 15

**(Sorrows of the Past)**

** World of the Living, Urahara Shop, 15 Minutes Later **

“I see…so Aizen had used the Hōgyoku on your wife, turning her into a sort of zanpakutō spirit?” Kisuke asked in affirmation.

Timothy sighed and nodded. “Yes.” He confirmed.

“And she currently has no inner world to reside in, am I understanding this correctly?” Urahara asked further.

Timothy nodded again. “From what my actual zanpakutō tells me, yes.”

Kisuke opened his fan and started waving it at himself while he thought about the information. Timothy poured himself some tea and took a sip before the shop keeper spoke up again.

“I must admit, I never thought the Hōgyoku could be used in such a manner. I had designed it to break the boundaries between hollows and soul reapers, not the boundaries between human souls and zanpakutō. This worries me. I can only imagine what Aizen would try to do with that kind of power. But we’ll worry about that later; for now, I would have to agree with your zanpakutō. Judging by what you’ve told me, it would seem that a bond had been faintly established between you and your wife.” He informed.

“What do you mean?” Timothy asked.

“Under normal circumstances, it’s impossible for a zanpakutō spirit to exist without an inner world. When a soul reaper dies, the zanpakutō spirit dies with him. But that is not the case here, as she is obviously still here without the possession of an inner world. My theory is that somehow the Hōgyoku established a bond between you; linking you two together, but not through an inner world. That would also explain why she materializes in our world when the seal is removed. To her, this ‘is’ her inner world. But as your zanpakutō has told you, this world cannot support her. In fact…” he paused and looked at Susan’s blade that was now sitting on the table.

“I don’t think it will be long before she fades away, even while remaining sealed; a few weeks at best.” He stated, then returned to the Lieutenant. “Your zanpakutō pretty much hit the nail on the head by telling you that you needed to introduce her to ‘your’ inner world along with it. From what I can see, this is the only way that you can save her. But I’m sure you are aware of what that means, right?” he inquired.

Timothy sighed heavily, then nodded. “Yeah…it means that I’ll lose her as my wife.” He answered in a sorrowful tone.

Urahara snapped his fan shut and pointed it at her blade. “Not quite, Tim. The thing is, she was gone ‘as your wife’ the moment the Hōgyoku put her in this state. What your zanpakutō told you was completely true; I’m afraid that she is no longer your wife, but a zanpakutō spirit.” He informed, then dropped his fan hand to his lap. “I’m sorry Tim, but the fact of the matter is that your wife is gone. She may retain her memories from when she was human, but this is not Susan anymore; she is Moeru Kitsune; an ownerless zanpakutō.”

The younger man dropped his head as tears began to form. “Is there no way to reverse the effects?” he tried.

Kisuke closed his eyes and shook his head. “I’m afraid not, Tim.”

Two sat in silence for what seemed like an eternity to Timothy. His worst fear had come true; Susan was gone, with only a zanpakutō with her memories as a reminder. After a minute longer, he wiped the tears away with the sleeve of his kosode.

He raised his head back to the shop owner. “So, what do I need to do to save her?” he asked.

Urahara reopened his fan and continued waving it. “As I said, you need to introduce her to your inner world. There are a couple of methods that I can think of that might work, but the one I foresee with the highest chance of success would be the method Ichigo used to ‘borrow’ Rukia Kuchiki’s soul reaper powers before he awakened his own. You would have to force Moeru Kitsune’s blade into your being.”

Timothy rose a brow. “Into my being?” he asked.

Kisuke nodded. “Basically, run her blade into your heart, where your inner world resides. If my theory is correct, she would then be able to enter it and become a part of it. When that happens, the relationship should become that of a zanpakutō spirit, and it’s master.”

**“And what would happen with my abilities that Tim uses?”** Moeru Kitsune asked.

Kisuke looked at her blade. “I would assume that the abilities that you possess would become your shikai release.” He answered, then turned back. “Again, all of this is just theory. I cannot honestly say that I know what will happen. I don’t think anything like this has happened before, so this is all new territory to me. But if you want my advice, I strongly recommend you get this done now. The introduction of her to your inner world will likely put a great strain on both of you. Afterall, you ‘are’ forcing a foreign spirit into your soul. Waiting will only make her weaker; and if you wait too long, she will likely not survive the experience.” He advised.

Timothy sighed. “So, I assume you have a place to do this in mind?” he asked.

Urahara gave him a cheeky smile. “I know just the place.”

** Squad 7 Head Quarters, Seireitei, Present **

Sajin was currently sitting behind his desk and looking over the remainder of the morning forms, waiting for further news on the response team. He grabbed the cup of tea that was sitting on his desk and was about to take a sip when he heard a knock on the door.

He took his sip and set it back down before he answered. “You may enter.”

The door slowly opened and Hinata walked in timidly. Sajin looked at her to see that she had only recently stopped crying, but had a slightly softer look on her face than she did back at the Squad 4 medical center.

“Miss Ogawa? I hope there is some good news.” He half pleaded as he gestured for her to sit in front of him.

She gave him a respectful bow, then walked forward and sat down with a sigh. “Some, Captain. Captain Unohana said the squad member Mori is out of danger and will live. But, she does not believe that he will wake up anytime soon.” She informed.

Sajin breathed a sigh of relief. “That is good. And what about the others?” he inquired.

“Their injuries were not as bad, Captain. Captain Unohana intends to release some of them, including Issei tomorrow. The rest will be held up for about a week. Kenta, another member and I were the only ones cleared to leave today. Tim was in a similar condition as me when I left, so I think he should be fine.” She answered.

Sajin nodded in understanding. “That is good. I want you and the two others to take the rest of the day off. I expect a full report on the matter from you by the end of the day tomorrow. Tim can fill out his report when he returns.” The furry Captain instructed.

Hinata bows her head. “Yes, Captain.” She responded, then moved to stand up and leave.

The Captain held up a hand, stopping her. “One moment, Miss Ogawa. I have something further I wish to discuss with you.” He stated, causing her to sit back down. He then folded his arms into his sleeves with a sigh. “Tetsuzaemon spoke with two of the team members before he returned to Squad 5. A little while ago, he came to speak with me and told me what they said. From their accounts, even though you suffered casualties, you had done well in leading your part of the team. You are still lacking in some areas of leadership, but you are quickly learning.”

He dropped his hands to his lap and gave her a stern look. “Regardless of this fact, I would like to offer you the position of the squad’s 7th seat.” He informed.

Her eyes widened, and her jaw slightly dropped. “Captain?”

Sajin nodded firmly. “You have shown that, with a little more training, you can easily handle the position. You now possess what some of the other higher officers in the squad do not, combat experience under extreme circumstances. You now know what it feels like to have lost men under your command, and still be required to push harder. That type of experience is hard to come by. Now, I offer you this position with this is mind; you do not have to accept right now if you do not feel you can possibly handle it. If you require more time, that is fine; the position will be open to you until either you accept it, or I place someone else there. Do you understand?”

Hinata lowered her head a bit, thinking on the Captain’s offer. She had just lost her close friend and another member of the team; almost losing a third person. What was worse was the fact that all three of them were on ‘her’ team. She was feeling the pain of guilt that she could have done better to avoid their deaths.

She sighed, then looked at him. “Captain…I don’t think I’m ready for the responsibility yet. I thank you for the offer, but…I think I’m gonna have to say no; at least for right now. I’m sorry Captain.” She stated in a low tone.

Sajin sighed at her answer but nodded. “I understand. To be frank, Miss Ogawa, I am actually impressed that you are willing to admit that you do not feel you are ready for the responsibility. That is another key trait that some officers lack; the ability to admit their shortcomings. If you do not feel you are ready, then I will accept your answer. Now please, go back to the barracks and get some rest. If I hear anything further regarding Tim, or the members still in Squad 4, I will let you know.” He concluded.

She stood up and gave him a low bow. “Thank you very much, Captain.” She said, then rose and left the room.

Sajin gave a deep sigh as he closed his eyes in thought. He had hoped that she would accept the position, but he knew that her friend’s death had affected her badly; most likely being the key reason that she had declined.

He opened his eyes back up and grabbed his cup before turning around and looking out the window. He stared out at the horizon, watching the few clouds in the sky blow by.

A few minutes later, he was disturbed from his thought by a knock on the door. “You may enter.” He answered in a depressed tone.

The door opened to reveal a stealth force messenger who walked in and dropped to a knee. “Pardon the interruption sir, but Head Captain Yamamoto has requested you see him at once.” He announced.

Sajin gave a deep sigh and nodded. “Thank you, I will leave immediately.” He returned.

The messenger nodded, then stood and left the office. Sajin finished his tea and set the cup down before standing and leaving the office himself.

** World of the Living, Urahara Shop, Present **

Timothy followed the humble shop keeper, eyes wide in amazement as he looked at the vast, wide open, and very large desert space that was hidden under the shop.

“Wow! Isn’t this amazing?! Who would have thought that something like this would be hidden right under my shop?!” the owner asked in mock surprise.

Timothy didn’t fall for it. “If you think I’m stupid enough to believe that you didn’t know this was here, think again, Kisuke.” He moaned in annoyance.

Kisuke chuckled in humor. “Oh, come now, you don’t have to be so mean.” He teased.

The Lieutenant turned to him. “If you want mean, I can gladly show you mean, Kisuke. Now can we quit with the games and worry about this problem of mine?” he pleaded.

“Of course.” He answered, then stopped to face him. “Now, as I said, you need to introduce Moeru Kitsune into your inner world. You need to take her blade and run it into your heart, your being. Keep in mind that this is, of course, very dangerous, and that there is the chance that it may not be successful. She is already in a very weakened state, and could possibly die before the introduction is complete.” he informed.

“So, besides stabbing my own heart, is there anything else I need to do?” Timothy asked in worry and skepticism.

Kisuke opened his fan and started waving it. “Because you already have an inner world with a zanpakutō spirit as a resident, no. Your zanpakutō spirit can handle pulling her into the inner world, but you need to remain strong and endure the pain while it happens.”

Timothy sighed deeply. “Will this have any adverse effects on my inner world? Having two zanpakutō spirits residing in the same one?” he inquired.

Urahara simply shrugged his shoulders. “I’m afraid I can’t answer that, Tim. I’m sure it will have some effect on it, but to what extent, I can’t say.” The owner answered.

**“If I may ask, mister Urahara, would this affect me in any way; besides me being a part of his inner world?”** Moeru Kitsune asked aloud.

Kisuke looked down to her. “That’s another thing that I can’t answer at the moment; but in theory, nothing traumatic should occur.” He answered, then went back to Timothy. “Remember Tim, once you have forced her blade into your being, you must release the seal on the sword. This ordeal will likely cause you to release the full force of your spiritual pressure, but you don’t need to worry. This area has a very powerful barrier around it that will prevent your pressure from being detected; so, you don’t have to worry about someone finding out about this.” He assured.

Timothy nodded and drew Moeru Kitsune’s blade. He let out a sigh and glanced at the blade. “You ready?” he asked in a hesitant voice.

**“I guess as ready I’m going to be. I’ll try to be quick about it, Tim.”** she stated with conviction.

He nodded and slowly bought the blade up to rest it facing his chest, now holding it by the blade. He let out a final, deep sigh as he lowered his head. “Good luck.” He whispered, then pulled the blade towards him, the tip piercing his flesh and running right through his heart.

He let out a brief yell of pain as he clenched his teeth and closed his eyes tightly. His jaw flinched before he dropped to his knees and lowered his head. “Re….release…” he said in a hitched voice.

The seal on the blade shattered for the final time and he was immediately assaulted with an unbearable amount of pain. Instead of the sharp pain that he should have felt from the blade protruding from his chest, he was instead faced with a scorching pain. He felt like the inside of his chest was literally on fire and burning him from the inside out.

He dropped to his side as he let out the loudest scream of pain that he ever felt in his life. His body immediately clenched and balled up to where he was now in the fetal position; the hilt of the sword almost touching his knees.

** Timothy’s Inner World **

Moeru Kitsune stood alone in an eternal darkness, turning left and right to try and see anything, anyone. She was in her released, anthropomorphic state; her calm, burning fox fire wrapped around her entire body.

She had expected Timothy’s zanpakutō spirit to be there to help her into his inner world, but found that no one was there; she was all alone.

“Hello?” she called out.

She turned to her left; nothing. She turned to her right; nothing again. She turned behind her; yet still nothing.

“Anyone there?” she tried to call again.

**“You…are not…welcome.”** A dark voice stated.

She quickly turned around to see a man standing a few yards away; just slightly taller than her and covered in red rags around his body and face, only revealing his right eye. His appearance reminded her of what the devil would look like.

“Are you…Tim’s zanpakutō spirit?” she asked.

The man gave her a single, slow nod with his head. **“I am.”** He responded.

She turned to fully face him. “What do you mean I’m ‘not welcome’?” she inquired.

The man narrowed his gaze at her. **“You soul…is tainted…I cannot allow…you to be…a part…of this inner world.”** He said sternly.

Her heart dropped, and her eyes widened at the man’s words. “What do you mean ‘tainted’? What did I do?” she asked quickly.

After she finished her question, a single door appeared right next to the man’s right side. He turned to it and opened the door, glancing slightly over his shoulder to her.

**“Come with me.”** He instructed, then walked through the doorway.

She swallowed hard and hesitated for a moment, but finally grabbed the courage and walked towards the door. She stopped just before it to look inside; only seeing more of the endless darkness.

She took a deep breath, then slowly walked through it. The instant that her foot crossed the doorway, she felt her body get pulled through it at an alarming rate. She flew through the darkness for a few seconds, until she finally saw a glimmer of light in the distance; coming up fast.

It looked like she was going to collide with it, until she closed her eyes and the light enveloped her completely. But she then came to an immediate stop and she suddenly heard voices around her.

She opened her eyes to see she was now standing in a grassy field with buildings in the distance. She wasn’t sure, but something inside her told her that the layout and shape of the buildings looked very familiar to her.

“Where am I?” she asked herself in a whisper.

“And there’s the play. Somers looks around…he throws it low and fast over the line…and it’s caught by 31, Franks as he runs behind the fray…Oh! And he’s sent to the ground by the Jaguars’ 72, Williams.” He a loud overhead voice announces behind her, followed immediately by a mix of cheers and boos.

She turns around to see she’s standing behind the bleachers that overlook a long football field.

“That’s gonna be 2nd with three yards to go for the Wasps.” The announcer continued.

She widened her eyes and quickly looked to the far end of the home team’s side to see the large electronic scoreboard brightly lit up with the game’s current score. Above the lights she could see a picture of a wasp wearing shades and a large cigar sticking out of its mouth; it’s stinger forward.

Right above the picture was the name of the team in yellow letters that rainbowed over the picture that said, ‘Manassas Wasps’. The score was twenty-three to seventeen for the home team. It was the 3rd quarter with less than three minutes on the timer.

“This is…” she started, then turned to the bleachers, looking between the slats in the seating to see the players getting into position for the next play. “This is my old college!” she concluded.

The players suddenly broke apart as they began their play. “He snaps it back…but Somers runs forward! He’s trying to break through…and he’s down, but makes it far enough! 1st and ten on the Jaguars’ forty-one!” the announcer comments.

Her eyes are now saucers as she suddenly remembers those exact words. “I’ve been to this game! But…how?!” she wonders aloud.

“What is wrong with you?!” she hears a female voice yell to the side.

“Nothing is wrong with me, I’m just not ready yet.” A calmer, male voice follows.

She freezes upon hear the male’s voice as she instantly recognizes it. _‘It…couldn’t be…’_

She slowly turned to her right to see a man and women standing behind the bleachers as well a few yards from her. Her heart sank to her feet as she saw the pair’s faces and she then recognized the woman as well.

The woman was wearing a blue, knee length dress with long sleeves. Her hair was a chestnut color that was cut off at her shoulders. The man was wearing loose jeans and a green shirt with a sleeveless red jacket over top.

“What do you mean ‘not ready’?! We’ve been together since high school, and when I offer for you to live with me, you say ‘you’re not ready’?! What the hell is that supposed to mean?!” the woman yelled at the man.

“What…what is this?” Kitsune fretted.

**“This…”** a familiar voice sounded next to her.

She quickly turned to see Timothy’s zanpakutō spirit standing right next to her, watching the arguing pair. **“…is one…of your most…regretted moments…in your life.”** He finished.

Her eyes widened further, then she turned back to the pair just in time to see the woman slap the man across the cheek.

“It’s that witch Rebecca, isn’t it?! You’ve been seeing her behind my back, haven’t you?!” the woman yelled.

“That’s…me…when I was in college.” Kitsune observed. “And that’s…” she paused, where the spirit nodded slowly.

**“Timothy.”** He finished for her.

“I swear to you, that’s not it, Susan.” The younger Timothy stated calmly as he held his now sore cheek.

Tears came to Moeru’s eyes as she remembered the event in front of her and what led up to it.

“I…I asked him…to come live with me. But…he said no…that he wasn’t ready to move in yet. I took it the wrong way…I thought he was trying to hide an affair…I didn’t speak to him for three months…until I found out his mother had passed away…he just wanted time to get over his loss.” she retold.

“Don’t lie to me, Tim! I’m not as stupid as you might think I am! I know you’re seeing her! Admit it!” the young Susan accused. Timothy reached out with the hand that was comforting his cheek to try and take her hand, but she slapped it away. “Don’t you touch me!” she warned.

Kitsune flinched and tears fell from her eyes as the younger her slapped his hand. Timothy held his arms out to his sides.

“I swear to you, on my life, I. Am. Not. Seeing. Rebecca. Why would I do that to you? It’s ‘you’ I love, not ‘her’.” He insisted.

“I know…” Kitsune whispered as she clenched her pointed teeth together and lowered her head.

“No! I am done with you!” Susan yelled, quickly getting Kitsune’s attention. “Go back to your…bitch, Rebecca! I want nothing to do with you! We’re done!” Susan yelled, then turned and started walking away sternly.

“No! Stop you idiot!” Kitsune yelled as she walked forward, reaching out to try and stop herself.

**“Don’t bother…this is…only a memory…Not reality.”** The spirit informed.

Moeru stopped her movement and tearfully watched as her younger self kept walking away, leaving Timothy with his head down. She could see tears rolling down his face as his shoulders trembled.

“Tim…I’m sorry…I’m so so…so sorry…” she whispered as she closed her eyes and dropped her head.

She remained there, unmoving, until the sound of grass being stepped on came to her ears. She looked up to see Timothy slowly walking away, his arms hanging limply by his side. Kitsune began sobbing as her heart felt like it had shattered into pieces, an amount far too vast to count.

“Why…why show me this?” she asked through her sobs.

The spirit stepped forward a bit and turned to face her with a cold gaze. **“Do you believe…that we…are finished?”**

She gasped and looked at him with horror. “No…don’t…” she pleaded. But before she could go further, her body was suddenly yanked back into the darkness.

She turned around to see that she was once again heading for a distant light. **“There is…so much more…for you…to see.”** The spirit stated.

“No…please.” She begged, then was again surround by a bright light.

** Squad 1 Office of the Head Captain, Seireitei, Present **

Sajin swiftly arrived to stand outside the vast double doors to the Head Captain’s balcony office. He let out a brief sigh, then knocked firmly on the door twice. Silence followed for a moment before he heard the deep and low reply.

“Enter.”

Sajin pushed the large door open and walked in, closing it behind him. He looked to see the old, powerful man sitting behind his desk with his chair turned towards the balcony with him looking out to the horizon.

“Please step forward, Captain Komamura.” Yamamoto instructed.

The furry man took a breath, then firmly stepped forward. He came to a stop right in front of the old man’s desk before lowering himself at the waist for a respectful bow. He held it for a second, then raised himself.

“You wished to see me, Head Captain?” he inquired.

The old man readjusted himself in his chair to where he was now facing Sajin. “I want your report on this hollow matter. I am aware that your team succeeded in killing it, but I have received no further word.”

Sajin nodded firmly at the man. “Yes, Head Captain. The team had managed to kill them both, with the help of the substitute soul reaper, Ichigo Kurosaki.” He confirmed.

Yamamoto rose a brow just a bit. “Are you saying that there were ‘two’ of these hollows involved?” he asked in a bit of surprise.

The Captain nodded. “Yes, Head Captain. From the reports my men have given me, there were two hollows involved in this matter. One of them we know for sure had the ability to somehow absorb spirit energy. The other one did not seem to have this ability; however, it did possess steel like skin; proving to have been very difficult to kill. What had made the matter worse, was the fact that it was impossible to sense it. It somehow possessed the ability to completely hide its spiritual pressure. Considering all these facts, we believe that those hollows may have in fact been Adjuchas.” The man answered calmly.

The old man closed his eyes with a slight hum. “I see. And what are your casualties?” he asked in a low tone.

Sajin closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “Two dead; one in critical condition but recovering; and five in minor care. I have been told that the minor cares should all be released in the next couple of days.” He regretfully informed.

The Head Captain opened his eyes to Sajin. “I am sorry for your loss, Captain Komamura. Your Lieutenant is not among the dead I assume?” he inquired.

The man shook his head. “No Head Captain, although he is still in the world of the living at the moment.”

Yamamoto rose his brow again. “Why is that?” he asked.

“He reported that he needed to look into something and requested to remain there for a few days. I approved his request, Head Captain.” Sajin informed.

The old man’s brow dropped. “I see. Very well, send my regards, and my condolences to him once he returns. That will be all, Captain Komamura. You are dismissed.” He concluded.

Sajin bowed deeply to him. “Yes, Head Captain.” He said, then rose and walked out of the office.

Yamamoto returned to looking out the large balcony as he sunk deep into thought about Sajin’s report on his team. Even he did not expect there to be two hollows involved in the matter. And going by what the Captain had told him about the hollows, they were, without a doubt, at least an Adjuchas class.

If he had known that, he would have instead sent one of the Captains to handle the matter. Even with the substitute soul reaper’s help, the team was very fortunate to have succeeded in killing the two hollows.

As unfortunate that the two deaths were, the Lieutenant’s team was very lucky that the death toll had not been considerably higher.

“Hmm, there seems to be some higher force that is watching over you, Lieutenant Durn.” Yamamoto commented, then closed his eyes with a sigh.

** World of the Living, Urahara Shop Underground Area, Present **

Kisuke watched closely and carefully as Timothy growled in pain and scooted himself across the ground; the, now empty, sword having fallen from his chest and lying discarded on the ground nearby. It had been almost half an hour since he had started his task, and it didn’t seem that it was going to let up soon enough.

His eyes widened a bit when Timothy’s body started to smoke, then soon after his arms catch on fire. The man watched to see that, while the fire was causing him pain, it wasn’t actually causing him any damage. He narrowed his gaze a bit as he covered his face with his fan.

“I would recommend you don’t take too much longer, Moeru Kitsune.” He said to himself.

** Timothy’s Inner World **

Kitsune was suddenly pulled from the darkness, now finding herself in another familiar location. She was inside a single-story house; the walls painted a light blue color, a red oak front door, and a small table nearby; with keys, a wallet, and a small framed photo with a man in a tuxedo and a woman in a pure white wedding dress.

The man was holding the woman bridal style as they both looked towards the viewer; wide smiles on both of their faces.

She walked over to the table and tried to pick the frame up, but her hand merely went right through it like she was a ghost. She stood there for a few seconds before kneeling down to be level with the picture and get a closer look.

“This was taken on our wedding day…right after we said our vows.” She informed.

The spirit suddenly appeared right next to her again, looking down at her. They both then heard the faint sound of a woman crying from somewhere in the back of the house. She hesitantly stood back up as she kept her eyes on the photo.

“Please…don’t make me do this…” she pleaded.

She had a very rough idea as to what she was about to witness, and it was the last thing she wanted to see at this point.

**“You do not…have a choice.”** The spirit informed.

She lowered, then shook her head. “Please don’t.” she begged further.

The spirit then grabbed her shoulder, turned her to the hallway, the pushed against her back, forcing her forward.

**“You must see…for yourself…the pain…that you…have brought…on yourself.”** He said with a cold tone.

Tears came to her eyes as she slowly walked through the halls towards the sound of the crying. She came to the end and turned left towards the one room of the house she desperately wanted to avoid at all costs.

“I can’t take it…” she whispered, but the spirit’s hand was still pushing against her back and forcing her to walk forward.

Finally, she came to the two doors, one left and one right, at the end of the hallway. She wanted to turn and go to the left one, wanting to avoid the one on the right; but she knew that the spirit would not allow it.

Taking a deep, and tearful breath, she tried to gather what she possibly had left of her nerves before slowly entering the room on the right.

She saw two people inside the center on the room; the same two people from the framed picture at the entryway of the house. It was her and Timothy again, but a few years older. She was sitting in a chair with her face buried in her hands and crying deeply; tears running down her hands and arms as her shoulders trembled.

Timothy was on his knees in from of her and embracing her around her shaking shoulders, crying himself and he rubbed the back of her head with his right hand.

Kitsune looked around the room to see a cute wallpaper plastered to cover from the halfway point up the wall to the ceiling. She looked up the see the entire ceiling covered in wallpaper that showed a dark, starry night sky.

She then turned to the floor along the wall to see an empty cradle and bassinet sitting side by side. Looking around the room, she could see numerous small children’s toys scattered around the room.

She was broken from her touring gaze by the sound of Susan sobbing. “Why…why does this have to happen?” she asked in a whisper that Kitsune barely caught.

She turned back to the pair. “I don’t know hunny…I really don’t.” Timothy answered as quietly.

“How…how can you still be here…with me?” Susan asked.

Kitsune closed her eyes tightly as more tears fell down her face. “Please don’t do this…” she pleaded to the spirit as she clenched her teeth.

The spirit simply pointed at the pair as he gave her an evil gaze. **“Behold…another…great regret…of your life.”** He announced.

The younger Timothy broke his embrace and pulled back to stare at his wife. “What are you talking about, Susan? Where else should I be, besides here with you?” he asked.

Susan instantly stood up with a jolt, knocking him down onto his back. “Because I’m a waste! I’m broken! I can’t give you the happiness you deserve!” she yelled at him.

Kitsune quickly held her hands up and covered her canine ears to close out the sound as she shook her head. “No…not this…please!” she begged.

Susan turned and started to walk away, but Timothy quickly got back up and managed to gently grab her wrist, stopping her.

“Susan! Stop! This is not your fault!” he insisted.

Kitsune shook her head more violently. “Stop this! I’m begging you!” she growled.

Susan turned her head to Timothy with clenched teeth. “This ‘is’ my fault! I’ve killed not one, not two, but ‘three’ of our children! I couldn’t bring them safely to this world! I couldn’t give you the family you ‘deserve’!” she yelled and snatched her wrist from his grip.

She then turned and quickly left the room as Timothy dropped to his knees, his head dropped back. Although she had her hands to her ears, she could still very clearly hear Timothy sobbing, as if muffling the sounds around her did nothing. She turned with tear filled eyes to see his own tears running down his face.

Kitsune then dropped to her knees and let her hands fall to her sides. “We had…just found out that…that my body couldn’t sustain a pregnancy…Our child lasted for only a few months…before I miscarried…I blamed myself for it…believed that it was ‘my’ fault that all three of our children died. I was…so broken from it.” She admitted.

The spirit walked up to her. **“You have…caused him…great pain…over the years…of being…together…Your foolish thoughts…have brought…him misery…And I…have watched…all those years…as time…after time…you have brought…this pain…to him…So tell me…”** he paused, causing her to look at him with reddened eyes. **“Why should…I let you…become a part…of his…inner world?”** he demanded coldly.

She dropped her gaze to Timothy, still kneeling on the floor and crying. “You shouldn’t…not after what I’ve done.” She admitted.

The spirit turned to Timothy as well and watched for a few moments, then turned back to her. **“Come…we have more…to see.”** He informed.

She dropped her head, but nodded. She stood back up and was instantly pulled back into the darkness, just as she heard Timothy’s voice.

“I’m sorry.”

** Underground Area, Present **

Kisuke Urahara watched in amazement, and a little bit of horror, as Timothy was now on his feet. His arms were now completely covered in the painful, yet undamaging flames. The cold fire had spread to his legs, from his feet to just under his knees.

He was stumbling around clutching his head, then a few seconds later would try to ‘push’ the flames off his arms, then to his chest before returning to his head. He walked awkwardly forward and veering to the right until he crashed his side into a nearby rock formation as he continued to yell out in pain.

Kisuke dropped his fan hand to his side slowly as he clutched the handle of his cane in his right hand tighter, his knuckles beginning to turn white from the force. He lowered his head and sighed before lifting it back up just enough to see Timothy past the brim of his green and white stripped hat.

“If you don’t finish this soon Moeru Kitsune, your friend Timothy will end up being consumed by your own fire.” He quietly stated.

** Timothy’s Inner World **

The darkness swiftly fell away once again, this time with Moeru finding herself standing in a dark hallway. As she looked around, tears still in her eyes, she noticed that it was the same hallway from her previous vision.

She looked to see that the room on the right, the one that was supposed to be the baby’s room, was completely empty. She could see that the same wallpaper from before was still up, but all of the children’s toys and furniture were now gone.

She turned around to see the right door, from what she could remember led to her and Timothy’s old room, was closed. The spirit came up and stopped beside her, looking at her with a stern gaze and pointing at the door.

**“Go.”** he commanded.

She took a deep breath, letting it out very slowly, and stepped forward. Her first vision was bad, the second was far worse. If the spirit kept up the trend, she was absolutely fearing what she could see behind the door.

As she came up to the door, she held her hand out and saw that it simply went right through it; just like her hand had done when she tried to pick up the photo in her last vision. Taking another breath, she pushed herself through the door, now standing inside their old room.

As she looked around, she remembered the exact placement of the furniture. The master bathroom was ahead and on the right wall, the small vanity that housed the few bits up makeup and perfume she used to own, the clothes dresser with his things on the left and hers on the right, and the queen-sized bed to the left with the headboard against the wall.

But her attention was caught by the person that was sitting on the floor and leaning against the bed. Her hair was a mess, and she looked to be sleeping. But Kitsune gasped when she saw something on the floor.

“Oh god…no…no no no…not this!” she almost yelled.

“Hunny?” a male voice called out, causing her to gasp and quickly turned towards the door.

“Oh no…please no.” she pleaded as she grabbed her head again.

She turned back to the woman sitting on the floor, her hand lying on the floor to her side; an aspirin bottle lying open and a few of the pills scattered on the floor. She clutched her head tighter as her eyes nearly fell from her face.

“Stop this…” she whispered.

She dropped to her knees when she heard the door behind her open. “Hey hunny, you in…oh fuck!” the man hissed.

He ran into, and right through Moeru as he came up and dropped next to Susan’s body. He grabbed her shoulders and started to gently shake her to try and wake her up.

“Oh god! Susan! Wake up! Please wake up!” he yelled to her.

Kitsune lifted her head enough to see Susan’s eyes slightly open, her pupils were extremely dilated, and she gave out the faintest whisper of a moan.

“Tiiiimm…” she droned out slowly.

Kitsune dropped her head to the floor and growled out in agony as her worst memory in life came to be replayed right in front of her.

“Susan, come on don’t do this!” Timothy yelled as he shook her again.

“Stop this…” the female spirit whispered.

Susan’s eyes then rolled to the back of her head as it dropped limply to the side. “No no no no! Wake up!” Timothy yelled further.

“Stop it…” Moeru said a little louder.

The spirit simply turned to her. **“So…tell me…why is it…you decided…on this action.”** He demanded in the coldest tone she had yet to hear from him.

Timothy was still shaking his wife and trying to wake her back up, but finally stood up and ran out of the room; likely to call for an ambulance. She balled her fists up, clutching the flaming fur the sides of her head.

“He…he lost his job…he tried for days…weeks to find something…anything…to provide for us…I was so tired…of seeing him suffer…day after day, night after night…trying to keep us afloat…I couldn’t …I couldn’t take it anymore…I couldn’t stand to see him suffer anymore…I thought that…” Her voice chocked, and she couldn’t continue anymore.

**“You thought…if you…ended it…you wouldn’t…have to see…him suffer…anymore…You…were selfish…you had…only cared…about yourself…All three times…you…only thought…of yourself.”** He affirmed.

The vision then started fading away just as Timothy came back to the room. After a few seconds, the two spirits were alone in darkness. Kitsune was still on the ground, clutching her fur and crying.

**“Timothy’s…inner world…was in shambles…nearly destroyed…His own anger…fear…and hatred…they are what…destroyed his…inner world…But you…”** he said as he pointed his gloved finger at her. **“…are the one…who set…the stage.”** He accused, then lowered his hand and narrowed his cold gaze.

**“Timothy…was once…a proud…caring…and strong person…No matter…what you did…he always…treasured you…adored you…loved you…Even knowing…how selfish…you could be…he still…loved you…He put you…above ‘everything’…because…he loved you…Even after…what Aizen did…he ‘still’…truly loves you…Even now…** ” he said as he pointed to a spot in the darkness.

Kitsune looked up to see an image come to sight. Her eyes widened when she saw Timothy rolling side to side on the ground; clutching his head and chest tightly. Nearly his entire body was covered in what appeared to be ‘her’ flames. They were obviously causing him great pain, but they were not burning him.

**“…after suffering…the pain…you are…bringing him now…this very instant…I can…‘still’ feel…his love…for you.”** He informed darkly. He lowered his hand as Kitsune continued to watch in horror as Timothy suffered through tremendous pain.

“What have…I done…?” she whispered.

The spirit’s gaze turned to anger. **“What ‘are’…you doing…you mean…He is feeling…all of…your sorrow…your regret…’your’ pain.”**

She then turned to him with anger. “You’re doing this! Stop it, now! He doesn’t deserve this! This is ‘my’ fault, not his!” she yelled.

The spirit quickly stood and glared at her with contempt. **“He wants you…to be…a part of…his inner world!...After everything…that you…have done…he ‘still’…wants you!...But ‘I’…will not…allow it!...Not until…you can…physically see…the pain…you have caused!...Timothy…is ‘my’ master…not yours!...It is…’my’ duty…to ensure…his wellbeing…not yours!...You have caused…great pain…and suffering…while ‘I’…must help…him through it!”**

He had slowly walked closer to her as he spoke, now standing right in front of her. He reached down, grabbing her by the fur of her neckline, and lifted her up to where he was now holding her a foot off the ground and slightly above his head. She reached up and grabbed his hand as the pulling was causing her pain.

**“You do not…deserve…to be…with him…You do not…bear the right…to call him…yours.”** He informed, then he pulled his covering down a bit, exposing his left eye that was glowing a vibrant red. **“All it takes…is for me…to deny…you into…this inner world…and you…will cease…to exist…Nothing…not even Timothy…could save you…You…would be gone…forever…So look…”** he said as he pointed at the image of Timothy, now completely covered head to toe in her flames. **“…and tell me…after what…you’ve done…what you…’are’ doing…why I…should allow…you to become…a part of…’his’ inner world…You…the one who…has caused him…tremendous pain…Why should you…bear the privilege…of being…a part…of ‘him’?”** he asked as he stared at her with both eyes.

Kitsune thought about it long and hard, but after a few moments, lowered her head in shame and defeat. No matter what she thought, no matter what she said, nothing could atone for what she did to him. Finally, after a long moment, she simply shook her head.

“I don’t.” she said calmly.

The spirit narrowed his gaze at her. **“So…you admit…you don’t…deserve him?”** he asked in a bit calmer tone.

She clenched her teeth, but shook her head. “No…after everything I put him through…I don’t even deserve to look at him.” She added.

The spirit held her in place as he stared deeply into her eyes. He could see everything inside her; her guilt, her regret, everything. Finally, he slowly lowered her to set her on her feet, letting go of her fur and dropping his hand.

**“Tell me…after everything…you have seen…all the pain…you have caused…do you truly…still wish…to be…a part…of him?...After all…the suffering…he has had…do you still wish…to join him…with the risk…and certainty…that you will…cause him more?** He asked further.

She turned her head away as tears flowed down her face. “I…I do…but…it wouldn’t be fair to him. He…I don’t want him to suffer anymore.” She then turned back to the spirit. “I won’t do that to him. He has done everything for me…no matter how hard I push him away…he…he never left me. He was always there for me.”

She took a couple steps back from him as she hardened her gaze. “I want to stay, to be a part of him. But I don’t have the right to make that choice anymore. You’ve done a better job at looking after him than I did, caring for him than I did. So…all I can do is…ask and hope that…you’ll forgive me.” She pleaded.

The spirit rose a brow. **“Why me?...Should you not…ask ‘him’…to forgive you?”** he inquired.

Kitsune dropped her head and smiled. “I know that he would forgive me…no matter what I did, he always has. It’s…just not possible for him to not forgive me. The truth is…he loves me too much for his own good.” She stated, then looked back at him. “He would love me even if I was standing in front of him and about to kill him. Even after that, he would still love me. But that is why you’re here…right? To look after him and help him make the right choices? Well…”

She took a deep breath as she wiped her tears away, then gave him a calm look. “…that means you should choose whether I should be a part of him, or if I should fade away. Whatever you decide…please just make sure that he doesn’t suffer any longer. That’s all I ask of you.” She pleaded.

The spirit closed his eyes and returned the wrapping over his left eye. **“You do not…deserve to…be with him…You had caused him…too much pain.”** He answered.

She dropped her head and closed her eyes, knowing that he had determined her fate. She was to fade away. To never see him again.

_‘As long as he won’t suffer anymore.’_ She mentally concluded.

A hand being placed on her shoulder caused her to look up at him. She saw that his gaze had become calm and relaxing of sorts.

**“But…”** he continued, then pointed to where the image of Timothy suffering was. But it had changed to a familiar photo, the one of their wedding day pose. She looked at until it changed to another photo of them, this time they were on the beach. He was standing tall with her sitting on his shoulders, both of them smiling.

**“…because of all…the good times…the good memories…that you…have ‘given’ him…the happiness…that you have…brought him…I shall let you…become a part…of him.”** He announced.

She quickly turned to him in shock. He looked at her closely, then slowly nodded. “You’ll…forgive me?” she asked.

He calmly set a hand on her shoulder. **“I do not…forgive you…for the pain…But the happiness…far outweighs…the sorrow…Now come…he has suffered…enough pain…Let ‘us’…end it…together.”** He finished as a solid red oak door appeared right behind him.

He dropped his hand and turned to the side, holding his hand out towards the door; gesturing for her to go through it.

**“After you.”** He stated.

She turned back to him and quickly gave him a hug. “Thank you.” She said, then swiftly let go and walked to the door.

He walked right behind her, then opened the door for her. She looked inside it to see darkness; but this time she wasn’t afraid to find out what was on the other side of it. She took a long, calming breath, then stepped through it. The spirit walked right behind her, closing the door behind him.

** Underground Area **

Kisuke lowered his fan a bit with worry when Timothy suddenly stopped his yelling and screaming of pain. He watched as the man slowly came to his knees, his body still covered in flames. Finally coming to a standing position, he slowly turned around to the shop keeper; who slightly widened his eyes at what he saw.

In addition to the flames surrounding his body, Timothy was now wearing steel gauntlets that came up to the mid-forearm. Extending over the top of his hands six inches past his knuckles on either hand was a single, broad blade that glowed orange from the heat. On the top of the metal bracers that covered his wrists was an etching of a pouncing fox, pointing towards the blade’s tip.

“Mister Durn?” Kisuke inquired, his fan now back over his mouth and eyes wide.

Timothy took one step forward, then a second; stopping to look up at the humble shop owner. He could just barely make out the man’s facial features to see he was smiling.

“I told you…” he started in a raspy voice. The flames then dissipated from his body as the left gauntlet melted away, flowing through the air towards his right hand; the right one doing the same, but collecting into his right hand. The two weapons came together before disintegrating into a wave of energy and fusing into the remaining zanpakutō on his hip.

He stood there for a moment, then grinned. “…call me Tim.” he finished in his normal voice, then lost consciousness and fell sideways onto the ground.

Kisuke stared at the downed man for a moment, then snapped his fan shut as he smiled. He slowly walked up until he was standing right next to Timothy’s body, looking down at him.

_‘First he survives an encounter with Aizen, then he manages to be rescued by a ‘beautiful’ Arrancar, and now he’s managed to introduce a zanpakutō to his inner world.’_

Urahara snaped his fan back open and calmly resumes fanning himself. “Tim, you are one odd fellow.” He complemented.

** Timothy’s Inner World **

Timothy was enveloped in darkness, but he could still feel something hitting his body. It was doing so at an endless and steady pace. As he began to come to his senses, he could now tell that his clothes were getting soaked.

Taking his time, he slowly opened his eyes to see a cloudy sky with some breaks; revealing the blue sky beyond them. As his vision started to clear up, he could now tell that it was raining; a light, yet gentle rain.

Taking a couple seconds to get his mind straight, he finally made an attempt to sit up. But the instant the he tightened the muscles in his abdomen to pull himself up, he felt a sharp pain. As he winced and closed his eyes, he then felt a hand place itself on his chest; holding him down.

**“You should…remain still.”** A deep and slow voice advised.

He opened his eyes and turned to the voice to see none other than his zanpakutō spirit sitting in his usual style to his left.

“Yes, you need to rest Tim.” a second, and very familiar voice added.

He turned to the right and was instantly relieved to see Susan sitting on her knees to his right; her hand on his chest.

“Su…Susan?” he said in a bit of happiness.

She closed her eyes and gently shook her head. “Please don’t call me that anymore, Tim. She is gone; ‘I’ am Moeru Kitsune now.” She informed hesitantly.

His eyes widened a bit. “But…” he started, but stopped when she gave him a serious stare.

“She’s gone, Tim. I may be the same soul, but I am not the same person. I may retain my memories from the past, but that is all it really is; memories from the past. As I said, my name is Moeru Kitsune now; so please call me by that name.” she calmly pleaded.

He closed his eyes and turned his head to the sky in sorrow. “So…she really is gone.” He concluded, earning a shallow nod from her.

“Yes. I’m sorry Tim. And I’m so sorry for causing you so much pain and suffering in the past. No matter what I did wrong to you, you always stayed by my side; always cared for me, always loved me.” She said, then moved her hand to his shoulder. He turned to face her again. “And now it’s time for me to do the same for you. I am a part of you now, along with your…nameless friend here.” She teased as she smiled at the spirit.

The covered man looked at her. **“You shall…learn my name…when he does.”** He informed, then turned back to Timothy. **“You still…have some…improvements…to make to…this world…But it is…far better…than it was…when you…first came…But that…is enough…for now…You and…Moeru Kitsune…have much…to discuss.”** He added, then looked at her. **“I shall…leave you.”** He finished.

He swiftly stood up, then walked away and out of Timothy’s sight. Kitsune sighed heavily, and dropped her hand from his shoulder.

“What does he mean?” Timothy asked with a raised brow.

She looked him in the eyes. “Some things have changed between us Tim; besides the obvious identity thing. But before I get into that, I should let you know that when it comes to using my abilities, my shikai is exactly the same as before when you used my powers while still sealed. And you are already aware of my release command, so in the regard of my first release, there is no change. You can fight using my abilities exactly like you have been.” She informed.

He nodded gently, his muscles still quite soar. “What about when you ‘were’ released? Is there any change in that regard?” he inquired.

She nodded back. “Yes. Do you remember, before you had passed out from exhaustion, the form you had?” she asked.

He closed his eyes and thought back to when the pain had stopped, and he turned to Kisuke to talk to him. He could remember his whole body being on fire, but he didn’t feel any pain from it, not even hot. He could also remember the weird armored weapons that were on his hands and forearms.

“Vaguely. I think my body was on fire, like you are.” He stated as he looked at her. “I think I also remember some kind of armored gloves of sorts with a blade on each one. Right?” he said.

She gave him a swift nod. “Yes. That form…was your Bankai.” She informed.

His eyes widened a bit. “So…I have a ‘real’ Bankai now?”

She closed her eyes and sighed heavily. “Yes…and no.” she answered.

“Huh?” he asked in confusion.

She looked back at him with sad eyes. “Why do you think you’re here right now, Tim? Why were you pulled here by us?” she asked sternly.

He thought it over a second, then lightly shrugged a shoulder. “I guess because I’m unconscious?” he offered.

“That’s true, but ‘why’ are you unconscious? And why can’t you move right now? If you were just unconscious, you would still be able to move freely here. So why can’t you?” she pressed further.

He tried to think about it for a minute, but couldn’t come up with an answer. After a few seconds, she pressed a finger to his chest where his heart was.

“The reason you can’t move here, is because your soul is exhausted. You spirit energy is almost nonexistent right now.” She stated.

“Why? I mean, sure I was in a lot of pain for a while, but why would that affect my spirit energy?” he pondered.

“It didn’t.” she calmly answered as she dropped her hand. “My Bankai did.”

“Your bankai did? What do you mean? I was only in it for like…thirty seconds, and I didn’t do anything but walk.” He fretted.

Moeru shook her head. “No, you didn’t do anything, and it’s a good thing you didn’t. From what our red friend tells me, such an action would have killed you.” She said, then placed a hand back on his shoulder. “Tim, the reason you passed out from no spirit energy, is because my Bankai’s form took it all. You’re a good fighter, and you have a good amount of maximum spirit energy; but even if you are at your max, your spiritual pressure is still not high enough to maintain your Bankai. You need training, a lot of it, in order to be able to improve your spiritual pressure high enough to maintain the Bankai.” She dropped her hand and sighed.

“I don’t quite understand. You say that my spiritual pressure is not high enough to maintain it, but yet I was obviously in that form earlier. True, it may have drained me like crazy, but how did I even get to that form in the first place?” he inquired.

“Because you had released me after you ran my blade into you. At that point, I was at my max, fully released. When I came to be a part of your inner world, I was released. Therefor, when the transition was complete, my fully released state forced ‘you’ into your fully released state; a.k.a. your Bankai state. As to why you can’t maintain it, I’ll try explaining a bit better. You’re currently a Lieutenant, right?” she asked, getting a nod. “Well, that is because of your ‘fighting skills’. But if you were to compare your spiritual pressure, you are more along the lines of an 8th seat, 7th seat at best.” She paused for a moment.

He rose a brow in surprise. “Wait, if that’s true, then how come I can use such high level kidōs? I used full incantation sixties levels, and some seventies and eighties levels.”

She held up a finger. “Yes, but because you have the ‘knowledge’ to use them. Although you can cast a lot of kidō spells, they’re actually not that powerful. That’s why they sometimes backfire on you. So, you have the energy to be in the form for a long period of time, but you don’t have the power to be in that form in the first place. Do you understand now?” she asked.

He thought about the explanation for a minute, then nodded. “I got ya. So, you’re saying that my soul is strong enough to be in that form for a long time, but it doesn’t have the power to ‘be’ in it?”

She smiled and nodded. “Exactly. I know it sounds a bit confusing, so maybe Kisuke can give you a much better explaination. As I said, my powers are higher than most zanpakutō, and thus requires a great deal more spiritual pressure to use them. Also, while the Shikai is the same as my sealed state, you’ll need to practice with it more; because now you’re using ‘your’ spirit energy to use my abilities. Before, using my abilities had no effect on your energy because the powers were using ‘mine’. Sealed, or released, you were using my abilities through my energy. So, you need to be more careful from now on until you’ve mastered my Shikai.”

She then held up a finger. “Also, when I became a part of your inner world, my spirit also fused with your other spirit’s blade. What that means, is that now you have two separate zanpakutō spirits, but only one zanpakutō. So needless to say, your situation is really unique, to say the least. Once you have learned his true name and his release, you’ll be able to use either of us. But we’ll get go further into that when you ‘do’ learn his name.” she stated, then dropped her hand.

He nodded back and sighed. “Interesting. So how long do you think I’ll be out for?” he questioned.

“Not too long; end of the day you should be back to half strength. Under normal circumstances, with how badly your exerted yourself, you would likely be out for at least a week; but because you have me and nameless…hell with it, I’m just gonna call him Johnny or something…” she said as she threw her hand to the air. “Anyway, because you have the both of us helping to restore your energy, you’ll recover much faster. Plus, from what…Johnny tells me, my spirit is much stronger than most zanpakutō. He thinks that it’s because of the rock Aizen had.”

Timothy growled at the mention of his name. “So basically, I should be up and about by the end of the day?” he asked in a low voice.

“Should’ be.” She pointed out as she raised a finger. “Key phrase there, ‘should’. But anyway, all I want you to do right now is just lie there and recover. Kisuke carried your body out of that large room and placed you in the room across from that hollow woman. Johnny or whatever is currently keeping an eye out in case something happens. If he really needs to, he’ll push you out of here, so that you can wake up and deal with it.” She informed.

“How long until I’m good enough to at least walk around?” he asked as he tried to move his arm a bit.

She sighed at him. “Another hour or so, but if you move around instead of staying here, you’ll recover much slower.”

He nodded, then rose a brow. “Oh, before I forget, now that you’re in my inner world, I’m guessing that you can’t come out to the other world, right?” he inquired.

“I can, but not for long. All you have to do is basically ‘allow’ me to come out. But since we’re on the subject, keep in mind that I can’t speak out loud anymore; unless you allow me to materialize. Only you can hear me, and were can communicate the same way we did before.” She said in earnest.

He sighed and nodded. “Alright. But for right now, I’m gonna have to leave here once I can stand again. I need to talk to Kisuke about that woman and ask him to come wake me up when she does. Once I’ve told him, I’ll come back here to rest. Sound good…uh…so I call you Moeru Kitsune…right?” he asked with a raised brow, where she nodded. “Yeah…that’s a little long, so if you’re ok with it, I’ll just call you Kit for short.”

She raised and tilted her head a bit in thought. “Kit…I actually like that. Sounds good for me, Tim. And once we find out Johnny’s ‘real’ name, we’ll come up with something for him.” She said with a teasing smile.

Timothy snickered. “At least your sense of humor is still there.” He stated.

She grinned and leaned down to his ear. “That’s not the ‘only’ thing that’s still there.” She said with a mischievous and seductive voice.

His eyes widened as he started to sweat. “Oh dear god…if there was one thing I wish that didn’t stay with you, it’s your perverted demeanor.” He moaned.

She snickered at him. “Ooohhhh, we’re gonna have so much fun. And guess what…you can’t shut me up by stuffing me under a mattress or leaving me behind. I’m ‘literally’ in your head now, Tim.” She said with a wide smile.

He slapped a hand to his face. “Now I wish Zaraki had killed me…” he whined.

She started laughing, then patted his forehead. “Now now, Tim. It won’t be all that bad. I’ll be sure to behave…” she started, then leaned down again. “…most of the time.” She finished in a tease that sent shivers down his spine.

“I hate you.” He moaned.

She chuckled and nodded. “I know.”

He growled at her, but then they both turned when ‘Johnny’ came back and looked at him.

**“It would seem…that Arrancar…has awoken…Urahara…is in there…with her now.”** He announced.

Kit turned back to Timothy. “You’re still a little weak, but I guess you might be ok to talk to her, as long as you get Kisuke to help you.” She informed.

He nodded and closed his eyes. “Yeah. I’ll be back in a bit, guys.” He said.

“See you soon, Tim.” she responded, then the world went dark.

** Urahara Shop **

He suddenly felt extremely weak, like his life had literally been sucked out of him. He tried to raise his hand and found he could, but it quickly fell to the ground like he no longer had control of it.

_‘Crap…she wasn’t kidding…that Bankai ‘really’ took its toll on me.’_ He thought as he mentally slapped himself.

“Hey…Kisuke.” He called just above a whisper.

Not two seconds later, he heard the loud sounds of the shop owner’s wooden sandals clacking on the floor towards him. The door to his room slid open to reveal the smiling man who walked in and stopped near Timothy’s futon.

“Well well, and how are we feeling now, Tim?” he asked cheerfully.

The man gave him a light chuckle. “Like I got run over by a fucking train, that’s how.” He mocked.

Kisuke chuckled at his answer. “I’m glad to see your awake so soon. You’ve only been out for a few hours. So, I’m guessing it was a success?” He inquired.

Timothy nodded. “Sounds about right; and yeah, it worked. She’s in my inner world now. ‘Johnny’ tells me that the woman is awake?” he asked.

Urahara rose a brow. “So, you’ve also learned the name of your other zanpakutō spirit?”

The Lieutenant scoffed. “No, but we’ve gotta call him ‘something’ until I learn his true name; so, Johnny it is.” He clarified.

“I see. Well, to answer your question, she is indeed awake. In fact, I had just started speaking to her when you called.” The owner answered.

“Alright. Could you give me a hand and help me over to the room?” Timothy asked.

Kisuke rose a brow. “Are you sure? You still seem pretty out of it right now.” He cautioned.

Timothy nodded. “Yeah, I’m sure. Besides, she doesn’t have her zanpakutō, and I’m pretty sure you know how to fight. And even if she did manage to beat us both, she’s trapped here.” The younger man pointed out.

Urahara nodded and walked around to help lift him up. Timothy’s world started to twist and turn as his body came to sit straight up.

“Whew…talk about a headrush.” He commented.

Kisuke chuckled and slowly helped the man to stand up, grabbing his arm and holding it around his shoulders to support him. Timothy’s head was starting to spin a bit, but managed to maintain his balance.

“Alright, let’s go talk to our ‘guest’.” He said, getting a nod from the shop owner.

Both men slowly walked out of the room, across the hallway, and into the opposing room. Timothy turned his head to see the teal haired woman sitting up on her futon and watching them closely.

He saw her eyes widen a bit once she saw him, but she kept her composure. Kisuke helped Timothy over to where he was now standing right next to her bed, then slowly lowered him down to a sitting position.

He let out a heavy breath as his body relaxed in its new position. He took another deep breath before letting it back out and turning to her. He looked her up and down, evaluating her composure as she did the same with him.

After looking at each other for a few moments, Timothy spoke first. “I’m Lieutenant Timothy Durn of Squad 7; and this…” he started then gestured to Kisuke with his hand. “…is Kisuke Urahara. Would you care to tell us who you are miss?” he greeted as politely as he could; knowing that he would get more with being calm than with being hostile.

She looked at him for a few seconds more, then turned to Urahara for a moment before closing her eyes with a quiet breath.

“Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck, Quin…’former’…Quinto Espada.” She corrected.

Timothy turned to Urahara who had a look of slight concern. “Excuse me, but by ‘Espada’, do you mean the top Arrancar under Sōsuke Aizen?” Kisuke inquired.

She flinched at the man’s name, but lightly nodded. “Yes, but as I said, I am a ‘former’ Espada. I no longer serve that…monster.” She hissed.

Timothy side glanced at Kisuke again to see that he had narrowed his gaze. “I see…So then…where does that leave you in all this; between Aizen and the soul society?” he asked further.

The Lieutenant looked back at her to see she didn’t want to answer. “Sorry, but your name is a bit difficult to pronounce, so I’ll just call you Nelliel for now. But, would you please answer the question, Nelliel?” he pressed.

She took a deep breath. “To be frank, I do not much care for soul reapers. We are sworn enemies.” She informed, then opened her eyes to Timothy; who could see that they were filled with sorrow. “But I hate Aizen far more than the soul reapers for what he did to me…to my friends.” She added.

Timothy gave her a light nod. “I see. So, may I ask what it is he did?” he asked calmly.

She closed her eyes as she took a breath. “Sorry, but that is personal. As far as where we stand, I have no intentions to fight you. As long as you leave me be, I will not raise my hand against you.” she stated in a calm manner.

The younger man turned to the older. “Kisuke, would you mind bringing her weapon here?” he asked.

Her eyes instantly opened where she gave Timothy a cold stare. “So, you ‘do’ have Gamuza?” she hissed.

Timothy turned back to her. “Only to protect ourselves, Nelliel. If our roles were switched, it would be the exact same way. I’m sure you understand; right?” he said, trying to reassure her.

Her stare lessened a bit and she nodded. “That is true, yet you would still feel the same way I do.”

He shrugged a shoulder. “That’s true as well. But still, we’ll hold on to…Gamuza for now. As long as you don’t try to cause harm, or try to escape, you’ll be treated respectfully, Nelliel.” He offered.

She sighed, but nodded. Kisuke then stood up and left the room to retrieve her zanpakutō. The two of them sat in silence, staring at each other, until the owner returned and sat back down, handing the zanpakutō to Timothy. He grabbed the hilt, much to Nel’s dismay, and drew the blade, holding the broken edge to her.

“We’ve noticed that your zanpakutō is broken. Would you mind explaining what happened?” Timothy asked, still keeping his calm voice.

She stared at the blade for a moment before her eyes started to water up. “I…I don’t know. I’ve never heard of an Arrancar’s zanpakutō breaking while they’re alive like that. And I can’t hear Gamuza…no matter how hard I try.” She said as a tear fell down her face.

This surprised Timothy, who glanced over to Kisuke with a raised brow. “Got any input on this?” he asked.

The man unfolded his fan and began waving it. “A hypothesis.” He offered. “So, correct me if I’m wrong, but this zanpakutō, Gamuza as you called it, houses your hollow powers.” He stated, earning a nod from her.

“Yes, Gamuza is the essence of my sealed hollow abilities and form. She is similar to what you soul reapers would call a zanpakutō spirit.” She confirmed.

Kisuke nodded in understanding. “I see. Well, with that being the case, it would seem that your hollow abilities have been destroyed, miss Nelliel.”

She flinched at the words, more tears running down her face. “So…Gamuza…is gone?” she fretted.

Urahara gently closed his fan and tapped the end on his chin. “That, I can’t say for certain, miss Nelliel. Your powers are a bit different than a soul reaper’s. If a soul reaper’s zanpakutō is broken, it can be repaired by them. But seeing how your original powers are ‘stripped’ from you and sealed within the zanpakutō, I’m not sure that you could just simply repair it. Perhaps if you could tell us a bit more about how it broke in the first place, I might be able to give you better answers.” He suggested.

She turned away as she closed her eyes and thought about it. She was ‘technically’ a prisoner in that small room; her ‘captors’ holding onto Gamuza. The younger man she could tell would be easy to overcome, and the other looked like he wouldn’t be able to put up much of a fight. But the moment she woke up, she could feel a very powerful barrier around her; one that she was doubtful she could break.

Finally, with a heavy sigh, she turned back to the man with the hat and told him of the events that happened in Las Noches. Being fooled into killing her own fraccións, another Espada somehow sealing her zanpakutō as it broke, and having to use a garganta to flee Hueco Mundo.

After she had finished her retelling of the events, Kisuke nodded his head and looked at the zanpakutō; still in Timothy’s hand.

“I see. From what you’ve told me, it would seem that this Espada scientist managed to lock your hollow powers away, while the other one broke it and cut you. My theory is that, by doing this, your hollow abilities have been separated from you.” Urahara stated.

Nel’s eyes widened. “What do you mean?” she asked in worry.

The man turned to her. “What I mean is that the connection to your hollow powers and zanpakutō were cut from you. That would be why you can’t hear the essence of your hollow powers. That device somehow managed to break the bond between you; and when that happened, the blade became weak, not being strengthened by your own inner world. When I examined your zanpakutō earlier, I did feel a strange spiritual signature inside it. So, I believe that your hollow abilities are still there; the blade just needs to be repaired and the bond re-established.” He observed.

Timothy looked down and returned the damaged blade back to its sheath, setting it down behind him before turning back to Nel. He could see worry, but also relief in her eyes. Seeing that he, not too long ago, was in a similar position, he could honestly relate to how she was feeling; and it was sending cold shivers down his back.

“Please, answer me something, Nel.” He started, now getting her attention. “Would you be willing to cooperate and work with us against Aizen?” he inquired.

She stared at him as she tried to read him, to figure out what he was getting at. “Why? So, you can use me and kill me afterward?” she insulted. She then closed her eyes with a heavy sigh. “I am an Arrancar, a sworn enemy of the soul society. Do you honestly think that they would allow someone as dangerous as me to live? At best, they would hold off killing me until Aizen is defeated; but the result would still be the same. So, tell me…” she paused to open her eyes to him, giving him a stern gaze. “…why should I help those who would just kill me?”

Timothy closed his eyes with a sigh as Kisuke looked at him. Timothy knew that every word she said was true. She was a dangerous person, one who served Aizen at one point; and for all they knew, was ‘still’ serving Aizen under false pretenses. This could all be one of the genius’s elaborate plans.

He finally decided on a risky tactic. He took a deep breath and looked right into her eyes. “That’s true, Nelliel. They would most ‘likely’ kill you. But, there is that ‘chance’ that they may grant you some amnesty for helping us to defeat him. Whereas if you don’t help us, they will certainly kill you.” He pointed out, then sighed heavily. “You obviously despise him, and I can understand wholeheartedly how you feel…”

“I know.” She quickly interrupted.

He rose a brow at her. “Know what?” he inquired.

She closed her eyes and lowered her head, grabbing her wrist tightly with her right hand. “I know…about you…What Aizen…did to you.” She said in a low voice.

Timothy’s eyes widened. “How?” he demanded sternly.

She gripped her wrist tighter, her hand now shaking. “Aizen…told us…the Espada, about you. What your abilities were…and…what he did to you…to your wife.” She admitted.

The younger man lowered his head as well as he clenched his teeth, his mouth twitching. “Then you know…how much hatred I have for him.” He hissed at her.

She nodded sorely. “Far more than mine, I’m sure.” She confirmed.

He growled, then looked up to her. “Then it seems we have something in common, Nelliel. And because of that, I’m willing to make you an offer.” He said in a sure tone, causing her to look back to him. “If you help us kill that fucker, I won’t tell the soul society about you.” He stated, where she widened her eyes. “If you help me kill Aizen, I will personally ensure that you remain hidden; the soul society won’t find out about you, unless you do something to gain their attention.” He offered.

She narrowed her gaze at him. “And why would you help me? Am I not your enemy?” she inquired.

He nodded. “You are, make no mistake about that. But there’s a saying from here in the living world that comes into play here. ‘The enemy of ‘my’ enemy is my friend. I think we could work well together in order to kill Aizen.”

“You know that if your superiors find out, they will probably put you in prison, right?” she cautioned.

He simply scoffed hard at her. “As long as he dies, I could care less what they do to me. And like I said, they may possibly give you some leeway for helping us; if they ever did find out about you.” He reassured.

She closed her eyes and briefly thought it over with a sigh. She knew that there was no way that she could fight him in her current condition; even if she were at her best she probably couldn’t beat him. But if the two of them were to work together, then they at least had a chance of success.

Nel opened her eyes back to him and nodded. “I accept.” She stated.

He held out a hand to her, where she took it and they shook. “Sounds like we’re gonna be working closely with each other for a while.” He said, then turned to Urahara. “Kisuke, would it be alright if she uses your room downstairs to work out on occasion?” he inquired.

The shop keeper held his fan to his face. “Of course, you’re more than welcome to use it, miss Nelliel. But I would advise the two of you get some more rest for now; especially you Tim. But before you do, I would like to have a word with you.” He advised.

Timothy nodded and turned back to Nel. “We’ll get some training in later, likely tomorrow. Later, Nelliel.”

“Please, you can just call me Nel.” She insisted.

He nodded again, then with Kisuke’s help, stood up and slowly walked out of the room; holding Gamuza in his left hand. Nel hesitantly watched then leave with her zanpakutō, but finally took a deep breath and laid back down to get some more much needed rest.

In Timothy’s room, Kisuke gently helped the younger man down to a sitting position on his futon. Letting a deep and relaxing breath out as he settled, he turned his gaze to the shop owner.

“So, what did you need to talk about.” He inquired, a bit surprised that for once the man had a serious expression on his face.

“It’s about what miss Nel told us about her zanpakutō breaking. If what she said is true, and I am willing to gamble that it is, then Aizen has found a way to seal a zanpakutō.” He stated.

Timothy’s look turned sour. “Do you think he’ll weaponize it?”

Kisuke sighed a bit. “I wouldn’t doubt it, my friend. It will be hard enough to fight him as it is right now; but if he is able to seal away a soul reaper’s zanpakutō, fighting him will be completely pointless. We would stand no chance.” The hatted man said in a low voice.

The Lieutenant exhaled as he ran his hand down his face, growling afterward. “If that is the case, the soul society ‘needs’ to know about this. The research department will need to find a way to overcome this obstacle.”

Urahara opened his fan and blew air at himself slowly. “But how do you intend to tell them? You do realize that they are going to question how you got this information, right?” he asked.

Timothy dropped his head to his hand, moaning. “I know. If I tell them about this, they will want to know ‘how’ I know. I can’t really tell them it’s from an outside source or whatever; even if it is true. And I can’t use you as a reference because of your current standing with them; they’re not going to believe what you say. And if they dig into where I got the info, they’ll likely find out about Nel. So how the hell can we tell them?” he fretted.

“Is there anyone within the Court Guard Squads you can trust that will vouch for you?” Kisuke inquired.

The young man sighed heavily. “Yeah…my Captain.” he answered.

“Captain Komamura?” Urahara wondered, getting a nod.

“Yeah. He’s always been there for me and looked out for me. I can easily say I trust him with more than my life. But…I’m not sure if we can trust him with finding out about Nel. I have no idea if he would side with us, or turn her in. And I promised her that I would keep her hidden if she helps us get Aizen. I’m at a loss here.” The Lieutenant admits.

Kisuke lowers his head in thought, both of them now sitting in dead silence. Not being able to come to a conclusion, the shop owner returns his gaze to him.

“We’ll have to think really hard on this and take our time. We can discuss this later; but for now, I suggest you get some rest. But I would also suggest that you be prepared to include Captain Komamura on this. This is not something we can ignore, and the soul society ‘must’ be informed on this matter. We’ll discuss this further tomorrow. Also, your gigai is finished and waiting for you. You can try it out after we talk more.” He insisted.

Timothy nods and gently lowers himself to lay down. He falls back gently with a grunt and slowly lets his breath out. Kisuke stands up and walks over to the door before Timothy calls out.

“Hey, if anything happens, you be sure to wake me up.” He said sternly.

The shop owner nods, then leaves the room, sliding the door enough to leave a small gap. Timothy then turns to the ceiling and takes a deep breath before closing his eyes and letting the air back out slowly, where he is quickly pulled back into his inner world to continue recovering.

** Hueco Mundo, Las Noches Throne Room, Present **

Aizen was sitting proudly on the large chair of his in the large throne room; his arms resting on the sides of the chair and one leg folded over the other, his head slightly lowered with closed eyes and a faint smile on his face.

After watching the live feed of the battle between Ichigo Kurosaki, Timothy Durn and his team, and the two hollows he had sent to Karakura Town, he was quite pleased with the results. He became even more pleased when he saw Nelliel jump in front of the last hollow’s attack to save the young Lieutenant.

Although he initially intended for Nnoitra to be successful in killing the former Espada, the turn of events have actually helped with his plans. All that was required was a slight change to the timeline.

He was nearly broken from his thoughts by the sound of footsteps echoing through the empty halls. Without even having to sense it, he knew right away that the newcomer was his Cuatro Espada, Ulquiorra.

The dark and cold individual walked firmly up the shallow steps towards the spot where Aizen sat, finally coming to a stop at the top of the stairs. The man bowed low at the hip with his right arm held across his chest, the other hand still in his pocket.

“You summoned me, Lord Aizen?” he greeted, then rose; returning his right hand to the other pocket.

Aizen’s smile grew just a fraction. “I did. The time has come for you to begin the task I had assigned you. However, there has been a slight change to the parameters of your mission. In addition to your previous task, you will now also have a target that I wish for you to eliminate. For this reason, I shall be sending Yammy and Grimmjow along with you. How you go about completing your objective, I will leave up to you. Do whatever you see fit, but the individuals I had mentioned before are to be left alive.” He instructed.

“And who is the target for elimination?” the Espada asked.

Aizen opened his eyes halfway, staring at the Cuatro Espada with stern eyes. “Your target is the former Quinto Espada, Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck. She is currently under the care and protection of Kisuke Urahara and Timothy Durn; the soul reaper you had been briefed about earlier. Avoid Urahara if possible; but if you must fight him, do not do so alone. You are to leave tomorrow at noon. Now, you may go.” the man concluded.

Ulquiorra bowed down just as he did before. “I will do as you ask, Lord Aizen.” He said, then rose and returned his hand to its pocket.

The dark man turned and walked back down the stairs; leaving the room to locate the two additional individuals and begin his mission. Aizen remained in his position, lifting his right hand and resting his jaw on his fist. The man closed his eyes and hummed in content.


	16. Meeting the Espada

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 16

**(Meeting the Espada)**

** World of the Living, Urahara Shop, The Next Morning **

Kisuke Urahara and his large friend Tessai sat peacefully at the dining room table drinking their tea; watching in amusement as Timothy struggled with getting used to the gigai the shop owner had made for him.

But while they were inwardly laughing, Timothy was getting outright annoyed. The faux body was an absolute pain to wear and felt exceedingly weird. He felt like he was wearing a full body mascot suit to a football game.

“God, why does this thing feel so weird?” he complained as he scratched his neck roughly.

“Just give it a few moments, Tim. When a gigai is first used, it takes a little bit for it to adjust to you.” Kisuke replied, trying his hardest not to laugh out loud at his suffering.

“Oh, for fucks sakes, it feels like my whole body is stuffed into a latex glove!” the Lieutenant growled further, now scratching his arm.

Kisuke chuckled lightly, no longer able to hold it in. “You’ll get used to it, my friend. Now…” he paused and pointed at a small device on the table. “…this is the mod soul dispenser. Press on the top of it and a soul pill will come out. Just swallow that pill and your soul form will be forced out while the mod soul takes over the gigai.” He instructed.

Timothy picked the dispenser up and looked at it from different sides. “So, just swallow one of these and the fake soul will take over the body; forcing my soul out?” he asked in confirmation.

The shop owner nodded. “Yes. If you need to take the body back over, just jump back in it and the soul pill will be forced out. The pills are reusable, so simply wash it off and place it back in the dispenser. Each dispenser has five soul pills inside, just in case something happens, and you drop, or lose one.”

This got the Lieutenant’s attention. “Wait, if I somehow lose one, aren’t you worried that a human might find it?” he inquired.

Kisuke smiled a bit. “Nonsense, humans can’t see them; not even the dispenser. Besides, they’re designed to have no effect if a person’s chain of fate is still connected. They’ll simply pass through their body.” He assured.

Timothy nodded as he rotated his shoulder, that was now suddenly starting to get a little tight. He put the soul dispenser in his pocket and took a sip of tea before standing up and walking over to a wall mirror to take a look at his temporary body.

As his mirror image came into sight he rose a brow; a little impressed. The body was the spitting image of his true self; the only exception being that this body’s hair was a bit shorter. Where his real hair came down to his shoulders on all sides, this body’s hair was cut down to a nice, clean, professional appearance.

He took a look at the clothes he was wearing and actually found it to his liking. He was wearing traditional style men’s blue jeans with the sleeves rolled over a few inches twice. His shirt was a black t-shirt with gold lettering going diagonal across his chest that read ‘Metallica’. He had a plain white t-shirt underneath the black one, and was wearing a standard watch on his right wrist.

He gave a short whistle at himself. “Nice. Thanks, Kisuke.” He said kindly.

The man chuckled back. “Not a problem, Tim. Though, before you leave, I would like to discuss further on our little problem we discovered yesterday.” He said, now with a serious look.

Timothy turned and walked back to the table to rejoin them. He took another sip and sighed before speaking. “I agree. So, what do you suggest, Kisuke?” he asked.

The man started to fan himself gently. “First of all, we can all agree that this needs to somehow reach the Head Captain’s ears.” He paused, getting a nodded of agreeance. “So, the problem we face, is ‘how’ we get this to him. So, let me ask you Tim; if you were to tell this to Captain Komamura, then ask him to remain here longer, under the guise of seeking confirmation on the information, do you think he would accept?” the owner inquired.

The Lieutenant started rubbing his goatee as he considered the possibility. The matter could go either way. The Captain was somewhat of a cautious person, and may ask more about the information, or where he got it. But then again, the Captain also had a great deal of trust in him, so he may accept Timothy’s answer and let him remain in the living world to ‘look into’ the matter more.

“I’ll be honest Kisuke, I really don’t know. I’d say the chances of him accepting it and letting me stay here are fifty-fifty.” He then dropped his hand to the table lightly. “I can’t really say what the Captain would do if he knew about her, even though she’s agreed to help us. Do you think it’s worth the risk? I did promise Nel I’d look out for her, and we really need any information she has on Aizen.” Timothy cautioned.

Kisuke nodded in agreeance. “I would have to agree. I can’t say I know enough about the man to guess what he would do. So, let’s say we don’t tell him, do you have any other ideas?”

Timothy crossed his arms with a sigh and shook his head. “No, I don’t. Telling the Captain is the only thing I can think of at the moment.” He admitted.

The owner closed his fan and sighed. “I guess we’ll have to think a little more on it for now. So why don’t you head out for a while and see the sights. We’ll talk more on this later, but for now we’ll go with talking to Captain Komamura about it.” He said, then reached down next to him and produced a small black wallet. “This contains a little bit of money for you to spend, along with some basic identification. You name is the same and you are currently a visiting businessman from America. That is where you lived when you were alive, right?”

The Lieutenant opened the wallet to reveal a fake, but very convincing Louisiana state driver’s license, a fake ID for a business company that was most likely in Louisiana, and roughly sixteen to seventeen thousand yen. He raised a brow at the shop keeper.

“Ok, one, how did you know I lived in America? Two, exactly how much money is this, in dollars I mean? And three, Louisiana? Really? Do I ‘look’ like I’m from that backwoods place? I’m a Texan. You know; cowboy hats and boots, spurs, six-shooters, and whatever other crazy myths and rumors you’ve heard about us.” He complained.

Urahara held up a finger. “One, you look like an American.” He started, then raised a second finger. “Two, it’s about a hundred and fifty American dollars…” He then dropped his hand and shrugged a shoulder. “And three, close enough. They’re neighbors, aren’t they?” he teased.

Timothy sighed in defeat as he shook his head, pocketing the wallet. “I really hate you right now.” He moaned, then stood up. “I’ll be back in a couple hours.” He said as he turned to leave.

“One second, Tim.” Kisuke said, stopping him. He tossed the younger man a small device, who caught it and looked at it strangely. “It’s a cell phone.” He informed.

The Lieutenant gave him a puzzled look. “This’ is a cell phone? How the hell is it so small? They used to literally be the size of a brick when I was alive.” He stated.

Kisuke chuckled. “You’ll find that technology has greatly improved since you were last here, Tim. If you need to call me, just flip it open, press one, then press the green button. My number is programed into the first speed dial. If it starts ringing, just flip it open and start listening. That’s all there is to it.” He educated.

Timothy looked at the phone for a few seconds longer before shrugging his shoulders and putting it in his right-front pocket. He waved at the two men as he walked to the door and left the shop.

** Karakura Town City Center, 30 Minutes Later **

After walking around for a bit, he found himself coming up to the entertainment district of the city. He was already shocked by the numerous changes in technology, and the apparel everyone was wearing.

He watched the passing cars to see that they were far more advanced than he could have pictured. Everywhere he looked, he would see people walking around and talking on those ridiculously small cell phones like the one Kisuke had given him.

_‘I can’t believe how far technology has advanced in the past twelve years!’_ he thought.

**_“I agree, things are definitely not the same anymore.”_** Kit added further.

Timothy smiled a bit. _“So, you can see everything as well, huh?”_ he asked her.

**_“If you thought I was gonna miss seeing how things have changed since we’ve been gone, think again. So, what do you plan to do first?”_** she inquired.

He chuckled quietly at her question, then looked at a building across the street. _“Something I’ve wanted to do for twelve years.”_ He answered simply.

After going to a crosswalk and making it to the other side of the street, he backtracked to where the building was. He stopped in front of it, looked at the sign, then smiled. It was still a bit early, but the place was open.

He walked inside and sat down at one of the stools in front of a long wooden bench. He looked at the man behind the bench, who was putting a few things away, and signaled for him. The man started walking to him when Kit spoke up again.

**_“You waited twelve years…to drink?”_** she asked incredulously.

The bartender stopped in front of Timothy and gaze him a curious look. The Lieutenant held up two fingers and grinned.

“I’ll have a shot of Jack and a shot of Jameson.” He ordered.

The man nodded and went to grab the drinks.

_“No, I’ve waited twelve years to taste ‘real’ liquor again. I’m tired of nothing but that damn sake.”_ He clarified.

A moment later, the man returned and set down two small glasses filled with the appropriate dark liquids. “That’s six-hundred yen.” The bartender said.

Timothy placed a one-thousand yen bill on the bench, where the man took it and went to the register to bring back his change. Timothy took a whiff of his first drink and sighed in relaxation and remembrance before downing the glass in one gulp.

He closed his eyes and moaned in happiness as the pungent liquid ran down his throat. “Ah, I’ve forgotten how good that tasted.” He stated as the bartender returned with his change.

Timothy took the money from the man and pocketed it before turning to his second drink. He took his time with this one, taking very shallow sips and sighing with each one.

_“I may not have been much of a drinker when we were alive, but I did miss that taste.”_ He told her.

He could hear her chuckling inside his head. **_“I’m sure. That poor girl Hinata has no idea what she’s got herself into; challenging you to drink with her.”_** He joked.

He chuckled at her comment. _“Well, she’ll learn her lesson the hard way I guess. I’m definitely gonna get a couple bottles to take back with me to the soul society.”_ He stated firmly.

**_“At least you wouldn’t have to worry about anyone taking them; they wouldn’t be able to handle it.”_** She finished in a laugh.

He quietly snorted, then finished the rest of his drink. _“Nope.”_

He waved at the bartender, then left the building to continue looking around. He came back to the crosswalk from before and waited, then saw another store that really interested him.

_“A steak house?! Oh yes!”_ he thought in glee as he strutted through the crossing with purpose.

** Urahara Shop, 1 Hour Later **

Kisuke sat outside his ‘humble’ shop on the porch next to the door; one arm resting in his lap and the other hand lightly fanning himself. He let out a long yawn as the quiet, and ‘customer less’ day dragged on; while waiting for Timothy to return.

The quiet was broken when an audible rip tore the air in front of the shop open. The opening widened slowly to reveal three figures standing inside the dark abyss. As the hole came to its widest, the three men stepped out of it, allowing it to close behind them and leave them standing in the empty lot in front of the store.

The man in the center with emerald eyes looked at the wooden building, then up at the large sign posted above it that read ‘Urahara Shop’. He stared at the sign for a moment before returning his gaze to the door.

“It would seem that we are in the right place.” He stated in an emotionless voice.

Kisuke immediately perked up and smiled widely as he waved his fan at the newcomers. “Well well, good day to you, my friends!” he greeted cheerfully, gaining their attention. “Welcome to my humble shop! Are you per chance customers?! We have a sweet deal going on, twenty percent off any purchase! Doesn’t that sound great?!” he stated with glee.

The middle man’s expression didn’t change. “We have not come here to listen to your pervasive words, Kisuke Urahara. We are here for the woman.” He informed, keeping his cold voice level.

Urahara held his fan to cover his mouth with raised brows. “Oh? I’m sorry, but Yoruichi is not here at the moment. She should return later, if you wish to wait for her.” He offered.

“We did not come here for your feline friend either; we are here for the Arrancar you have under your care. Hand her over to us, and we will not have to resort to conflict.” The cold man informed.

Kisuke narrowed his gaze a bit. “Oh? So, you must be friends of hers, am I right? So, who might you be, if I may ask?” the owner inquired.

“I am Ulquiorra Cifer, the Cuatro Espada. Now, hand over the woman. I shall not ask again.” The Espada threatened.

Urahara didn’t so much as move a muscle. “Is that so? Well then, by all means, go ahead and take her…” he paused and pulled his fan down, revealing his wide grin. “…if you can.” He finished in a suggestive tone.

The man on the right with blue hair scoffed. “So, you wanna fight then? And here I was all depressed that this would go over too smoothly.” He stated with a wide smile. “If you wanna fight, I would be so happy to do so.” He added as his hand rested on his zanpakutō.

The man on the left, a very large and muscular one, laughed. “Yeah! I’m ready to cut you to pieces; so, bring it on!” he yelled as he took a step forward.

Ulquiorra held an arm out, stopping him. “Don’t be rash, Yammy. Are you honestly so dense that you cannot sense the barrier he has around his shop? You do not possess the power to break it; and since it is Kisuke Urahara we are dealing with, he has more than likely placed a counter measure against high powered attacks.” He cautioned.

Kisuke hummed contently. “So, you saw right through my trap, did you? Like I said, you can try to take her, ‘if’ you can get to her.”

The owner’s smile fell a bit when Ulquiorra’s mouth raised just a hair to hint at a smirk. “Did you believe that Lord Aizen had not anticipated such an action from you? In fact, he informed us that you would likely use something like this to protect the woman.” He informed, then pulled one of his hands out of his pockets, holding it out to the owner.

He opened his hand to show that he was holding a small device. “He had also given us a way to overcome your barrier.” He stated, then pressed a tiny button on the device.

It instantly emitted a loud and powerful pulse of spiritual pressure directly at the shop. The air around it suddenly started to distort, waving like heat rising from the ground as an orange square shape that enclosed the entire building started to appear.

Kisuke’s eyes widened as he saw cracks start to form of the barrier wall, spreading more and more; until after only a few moments, the entire shell shattered. The pulsing died away as Ulquiorra pocketed the device and began to walk forward, the two others in tow.

The shop owner dropped his head with a heavy sigh. “And here I was hoping for a quiet and relaxing day.” He stated as he stood up, cane in hand.

Grasping the lower part of the wooden stick, he pulled his hands apart to reveal a thin blade hidden inside the bottom of the cane. Tossing the, now empty, part of the cane to the side and holding the weapon in his right hand, he held it out towards them with a serious glare.

“Awaken, Benihime.”

** Karakura Town City Center, 2 Minutes Earlier **

Timothy was in one of the shops looking through books and mentally talking with Kitsune about the many changes they have seen so far, when he suddenly felt a massive burst of spiritual pressure coming from the direction the shop was in.

_‘Shit! Time to go!’_ he mentally stated as he quickly bolted out the door and started running towards the shop, looking for a place to use his mod soul dispenser.

He noticed that he was coming up to an alley and decided that would be the best place to change out. He darted into the small opening between buildings and pulled the dispenser out of his pocket.

“Let’s see how this works.” He mumbled.

He pressed his thumb on the top of the device, popping out a small green pill into his hand. He looked at it for a split second before tossing it into his mouth and swallowing it. When the pill went down his throat, his soul form was instantly pushed out of the faux body.

The body turned around and looked at him with an odd face, as if it was waiting for something. Timothy rose a brow at it.

“Uh, I guess go somewhere you won’t get hurt or killed?” He tried.

The soul nodded at him. “Got it.” It answered, then quickly ran off. Timothy started scratching his head in confusion.

“Well that’s something you don’t see every day.” He commented.

**_“Tim! Quit screwing around and get back to the shop!”_** Kitsune yelled.

He snapped back to his senses and immediately flashed away. He flashed from rooftop to rooftop as fast as he could manage with the limited training he had so far in shunpo; but after a short time, he could finally see the shop ahead.

He flashed into place to see Kisuke with his zanpakutō released and Ichigo standing to next him with his hand on Zangetsu’s hilt. He turned to see three men clothed it white garments, zanpakutōs on their hips; and from what he could tell, bone like features of different styles on their faces.

The three men had stopped walking when Timothy arrived, and the one on the right with blue hair turned to the one in the middle.

“Hey, ain’t this the guy that Lord Aizen told us about with those funny fire things, Ulquiorra?” the blue haired man asked.

“That is correct, Grimmjow. This is the companion of Lord Aizen’s failed subject, Timothy Durn.” Ulquiorra confirmed.

Timothy flinched in anger while Ichigo looked at him with confusion. “What the hell is he talking about?” he inquired.

The Lieutenant glanced at the teen. “Not your concern, Ichigo. Just let it go.” he asked him calmly.

Ichigo simply shrugged a shoulder, then turned back to the men in front. Holding his zanpakutō to his side, Kisuke opened his fan and waved air at himself with a grin.

“Well, it seems the party is all here. Ichigo, why don’t you take the one on the right; and Tim, how about you take on the big guy? I’ll stay here and keep our calm looking fellow here entertained.” The owner instructed cheekily.

Timothy nodded and turned to his assigned target. “Let’s go somewhere where we won’t cause a lot of racket.” He stated, then flashed away.

Yammy scoffed and turned to Ulquiorra; who looked at the large Espada for second, then back front with closed eyes.

“Finish him quickly, Yammy; then return here.” He ordered.

The large man smiled, then disappeared through sonído. Grimmjow and Ichigo stared each other down for a moment before the blue haired man grinned.

“Looks like I’m gonna have a good fight today!” he stated in a pleased manner.

The next assigned pair then sped off to their own fighting area using their respective methods; leaving the humble shop owner and the Cuatro Espada alone in the empty lot. The two men stared at each other silently; one grinning, the other with no emotion.

“Are you not going to attack, Kisuke Urahara?” the cold man asked.

The owner hummed at the inquiry. “Not unless I have to. To be frank, I was still hoping you would consider leaving.” He admitted.

“You should know that is not possible. We have come here to remove that woman from existence. If you had truly wished for us to leave without any confrontation, you would have allowed us to eliminate her. Yet you still insist on protecting her. What is she to you? Are you not enemies with the Arrancar?” Ulquiorra questioned.

“Oh? So, you would expect me to turn a blind eye to a lovely woman such as her? That is such a cold thing to say, mister Espada.” Kisuke taunted.

“I am well aware of your antics towards the opposite sex, Kisuke Urahara. However, you have not answered my question. Why are you defending someone who you consider an enemy?” the Cuatro pressed harder.

“Does it matter? She simply needed some help, and I’m not a kind of person to turn others down. But my offer still stands; you’re more than welcome to take her, if you are still alive to do so.” Kisuke warned.

“Your threat has no meaning to me, nor does it have any merit. Since you persist in defending her, then I must remove you with force.” Ulquiorra finished as he drew his zanpakutō.

Kisuke placed a hand on the top of his hat and lowered his head. “Well, it was worth a try. Perhaps we should find our own place to handle this; I’d rather not damage my own store.”

“I am afraid I must agree with you; I would rather not be drawn into a confrontation with both you, and your companion inside.” The Espada said, then vanished along with Kisuke.

** Above the Shop **

They both reappeared high in the skies above Urahara’s shop with the owner slashing down on top of the Espada. Ulquiorra kept an unchanged face as he blocked the attack; his other hand still in his pocket.

“So, you intend to fight me with only one hand, do you?” Urahara asked in a cheerful manner.

“I am well aware of your strength, Urahara. It is for that reason that I do not intend to engage you fully on my own; I intend to simply keep you occupied until my own companions return after defeating your friends.” The Cuatro clarified as he pushed Kisuke back with a thrust of his blade.

The owner fell back a bit, landing on his feet. “Is that right? You sound awfully confident that Ichigo and Tim will lose.”

“Merely stating a fact.” Ulquiorra stated as he pointed a finger at Kisuke. “Cero.”

After the words left his mouth, a large beam of green energy shot from Ulquiorra’s finger at a high speed towards Urahara.

“Scream, Benihime!” he yelled as he swung out at the attack, sending a red blast of energy from the blade.

The two attacks collided, canceling each other out in a large explosion between them. Kisuke watched as the dust blew away, but his eyes widened as the Espada appeared behind him with his finger pointed at his back. Kisuke tried to turn to face him, but he knew he too late.

“Cero.” Ulquiorra called again, sending another green beam of energy right into the man’s back.

The beam went right through the man’s upper back, exiting out his sternum, before he began to fall towards the ground.

“An afterimage.” The Espada calmly stated as he watched the man continue to fall, but then suddenly vanish; his charred hat flying off towards the ground.

“Whew, I’m sure glad Yoruichi taught me a few of her moves. It took years to get her to teach me that one. She’s not too keen on giving away her secrets. Too bad my poor hat had to pay the price for it.” A voice sounded off behind the cold man.

Kisuke was now a few yards behind him; unharmed and now hatless. Ulquiorra didn’t so much as move a muscle to face him, keeping his back to him.

“If you believe that one of Yoruichi Shihōin’s flash step techniques will save you when my companions arrive, you are surely mistaken, Kisuke Urahara.” Ulquiorra informs him.

“Oh please, you misled me. Didn’t you say that you were not intending to fight me all out?” Urahara said with a grin.

The Cuatro turned slightly to glance at him. “You misunderstood, Kisuke Urahara. I stated that I would not fully engage you, not that I would go easy on you. I would advise you take better care to not underestimate me; I do not fall for the same tricks twice.”

Urahara kept his calm smile as he replied. “Is that so? Well then, I guess I better put more effort into this then.”

Ulquiorra turned to face the man fully as he held his sword to his side. The two men stare each other down for what felt like hours, before Kisuke finally flashed forward at the cold Espada to strike.

** With Timothy and Yammy, 5 Minutes Earlier **

Timothy glared sternly at his large opponent, sizing him up and deciding on the best way to handle him.

“You’re a pretty big guy, no offence. So, might I ask who you are?” Timothy inquired.

The man widely grinned at him. “My name’s Yammy. I’m the Diez Espada. And you’re that guy with the floating flame things, right?”

Timothy lightly scoffed at the man’s vague description of Kitsune’s abilities. “Yeah, I’m ‘that guy’. The name’s Timothy Durn, Lieutenant of Squad 7.” He corrected.

Yammy grinned more at his introduction. “That’s great. Lord Aizen told us about you; said you might be a challenge. I’m looking forward to it.” He stated as he continued to stand there, not drawing his weapon.

Timothy watched him and waited, but then rose a brow in confusion. “You not gonna draw your zanpakutō?” he inquired.

“Hah! I don’t need to draw my zanpakutō to fight you! I can take you on with my fists!” he claimed as he got into a stance.

The Lieutenant narrowed his gaze. _‘What’s he getting at?’_ he wondered.

**_“Tim, you really need to be careful with this guy. His spiritual pressure is ridiculous, and you’re not at your max yet. I strongly suggest you finish this quickly.”_** Kit warned.

_“I know, I can feel it. His spiritual pressure is way higher than mine. But he’s a big guy, so chances are he’s really strong, but slow. Your abilities should be perfect against him.”_ He observed.

**_“Even so, you should be cautious when you attack him. I suggest you avoid using too many higher level kidōs on him. Also, don’t spawn too many flames at once, as you’ll have to use your spirit energy to keep them lit. If you have too many lit at once, it’ll tire you out quickly.”_ **

_“Yeah, I’d have to agree on that one.”_ He concluded, then held his zanpakutō out in front of him.

“Tease, Moeru Kitsune.” He called out.

Yammy watched with amusement as his opponent’s zanpakutō start to change its shape and multiple flames start to appear around their battle field. He looked at a few of the closer ones for a few seconds, then returned to him.

“Bringing them out already, huh? I’ll squash them just like I’m about to do to you; like a bug!” Yammy taunted.

Timothy smiled at him. “If you can catch me that is.” He sent back, then vanished.

The Diez turned around quickly as he raised his arm, blocking Timothy’s blade as he swung across at his back. The younger man’s eyes widened a bit at seeing the large man’s skin take the hit without a scratch.

“Lord Aizen told us you had a habit of coming at your opponents from behind! Too easy!” the Espada said as he threw a punch at the man’s chest.

Timothy managed to react in time by moving his zanpakutō around in order to block the large fist. The impact on the side of his blade had enough force to send Timothy flying back several yards; but he managed to land back on his feet.

His sword hand was throbbing so bad from having to absorb so much power behind the man’s punch, that he had to release his grip on his sword and shake the pain away.

_‘Damn! This guy is solid as a fucking rock! And my attack didn’t even cut his damn uniform, let alone his arm!’_ he mentally fretted.

**_“Tim, don’t get into a boxing match with this guy! Even ‘I’ felt that one!”_** Kit stated in panic.

_“No fucking shit, dummy! You think I haven’t noticed that yet?!”_ he yelled back.

He was broken from his inward argument by Yammy using sonído to appear right in from of him with his fist held back to swing down on him. Quickly dodging and rolling to the right, he found that he was now in a position where he was unable to use his flames.

_‘Gotta find a way to get him…’_ he thought.

Yammy turned to him in annoyance. “Hey! Quit rolling around, you damn bug!” he yelled as he stepped forward and threw another punch.

Timothy darted forward and rolled between the man’s legs. Yammy followed his movement as he looked down to his legs, then turned around to face the man with a scowl.

“I said, knock it off!” he yelled again as he tried to swat him away with an open palm.

Fortunately, one of Timothy’s flames were near where he stopped, so he used it to transport over to the Espada’s left, several feet away. The large man turned to him and Timothy could clearly see that he was highly annoyed.

“Hey! What the hell you doing over there?! Quit your damn running away and fight!” Yammy demanded angrily.

Timothy stood his ground as he watched the man throw a tantrum. _“He seems to get pissed off exceedingly easy.”_ He mentally observed to Kit.

**_“This could work to your advantage, just like when we both fought the Captain. You thinking of the same play?”_** she asked with a suggestive voice.

He grinned at her words as he remembered how mad Captain Komamura had gotten when he used his abilities on him the first time. The guy in front of him obviously had a far worse temper, so his psychological attacks would be absolutely perfect against him.

_“Oh yeah! Ready for some entertainment?”_ he asked.

Her cackling in his head clearly answered the question for him, so he decided to put the plan into effect. He stood up straight as he lowered his zanpakutō to his side and dropped his face to one of mock sadness.

“I ain’t running, you stupid oaf; you’re just too damn stupid to keep up with me.” He taunted.

The veins in Yammy’s forehead began twitching as his face started to turn red. “What the hell did you say to me, you damn insect?!” he yelled with a fist raised.

Timothy inwardly smiled. “You heard me; or are you stupid ‘and’ hard of hearing? Seriously, did Kisuke ‘have’ to pick ‘you’ as my opponent? I’d have a harder time fighting a fucking mouse.” He mocked.

Although he couldn’t see her, he ‘knew’ that Kitsune was rolling on the ground laughing her ass off in his inner world. Yammy yelled out in fury as he thrusted his fist forward, surprising Timothy with a sudden, and ridiculously fast red burst of energy.

_‘Oh shit!’_

He didn’t have enough time to react as the energy burst hit him in the chest, sending him flying back through the air in pain.

“Hah! That’ll teach ya!” Yammy yelled as Timothy’s body flew through the air.

Landing on his back, then rolling back onto his feet, Timothy clutched his chest with a hiss. He looked down to see he had a large scorch mark on his skin with some of the front part of his kosode burned off.

**_“Tim! You ok?!”_** Kit yelled in worry.

He hissed again, then looked back at the Espada. _“I’m fine…for now. What…the hell was that? It was so damn fast.”_ He said as he straightened up and flashed back to where he was.

“What the hell was that?” he asked the large man.

Yammy grinned widely at him. “That? That was a Bala. It’s a projectile cero that’s several times faster than a normal cero.” He enlightened.

Timothy scoffed. _‘Great…now I gotta worry about that little surprise. I guess it’s time to pick this up a notch.’_ He thought, then vanished.

** With Ichigo and Grimmjow, 5 Minutes Earlier **

Ichigo flashed into being a good distance from the others, Grimmjow buzzing into place immediately afterward. The substitute was already in his combat stance with Zangetsu drawn, while his opponent stood in front of him in a calm manner; hands in his pockets.

Giving the man a deep scowl, Ichigo looked his opponent over closely. The man had blue ruffled hair with a bone like structure over the right side of his jaw. He was staring at him with arrogant eyes that told the teen that the man was likely not going to take him seriously.

“So, who the hell are you?” Ichigo asked in annoyance.

The man kept his stern look as he answered. “The name’s Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez, I’m Espada number six. And who are you?” he returned.

Ichigo also kept his stare at his opponent. “Ichigo Kurosaki, substitute soul reaper.”

Grimmjow rose a brow. “Substitute? Does that mean you’re not a ‘real’ soul reaper?” he mocked.

The teen scoffed in annoyance. “What the hell does that matter?” he shot back.

The Espada grinned. “If you can fight good enough, it doesn’t matter. So how about we end the small talk and get on with this?” he said as he drew his zanpakutō.

Ichigo smiled at his ‘request’. “Fine by me.” He answered and charged at his opponent.

The substitute swung across at the man’s chest, but his opponent was suddenly now right behind the teen delivering at roundhouse kick to his back; sending him forward with the force. Ichigo recovered quickly and turned just in time to block a punch with the side of Zangetsu.

Ichigo was wide eyed at the Espada’s impressive speed. _‘What the?!’_ he thought as he pushed his blade against the man’s fist.

He grabbed his zanpakutō with both hands and swung with force to catch him across his chest. But with the buzz of a sonído, Grimmjow was now to the young substitute’s side, his fist thrusting forward.

The punch contacted the teen’s shoulder, and with a brief gasp of pain, was sent flying across the sky several feet away. Grimmjow was on him again in an instant with another punch ready to be delivered.

“Heh, is that all you got?” the Espada asked calmly as his fist struck the man in the gut.

A mixture of saliva and blood shot from Ichigo’s mouth as he doubled over from the force of the impact. His body was yet again sent flying as Grimmjow straightened himself and returned his hands to his pockets.

Ichigo finally came to a stop a hundred feet away and gasping for breath as his body slowly recovered from the heavy blow. Grimmjow stared at the teen with a skeptical and disappointed look.

“Come on, is that really the best you got? I’m going easy on you kid, so that way you can release your bankai. I’d hate to beat you down without seeing what you’re really capable of; so quit messing around and release already. I ain’t got all day you know.” The blue haired man stated with annoyance.

The teen finally recovered from the earlier attack and glared at the Espada. _‘What the hell is this guy?! I can’t believe he’s so fast! I guess I got no choice.’_ He pondered in his head.

“Fine, but you asked for it.” He scowled at the man.

Grimmjow grinned as he watched the substitute held his zanpakutō extended out in front of him and placed his off hand on top of his wrist. The white fabric that extended from the bottom of the hilt became longer and wrapped itself around the teen’s sword arm tightly as his spiritual pressure began rising at a fast pace.

“Bankai!” Ichigo called out.

A torrent of mass spirit energy immediately surrounded the younger man, obscuring him from the Espada’s view. The blue haired man waited patiently as the torrent continued for a few moments.

He grinned more when the torrent vanished to reveal his opponent charging at him with incredible speed. The teen swung out with both hands as Grimmjow quickly held up a hand. The Espada caught the blade in his hand and very briefly glanced at the substitutes new weapon.

It looked just like a regular katana, albeit a little bit longer and slimmer. The entire weapon was solid black with the guard looking like a cross with the ends bent ninety degrees. Off the end of the hilt hung a one-and-a-half-foot black chain that swung freely with the sword’s movements.

“Heh, very impressive. Now we can start the fun!” Grimmjow stated and swung his leg out to catch the soul reaper in his side.

Ichigo jumped up, pulling the blade from the Espada’s grip, and attempted to swing across the top of his opponent’s shoulders. Grimmjow held up his forearm, letting the blade make contact and effectively halting the attack.

The teen’s eyes widened yet again at seeing his attack, his released attack, being held back by the man’s arm.

_‘What the hell?!’_ he mentally fretted.

The Espada used his opponent’s shock the grab the blade with his other hand. Pulling his arm over his shoulder, he pulled Ichigo, who was holding onto his weapon with a firm grip, over top of him and threw him out to the distance.

Grimmjow buzzed after the flying teen to stop in front of his direction of travel. Bringing his leg up, he delivered a solid roundhouse kick to Ichigo’s back, sending back to opposite way with an audible gasp from the teen.

The man stood straight as he watched the teen’s body fly off. “Damn, kid, at least ‘try’ to put up a fight.” He said with a hint of boredom in his voice.

Ichigo flipped his body around and managed to come to a stop several yards away. A small trail of blood ran down the side of his mouth, so he brought his hand up and wiped it away with the back of it.

“Shut the hell up!” he shot back.

Grimmjow simply stared at him, clearly not convinced of the teen’s threatening tone. “Is that really the best you’ve got? Come on, kid. After what Aizen told us about your little rescue trip in the soul society, I thought you would at ‘least’ give me a little bit of a challenge. I haven’t even drawn my zanpakutō, and you can’t even lay a single scratch on me. Talk about pathetic.”

Ichigo flinched and growled in anger. “What did you say?!” he seethed.

“Do I really need to repeat it? It should be plainly obvious to you that, compared to me, you’re weak.” The Espada pointed out.

“Why you…!” the teen started. He held Zangetsu above his head, gathering a large amount of his spirit energy into the blade. “Getsuga Tenshou!” he yelled as he swung down and across, sending a compressed wave of energy at the Espada.

Grimmjow smiled, then held up his hand towards the incoming attack with his fingers opened halfway. A ball of raw blue energy gathered in the palm of his outstretched hand as the teen’s attack closed in.

“Cero.” He said with confidence.

With a low hum, the mass of energy in his hand shot out in a beam towards Ichigo’s attack. The two forces of energy collided, obscuring Ichigo’s view. His body instantly tensed, and his eyes widened when the Espada’s blue cero got past his Getsuga and was barreling straight at him.

_‘Crap!’_ he thought as the hollow attack came close to him.

Because of his surprise, and the short amount of time to react, the cero impacted the teen; sending him straight down to the ground. He landed with a powerful crash, creating a small crater around his body.

Luckily, Ichigo had had just enough time to bring Zangetsu up to take up most of the force of the attack; but it still left him in a pretty rough shape. His clothes were singed, and most of the left sleeve of his overcoat was now missing.

Ichigo pulled himself back up to his feet with heavy breathing before he looked up to see Grimmjow now standing right above him, only about a hundred feet off the ground. He had a very disappointed look on his face; his hands back in his pockets again.

“You bastard!” the teen growled as he got ready to attack again.

The Espada scoffed at him. “Give it up, kid. I’ll admit you’ve got some pretty good reflexes, and your speed ain’t half bad; but you’ve got no chance against me. This was all just a waste of my time. I’m cutting you a break here kid, so take this opportunity to leave with your life. If you keep this up, I might have to end up killing you.” He stated sternly.

Ichigo gritted his teeth. “Shut up!” he shot back, then held Zangetsu with both hands, now to his side. “Getsuga Tenshou!” he yelled, now swinging up across his chest.

Grimmjow’s eyes widened at the teen’s attack, because this time, instead of the blue colored wave, the burst of energy was deep black and was much stronger than before. He quickly charged another cero and shot it at the wave.

But the wave had already gotten too close, resulting in the Espada getting caught in the blast of his own attack. As he was pushed back from his cero, he slightly gasped to see the black Getsuga still coming at him. He held up both arms to shield his face as the wave of energy collided with his body.

Ichigo watched as the attack struck the man, creating a lightshow of spirit energy in the afternoon sky. Once the energy dissipated, his eyes widened to see Grimmjow still standing with his arms over his face.

The man’s white clothes were scorched a bit with soot marks in random places. The man’s body was slightly burned from the attack and he could see a long, light red line across his arms were the attack had impacted.

Grimmjow started to chuckle, then it slowly evolved into a light laugh as he dropped his arms to his sides. The man’s face had a look of surprise and impression.

“Well now, that’s a new one! I didn’t expect that! Maybe I misjudged you! You just might prove to be worth my time after all!” the Espada yelled in excitement.

He then charged down towards the ground right at the teen, who was still standing in the crater made by his body. Ichigo jumped into the air towards his opponent as he held Zangetsu with both hands at his side.

Grimmjow threw a fist out at Ichigo as the teen swung his zanpakutō. Blade and fist made contact, the force of the impact creating a large shockwave that shattered some of the windows on nearby structures.

The two forces rebounded with Grimmjow using this moment to throw his other fist at Ichigo’s exposed face. His head was thrown to the side as his body twisted around. The Espada swung a leg around, catching the teen in the side.

Another expenditure of blood and saliva resulted from the substitutes mouth as his body was once again thrown back down to the ground; landing in the same crater his body had made previously.

The blue haired man was quick to follow as he charged in from the sky with his fist held back to deliver a hefty blow on the teen. Ichigo managed to recover quickly enough to stand back up and jump back away from the hole he made; Grimmjow’s fist colliding with the ground where the substitute was just a split second ago.

He landed on his feet in a combat stance as the dust made from Grimmjow’s attack started to clear. He could hear the crunching sound of footsteps as the Espada came walking into view on the edge of the crater. His face of disappointment had returned, with a slight grin still present.

“Are you done already? Come on, hit me with another one of your black wave attacks.” He calmly demanded as he continued to walk towards the teen.

** World of the Living, Urahara Shop, Present **

Nelliel and Tessai anxiously remained inside the shop sitting at the back of the dining room table; Nelliel sitting with her hands in her lap clutched together, while Tessai sat upright, head lowered, and his hands intertwined in a unique posture.

The instant that Ulquiorra had used his device to destroy the barrier surrounding the shop, Tessai had immediately grabbed Nel and took her to the main room. Upon sitting down, he uttered a long enchantment that she could barely catch and erected the strongest barrier he could manage around the two of them.

Nelliel knew the moment that the garganta had opened outside and felt the familiar spiritual pressures of the Cuatro, Sexta, and Diez Espadas, that they were coming for her; more than likely to kill her.

She knew that it wouldn’t be long before she was found, especially if Aizen really wanted her disposed of. Her thoughts were filled mixed emotions; ranging from fear, worry, and anger. But the one that she was filled the most with was confusion.

She was an Arrancar, and a former Espada; an enemy of the soul society. Yet, here they were; Urahara, the young teen, and the blonde Lieutenant, even the large man next to her; all of them fighting their hardest to ‘protect’ her. To keep her out of harm’s way.

Sure, the Lieutenant had stated he would do everything he could to protect her and keep her hidden, but she was still technically a prisoner. She had information that they would want, and they would try to keep her safe, so they could acquire that information.

But she could sense that was not all; she could sense that they genuinely wanted to keep her safe. Like they cared for her wellbeing. She had never once even considered the possibility that the soul reapers would do something like that for an enemy.

Even behind Tessai’s strong barrier, she could feel the three separate sets of spiritual pressures flaring to great proportions.

The shop keeper was somewhere overhead fighting Ulquiorra; the orange haired teen was off to the west facing Grimmjow, and she could tell that the teen was not doing well; and the Lieutenant that she had saved, was far to the north against Yammy, who also seemed to be having a hard time.

She clenched her hands tighter as the battles continued on outside. For some reason, she had the urge inside her that told her she needed to go help them; to help her ‘captors’. But more than that, she felt that she needed to help the man she saved the day before.

She didn’t know why, but she somehow felt like she needed…wanted to go protect him. She couldn’t understand why she felt like this, like the man’s life was somehow important to her. She only saw the man twice, talked to him once; but she still felt this way.

These odd feelings kept pulling on her mind, telling her to join the fight; but she knew she needed to remain there and stay hidden. But the longer she sat there, the more the feeling tugged on her resolve.

A sudden, and strong burst of spiritual pressure coming from the direction of where the Lieutenant was fighting finally crumbled the last bit of resistance she had.

She swiftly stood up and turned to Tessai. “I’m going, let me out.” She instructed.

The man answered her with any movement. “I’m afraid I can’t allow that, miss Nelliel. Your life is in danger at the moment, and it is my job to protect you.” He informed her sternly.

She turned her head away and lowered it. “I do not care. They need help out there, and we can give that to them.” She insisted.

Tessai looked at her with understanding. “I’m aware of that; but the boss said you are to remain here and out of their reach. Now please, sit back down, miss Nelliel.” He politely asked.

She turned around to him fully. “I will not sit here while others are fighting to keep me safe. I may be an Arrancar, but I do have my morals.”

The man kept an even face as he answered. “I can understand that, and I do respect it as well. However, you ‘must’ remain here until the boss returns.”

Nel narrowed her gaze at him to a look of seriousness. “And you believe that he is a match for Ulquiorra? I can feel that mister Urahara is powerful, but if Ulquiorra decides to fight seriously, he will kill him in a matter of seconds.” She stated firmly.

Tessai actually began to sweat a bit at her warning, as he could also tell that Urahara was not fighting an easy opponent. He could feel that, although neither Kisuke, nor his opponent were taking their fight seriously at the moment, the person the boss was fighting was obviously very dangerous.

“I am sorry, but I cannot allow you to leave, miss Nelliel.” He finally stated in a serious tone.

Nel deeply sighed as her shoulders dropped. “Then I am sorry for this.” She said sadly.

She raised her hand up, her index and middle fingers pointed right at the large man, and charged a pink cero at the tip of her fingers. Tessai raised both of his brows in shock at her as she kept the fully charged cero, ready to fire, pointed at his chest.

“I honestly don’t want to do this, mister Tessai, and I really hope that you’ll forgive me, but I will not stay here. I am going to go help them, and you will not stop me.” She informed with regret in her voice.

Tessai remained as calm as he could while still maintaining his barrier. “Miss Nelliel, surely you realize that, even ‘if’ you kill me here, my barrier will not fade in time for the blast of your cero to escape. At such a close proximity, the blast will surely kill you in your current condition.” The man advised.

She closed her eyes with a sigh. “That is true, I will receive quite a bit of damage in the blast. But that does not guarantee that it will kill me. The thing is, mister Tessai, that unless we step in and assist them, all three of them will die. And when that happens, do you think you will be able to fight all three of them at once? You and I both know the answer to that. So, these are the choices you have; we can sit here and wait for them to die, then die ourselves; or, we can go help them and increase our chances of living. As I said, I really don’t want to use this to get out of here; but I will if I must.”

She opened her eyes and he could plainly see that she meant every word. “I am not afraid of death, mister Tessai; but I am afraid of dying knowing I could have done something to prevent it.” She stated calmly, still holding the cero at the end of her fingers.

Sweat began to drip down the man’s forehead as he considered his predicament. In her condition, she wouldn’t be able to kill him, nor cause him catastrophic damage; but it would be enough to break his concentration enough to cause the barrier to fail and allow her to leave; ‘if’ the blast didn’t outright kill her.

“Let her go, Tessai.” A deep feminine voice instructed.

Both of them turned to the voice to see a tan skinned woman with long hair that was a light black, giving off a dark purple sheen, tied into a single tail. She was standing in the doorway to the main shop area with her arms crossed and a stern gaze.

“Lady Yoruichi!” Tessai greeted in surprise.

A slight chill shot up Nel’s back when the woman’s golden eyes turned to her. “What she says is true; we need to go help Kisuke and the others.” She said, then returned to Tessai. “You go help Kisuke, I’ll give Ichigo a hand, and you…” she paused to look back at Nel. “…you can go help the other soul reaper. But I would strongly suggest you not try anything. Kisuke might trust you, but I don’t.” she finished with a serious stare.

Nel nodded. “Mister Urahara is fighting the Cuatro Espada, do ‘not’ take his calm demeaner lightly. The orange haired soul reaper is fighting Grimmjow, who has a bit of lust for combat.” She briefly informed as Tessai dropped his barrier and stood while Nel dissipated her cero and dropped her hand.

Yoruichi nodded. “Thanks for the info. Now let’s get to it.” She concluded, then turned around and left the store; the other two right behind.

** With Urahara and Ulquiorra, 3 Minutes Earlier **

A loud screeching sound resonated through the air as an intense red wave of energy shot forth at the Cuatro Espada. Ulquiorra swung his off hand at the attack, swatting it away to his side. Kisuke was immediately in front of the green-eyed man with his zanpakutō held across his chest to swing at his head.

The Espada held his own blade up and caught the attack as he brought his other hand back to the owner’s chest, charging another one of his green ceros.

“Cero.” He said in his cold voice.

The green beam of energy shot out from his fingers, but Urahara was gone the brief instant before the attack reached him; now standing behind the Espada to strike again.

“Scream Benihime!” he yelled, sending another of his zanpakutō’s red energy waves at the man.

Ulquiorra sonídoed out of the attack’s path and reappeared right below Kisuke’s feet; swinging out at him. Rotating his body forward, Urahara met the Espada’s blade with his own. A calm and content face met a cold and hardened one as the two combatants stared each other off.

“You are a skilled warrior, Kisuke Urahara. You are not the incompetent individual you lead others to believe.” Ulquiorra stated in his usual tone.

Urahara pushed back against his opponent’s blade, forcing the two to separate a few yards. The two men returned to their feet with Ulquiorra holding a solid and straight stance while Kisuke maintained his ready stance.

“Why thank you, I’ll take that as a complement. I’m afraid I’d have to say the same about you, mister Espada.” He returned with a grin.

“It is pointless to maintain your façade any longer with me, Kisuke Urahara. Lord Aizen has made us well aware of your skills and abilities, and I can assure you that they will not save you from me.” The Espada coldly informed.

The humble shop owner grinned more. “Oh? Then perhaps you would be so kind as to show me then.” He half taunted.

Ulquiorra did not buy it. “I have no intention of releasing my powers here. Such an action would only prove to be counterproductive to Lord Aizen’s intentions.”

“Is that so? So, you’re saying you can defeat me in your current form?” the owner tried again at a taunt.

“Don’t be foolish. Even I will admit that I cannot defeat you while in this state. However, do not be fooled to believe that you can defeat me easily. As I had said, my intention is merely to keep you occupied until my companions have finished your friends. Once they have succeeded, we will destroy you, and kill the woman.” The green-eyed man concluded.

As soon as he had finished speaking, Ulquiorra was gone with a buzz of sonído. Kisuke quickly turned while holding his zanpakutō sideways in front of him.

“Cry Benihime!”

Ulquiorra’s swinging blade stopped when it struck a one meter wide, two-meter-tall red barrier floating right in front of his target. The man pulled back his blade as he looked at the barrier, only to see the barrier fading with Kisuke holding his half open palm towards him. The Espada’s eyes very slightly widened when he noticed that the man already had a ball of yellow energy charged in his hand.

“Hadō #63, Raikōhō.” Urahara chanted with a grin.

_‘Damn’_ Ulquiorra mentally cursed.

The Espada’s body was instantly consumed in a large blast of electrical energy while Kisuke managed to perfectly time an escape with shunpo, appearing several feet away. He watched as the explosion dissipated to leave behind a large cloud of smoke and dust.

He knew that the blast of kidō would be nowhere near enough to defeat the Espada, but he was hoping that it would at least cause some significant damage.

His hopes were shattered when the cold being buzzed into place a few yards to his front right. The shop owner turned to see that the man had his hand close to his chest with smoke flowing from it; only covered in a light layer of soot. The rest of the man’s body was completely unharmed.

“I admit, I had not expected that move from you, Kisuke Urahara. However, it will not be enough to defeat me. I have grown tired of our little confrontation, so I believe it is time that I put forth more effort in this fight.” Ulquiorra stated.

Raising his zanpakutō to his off hand, the Espada slowly slid his index finger along the blade; creating a small slit in the finger and allowing blood to be drawn. He then held his hand out to the shop owner with his index finger pointing at him.

Kisuke’s eyes widened when a large, dark green mass of energy with a solid black outline began to form at the tip of Ulquiorra’s outstretched finger. The mass continued to steadily grow until it was almost as large as his own body.

“I would have liked to avoid using this due to its power, but sadly that is no longer an option.” Ulquiorra stated. “Gran Rey…”

He stopped when a solid greenish yellow barrier suddenly formed around him, trapping him, with his still charged cero, in a diamond shaped energy prison.

“Roku-ten Daiyamondo Keimusho.” A deep voice spoke.

Ulquiorra dissipated his cero and looked to see a large, broad shouldered man wearing thick glasses standing several feet to his right. He had both of his hands close to his chest with his two index and middle fingers extended and touching; pointing down in the shape of a ‘V’.

“Do you believe this will contain me?” he asked the newcomer in skepticism.

“It is not meant to hold you, but to force you not to release that powerful technique that would kill many innocent humans.” Tessai said, then turned to Kisuke. “My apologies boss, but certain circumstances had prevented me from continuing to protect our guest.” He offered.

Kisuke smiled. “Not to worry, Tessai. I believe that I held him as long as I could without causing unfortunate losses.” The owner reassured, then turned back to Ulquiorra. “Now, my Espada friend, shall we continue?”

** With Ichigo and Grimmjow, 3 Minutes Earlier **

A trail of dust ran down one of the streets as Ichigo’s body flew by, bouncing off the ground in a roll every thirty or forty feet. His tumbling continued for almost a block and a half until his body collided with a brick wall surrounding the yard of a residence.

He let out an involuntary yell of pain as he body came to the sudden stop from the collision before dropping to the ground. Grimmjow landed on his feet a little ways down the paved street and stood there with his hands in his pockets.

“Tsk, pathetic. I can’t believe I got stuck with you. I would’ve rather fought the guy with the stupid hat. At lease he looked like someone who could have put up a fight.” Grimmjow mocked.

Ichigo was breathing heavily as he pushed to try and get back to his feet; only managing to make it to his hands and knees as he fought to catch his breath. Using Zangetsu as a crutch, he slowly pushed himself to where he could get to a single knee.

“This is fucking stupid, you can barely stand up. Face it, kid, you can’t beat me. How many times do I have to kick your ass to get that into your thick skull?” Grimmjow pointed out.

As he looked back up at the Espada, the blue haired man could faintly see a black shadow beginning to obscure the teen’s left eye, slowly encroaching towards his retina. He could tell that the two black wave attacks that the young man used had obviously taken a great toll on him.

But the teen’s next action confused him a bit when he suddenly shook his head violently, then clutched his head with his off hand.

“Damn it! Don’t…get in my way!” he growled.

Grimmjow rose a brow. “Who the hell you talking to, huh? Did getting your ass kicked around make you lose it?” he inquired.

“Shut up!” Ichigo yelled.

He dropped his hand and charge back at the Espada at a high speed. Grimmjow held out a hand and caught the teen’s blade as he swung. Pulling the blade back to him a bit, he drew the younger man’s face closer to his.

“Just give it up! You’ve lost! Are you ready that desperate to die?! I ain’t got the time to waste killing you, but if you ‘really’ want to die…” he paused and held up a half open hand to the man’s chest, charging a cero. “…I’ll gladly help you out.” He finished with a grin.

He was just about to end to pathetic teen’s life, when his body was suddenly sent flying out to the side several feet. With a twist of his body, Grimmjow was able to slide to a stop in a crouched position with a hand on the ground.

_“What the?’_ he wondered.

He looked back to where he was just a second ago to see a dark-skinned woman standing there and helping the teen to his feet. He then scoffed and stood straight as he placed his hand on the hilt of his zanpakutō.

“Well well, aren’t you the looker. So, who might you be, pretty thing?” he asked with a wide grin.

She turned to him with a devious smirk. “You talking about me?” she asked back in a seductive tone.

Grimmjow gave her a burst of a laugh. “Who else would I be talking to? Definitely not that orange haired weakling. The name’s Grimmjow, and I have to say you’ve got a mean kick there, lady. So, does that mean you wanna play with me next?” he teased.

Her grin grew wider as she crossed her arms. “Oh? Is that an offer, or a challenge? I can’t quite tell the difference with your tone.” She increased.

The Espada busted out laughing, the jaw like bone fragment moving with his mouth. “Take it however you want, I’m just hoping that wasn’t the best you had to offer just now.”

Yoruichi closed her eyes with a smile. “Oh, you’ll find that I can be pretty entertaining. So…” she paused and opened a single eye at him. “…care to try me on for size?”

Grimmjow gave her a wide, toothy grin with eyes wide open. “Absolutely!”

As soon as the words left his mouth, he was already closing the distance at high speed. He shot a fist out at her, where she simply stepped to the side. As she did, she grabbed his arm and planted a hand on his back as she tripped him.

Pushing down hard on his back as he fell forward, she planted him into the ground with a crash; creating a small imprint of his body on the ground. He quickly turned and kicked out with his leg to her side.

Holding an arm out, she blocked the kick with the force of it pushing her back a few feet. Ichigo swung down at him while he was still on the ground, but the Espada darted toward him with his elbow extended.

The attack was just about to make contact, but Yoruichi was immediately there with her hand taking the blow. The blue haired man turned to her with a wide grin as he threw out his other fist to her face.

She leaned back, letting the attack go right over her head, before doing a backwards kick to the man’s chin; sending him up and back. He flipped back around and landed on his feet before dashing right back at the female opponent.

“Now that’s more like it! Just like that, you damn vixen!” he yelled as he started a flurry of punches at the woman.

She smiled as she backed up, step by step, ducking and weaving her head around each and every one of his throws.

“Now this is the fight I was looking for! Come on!” he yelled further as he stopped his punches to kick out at her.

She jumped up with a half flip to land with a handstand on his outstretched leg. He flinched when her lower body twisted around to deliver a double kick to the man’s face; sending him back towards Ichigo, who swung down on the man’s back and sent him back to the ground.

Ichigo yelled as he recovered and sent another swing down on the man. Holding up a hand, Grimmjow caught the blade and pulled the young soul reaper down to him. As he came down, the Espada thrusted his fist up into the man’s gut.

The teen gasped as more blood and spit was forced from his mouth and his body sent to the sky. Yoruichi was on Grimmjow in a flash as she grabbed the man’s coat; pulling him up to her as she sent her own fist into the bottom of his jaw, sending him back into the sky.

She then disappeared with a flash step, reappearing right in front of Ichigo’s direction of travel and catching him. Grimmjow recovered and sonídoed to be level with them a few yards away.

His uniform was a bit messed up and he had a few scratches on his face. He looked at the two of them with a wide and jagged smile as he chuckled.

“Well now, I never expected a pretty girl like you to be able handle me like that. I’ll admit you got some good skills there, but I really hope that’s not ‘all’ you got.” He said in a teasing voice.

Yoruichi was ‘not’ about to back down from a challenge in the ‘teasing’ department. She stood straight as she planted a hand on her hip with a seductive smile.

“Oh, there’s plenty more where that came from, Grimmjow. And I’m sure I could handle you all day long. ‘I’m’ the one that ‘you’ can’t handle.” She shot back.

Grimmjow laughed at her alluring tone. “Oh really? Care to put that to the test? What do ya say we cut the fore play and have some ‘real’ fun?” he suggested as he began to draw his zanpakutō.

But his blade never left the sheath as a hand planted itself on his sword wrist, preventing him from fully drawing his sword. Everyone’s eyes widened as Grimmjow turned his head towards the hand’s owner.

Ulquiorra was standing right behind him from out of nowhere and glaring at Yoruichi with his cold eyes.

“What do you want, Ulquiorra?” the Sexta asked in annoyance.

The Cuatro glanced at him with a turn of his eyes. “We are leaving, Grimmjow. Our mission has failed, and we must return while we are still able.” He then returned the glare to the woman. “That is Yoruichi Shihōin, and you cannot possibly hope to defeat her on your own.” He informed.

Grimmjow turned back to her with a smirk. “Sorry, vixen, but I guess our play date is over.” He said mockingly.

She grinned at him. “Oh, that’s too bad. I was actually starting to have fun there, Grimmjow. Perhaps we could have some more ‘interesting’ fun another time?” she said seductively.

The Sexta briefly laughed at her. “Definitely! I can’t wait until we can have some ‘personal’ time to have some fun with each other! But for now, later vixen!” he concluded, then both Espadas vanished in sonído with Yoruichi and Ichigo right behind.

** With Timothy and Yammy, 3 Minutes Earlier **

“Hold still, you damn insect!” Yammy yelled as he sent another Bala at one of Timothy’s clones.

The Diez Espada had lost all control of his temper after a few more of the Lieutenant’s taunts while using his cloning technique. Yammy was now looking at at least a dozen individual ‘Timothys’ scattered around him.

“Missed me again, idiot.” The officer taunted.

Yammy sent another Bala at the one that spoke, the supersonic burst of energy flying right through the image. He then grunted when Timothy’s blade struck him across the back, sending him forward a step from the force.

Timothy scoffed in annoyance when his attacks were barely doing any damage at all. Since his battle with the Diez Espada started, he had landed at least a dozen hits on the large man; but less than half of them did any damage, what little they did do.

**_“Tim, you can’t keep this up for much longer. Your image clones are taking more spirit energy than you think.”_** Kit warned.

Yammy swung his arm around at the younger man, but missed when he flashed back away from the man a few yards.

_“I know that, but no matter how hard I hit him, I just barely scratch him. And not only that, but are his Bala things getting stronger, or am I going crazy?”_ he asked as Yammy sent one of the said attacks at him.

Timothy used one of his flames to reappeared to the man’s rear just as the attack was about to hit him.

**_“I’ve noticed that too. I can’t say for certain, but that last one feels like it’s two or three times as strong as the first. I don’t know why, but I can say that at least the speed is unchanged for the moment. But that might change as well, so keep a watch out.”_** She advised.

_“Got it.”_ He finished then spawned a few more of his clones.

Yammy twisted around to see his familiars and yelled out once again. “I’m getting tired of these damn fakes! Where the hell are you?!” he demanded.

“Right here, moron.” Timothy answered in a low tone.

The Diez reflexively turned and sent another Bala at the copy that spoke. Once again, Timothy was right behind the Espada and about to swing down. But he froze when Yammy quickly turned back with a prepared cero in his mouth.

_‘Fuck!’_ he fretted as he abandoned his attack and hopped back as fast as he could.

It was not fast enough, as the Diez released the attack right at him. His eyes went wide as possible when he saw that there was no way he could avoid it.

_‘Damn it!’_

**_“Tim!”_** Kit yelled in horror.

Timothy closed his eyes as he awaited the pain he was about to face. But the attack never came.

He landed on his feet and opened an eye, then both eyes were open in surprise and shock to see Nelliel standing in front of him. She had her hand outstretched and was holding the cero at bay; not appearing to be fazed by it at all.

She had a stern look on her face while Yammy had one of surprise and confusion. She then tilted her head back and opened her mouth wide. Both Lieutenant and Espada were shocked when the Diez’s cero started to pour into her mouth.

Bit by bit, the red mass of energy was absorbed into her mouth, until after a few seconds it was gone. Her mouth was now closed with her cheeks puffed out as she leaned back a bit. She then lurched forward as she opened her mouth and released a far more powerful blast of pink energy right back at the large Espada.

The large mass sailed right at Yammy, who held his arms up to block the attack. The attack collided with him and exploded, creating a massive shockwave that Timothy had to brace himself against, shielding his eyes with his arm.

With a quick hop backwards, Nel was now right next to Timothy and glancing at him. “You shouldn’t have made him mad. Doing so only makes him stronger, Timothy. That’s his unique ability.” She informed.

He growled as he looked back at the dissipating forces from the explosion. “Wish I would have known that from the get-go. So, what the hell was that just now? You just swallowed his cero and sent something much more powerful at him.” He inquired.

She turned back to the explosion sight as well. “It’s one of ‘my’ abilities. I can temporarily absorb an incoming cero, then mix it with my own and send it back at the one who sent it. It’s called Cero Doble. But that won’t be enough to kill him, as you’re about to see.” she stated.

And she was indeed right. As the smoke and dust blew away, they could now see Yammy still standing there. Pieces of his sleeves were burnt away, and his white uniform was charred in some places. His forearms were also slightly burnt, but besides that, he was relatively unharmed.

He lowered his arms they could see a look of fury and annoyance. “You damn witch! So, you’ve decided to make our job easier by coming to us, huh?”

She kept an emotionless face towards him. “I did not come here to die, I came here to fight. I’ve never had a quarrel with you Yammy, and I would prefer not to fight you; but if you won’t leave, then I’ll have no choice.”

Yammy lowered one hand while pointing at her with the other. “Hah! Like you could fight me like that! You don’t have a zanpakutō anymore!” he pointed out.

She flinched as she lowered and turned her head away. Yammy started laughing at her before Timothy took a step forward.

“She may not have her zanpakutō, but that doesn’t mean you’ll be able to get her. She’s under ‘my’ protection, and you’ll have to kill me first before you can ever get to her.” he stated in a stern voice.

She quietly gasped and turned to him with slightly widened eyes; surprised at his words. He did tell her that he would protect her, but now he’s saying that he would rather die than to let them get to her. With her aspect being loyalty, his determination and devotion was something she admired.

“You’ll’ protect her?! The only reason you’re still standing is because she saved your ass! Seems to me like ‘she’s’ the one doing the protecting!” Yammy pointed out.

“Don’t matter. I’ve already failed one person in my life, and I will die before I let that happen again. If you really want her so bad, then come at me.” He taunted.

“Both of us.” Nel added as she stepped up next to Timothy.

He glanced at her to see a look of determination in her eyes, a look that he knew all too well. He then turned back to Yammy who now had his hand on his Zanpakutō.

“If you wanna die, then I’ll be happy to help!” he concluded as he drew his zanpakutō.

Timothy and Nel got into their respective stances as Yammy dashed at them. But the Espada was suddenly clotheslined and fell onto his back. Right in front of where he landed was Ulquiorra, with Grimmjow standing next to him looking very annoyed.

Both Lieutenant and former Espada widened their eyes as the green-eyed man looked at them. They then heard multiple wisps of shunpo around an in front of them as Kisuke, Yoruichi, Ichigo, and Tessai all appeared; surrounding the two.

Yammy got back to his feet with a growl, then turned to his superior. “What the hell did you do that for?!” he yelled.

The cold man kept his stare on Nel. “We must retreat for now, Yammy. We are outnumbered, and cannot fight against Kisuke Urahara, Yoruichi Shihōin, and Tessai Tsukabishi at the same time. We have failed in our mission, so we must return.” He stated calmly.

The Cuatro held a hand out to the side, and with a flick of his wrist, ripped open the sky to reveal the black abyss known as the garganta. Yammy turned to Timothy with anger.

“This ain’t over, bug! I’ll be back for you!” He declared, then walked into the void.

“Yeah, you be sure to wait for me, vixen.” Grimmjow added with a wide grin.

Yoruichi returned the grin with a seductive one. “I’m not going anywhere. I’ll be right here for ya.” She teased.

Grimmjow laughed as he walked into the portal as well, followed by Ulquiorra.

“Come back soon~” Kisuke stated with a wide smile and his ‘shop keeper’ tone as the dark portal snapped shut behind the three Espada.

Kisuke’s face then turned serious as he turned back to his friends. “We should all head back to the shop. With those three showing up, and the nature of their mission, things just got a whole lot more complicated.” He then turned to the teen. “Ichigo, it would be best if you’re present as well. Also, I think you should give Orihime a call to help with our injuries.” He advised further.

Ichigo nodded, then flashed away as Urahara turned to Nel. “You should be present as well, miss Nel. It would seem that you’ve become quite more involved in this matter.” He informed her where she nodded in understanding. “We’ll rest up a bit before we begin. Tim, if would be so kind as to escort miss Nel back to the shop.”

Timothy nodded, then turned to her to see her nod at him before they, too, dashed away with shunpo and sonído. Yoruichi waited a few seconds before speaking up.

“How bad is it, Kisuke?” she inquired with a serious face.

The shop owner sighed as he closed his eyes. “Much worse than we thought. I would seem that Aizen has developed a way to seal a zanpakutō.”

Her eyes widened. “Is that even possible?!” she asked in shock.

Kisuke opened his eyes back to her. “Miss Nel is the living proof that it is. He somehow managed to seal her zanpakutō that contains her hollow powers, then shattered it. Ever since Tim and Ichigo brought her in yesterday, I’ve been looking into a way to counteract this device that Aizen has made. So far, no luck. I’ll have to do some research on miss Nel and her zanpakutō; possibly see if it is feasible for her to regain her connection with her hollow powers.”

She rose a brow at him. “Are you sure that’s wise? She’s a former Espada, right?”

“She is, but I believe we can trust her, Yoruichi.” Kisuke insisted.

The ex-Captain sighed heavily. “If you say we can trust her Kisuke, then I will as well.” She said, then the three of them flashed away back to the shop.

** Squad 1 Headquarters, Captain’s Meeting Room, Seireitei, 30 Minutes Later **

Sajin stood in his respective place amongst the other remaining Captains of the Court Guard Squads; for the exception of Captain Kurotsuchi and the Head Captain. Only a few minutes ago, he, along with the other Captains, had been summoned to an emergency meeting by the Head Captain.

Normally, they would be waiting outside the room until the Head Captain had arrived, but when it’s an emergency meeting, they are expected to be in their places before the meeting began. That way, they could begin immediately instead of waiting for everyone to take their respective positions.

“I wonder what all the fuss is about. What do you think, Captain Hitsugaya?” Shunsui asked the smaller, white haired Captain standing next to him.

The small Captain glanced at him. “I have no idea. Whatever it is, I hope it doesn’t take long.” He said in annoyance.

Ukitake leaned forward a bit to look at Sajin. “Do you think it might have something to do with your Lieutenant, Sajin?” he asked with a bit of worry.

The furry Captain turned to him. “I am not sure. The last report I received from him this morning said that everything was fine at the moment.”

Their conversation was interrupted when the Head Captain, followed by Mayuri, walked into the room. Yamamoto walked between the rows of Captains towards his chair at the front while Mayuri took his place next to Toshiro. Once Yamamoto got to his chair, he sat down and thumped his cane on the floor.

“Thank you all for coming so quickly. This meeting is in regards to a serious occurrence in the world of the living. Captain Kurotsuchi, deliver your report.” The old man said in a deep and commanding tone.

The deranged scientist took a step forward and turned to face the Head Captain. “Of course. For those of you who are not aware, exactly forty-seven minutes ago, our sensors picked up three strong spiritual pressures. From the data we have, we have been able to determine that these three beings are Arrancar.” He said informatively.

Everyone’s eyes immediately turned to him widened. “Arrancar?” Toshiro asked, not having heard the term before.

Mayuri looked at him. “Yes, they are hollows that have purposely removed their masks in an attempt to acquire the powers of a soul reaper. While Vasto Lorde are exceedingly rare, an Arrancar is by far more so. In fact, there have been less than a dozen cases that have ever been recorded.” He informed, then returned to Yamamoto. “But these are ‘not’ your standard Arrancar; these three beings were Espada.” He added.

Shunsui gave him a serious look. “Espada?! Are you sure about this?!” he asked in surprise.

“Of course, but that’s not all. Exactly eleven minutes after the first three arrived, our sensors detected a fourth individual with a similar spiritual pressure. However, the spiritual pressure was quite low, far lower than the others. I cannot confirm at this time if this fourth being is an Espada or not. It was only thirty-five minutes ago that the first three had left the world of the living, with the fourth one disappearing two minutes after.” Mayuri informed.

Unohana leaned forward to look the man in the eyes. “Is there any evidence to suggest why they were in the world of the living?” she asked calmly.

Kurotsuchi faced her. “Unfortunately, no. We were able to determine that former Captains Kisuke Urahara, Yoruichi Shihōin, Tessai Tsukabishi, Squad 7 Lieutenant Timothy Durn, and the substitute soul reaper Ichigo Kurosaki had fought the three Espada; with the fourth individual also close by.”

Sajin’s eyes widened a bit at the mention of his Lieutenant. “Pardon me, Captain Kurotsuchi, you said Lieutenant Durn was involved in the fighting?” he inquired.

The man faced him. “Indeed.” He answered simply.

“Do you think Aizen has anything to do with this?” Jūshirō asked in worry.

Mayuri closed his eyes with a tilt of the head. “One would assume that’s the case. It would seem that the Espada may have been after something; but it is as I said, we cannot make that determination at this time.”

The room thundered when Yamamoto slammed his cane on the ground. “This cannot go unanswered. These Espada are a direct threat to the 13 Court Guard Squads, and the soul society; and they will be handled accordingly. We will send a team to the world of the living to act as a force to stand against the Espada, should they return.” The man turned to Toshiro.

“Captain Hitsugaya, I am placing you in charge of this team. I want you to choose four higher ranking officers to assist you. I expect you to come to me with your choices for final approval.” He paused, getting a nod from the short Captain. He then turned to Jūshirō. “Captain Ukitake, I will be assigning Rukia Kuchiki to the team as well, considering she has extensive knowledge of the world of the living.” He added, getting a nodded from Jūshirō.

He finally turned to Sajin. “Captain Komamura, considering that your Lieutenant is already in the world of the living, and that fact that he has already fought against these Espada once, he will be remaining in the world of the living and will also be assigned to the team.”

Sajin nodded in understanding, but was still a bit concerned inside. The old man turned back to Toshiro. “The team is to work together with substitute soul reaper Ichigo Kurosaki, as well with Kisuke Urahara and his companions on this matter. You have twenty-four hours to select your team and deploy to the world of the living. This concludes the Captain’s meeting.” He finished as he tapped his cane on the floor.

The Captains left their spots and began leaving the room. Sajin strode swiftly to walk next to Toshiro.

“Captain Hitsugaya, might I have a moment of your time?” he asked.

The short Captain kept walking as he glanced at his much taller peer. “I know what you’re going to ask, Captain Komamura. I’ll keep an eye on your Lieutenant.” He said with a hint of a smile.

“Thank you, but allow me to offer a word of caution.” He said, getting the younger man’s full attention. Sajin looked down at him. “Tim has a bit of a temper on him at times, but he means nothing by it. As long as your straightforward with him, you won’t have any problems.” He advised.

Toshiro chuckled as he closed his eyes. “So I’ve heard. I’ll be sure I keep it in mind.” He offered as they came to the front doors of the building.

The two of them stopped just outside and turned to face each other. “Good luck, Captain Hitsugaya. And please send Lieutenant Durn my regards. Also, please inform him that I’ll be allowing him to access the squad’s mission budget in case of emergencies.”

The short Captain bowed at the man before flashing away. Sajin sighed as he dropped his head in thought about the situation. His squad had just lost three members, and he was hoping and praying that Timothy would not become a forth.


	17. Remember the Past, Accept the Present

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 17

**(Remember the Past, Accept the Present)**

** Las Noches Throne Room, Hueco Mundo, Present **

Ulquiorra, with Grimmjow and Yammy at his sides, walked calmly through the halls of Aizen’s throne room while the other Espada and their fracción watched. The trio continued until they came to the top of the stairs to stand in front of Aizen; Grimmjow and Yammy taking a knee while Ulquiorra gave a low bow with an arm across the chest.

“We have returned, Lord Aizen. I regret to inform you that we have failed in our mission to eliminate the target.” He said in his usual tone.

Aizen watched him closely with barely opened eyes, a small grin on his face. Yammy and Grimmjow expected to be punished for not succeeding in their mission, and the observers surrounding the group mainly expected the same.

“It is alright, Ulquiorra. The mission had a very slim chance of success in the first place.” Aizen said calmly.

Grimmjow raised his head to him with anger. “You knew we were going to fail, and you still sent us? What the…” he stopped the second Aizen’s eyes made contact with him. He mentally growled. “Forgive me.” He said as he dropped his head back down.

Aizen didn’t answer him, but instead returned to Ulquiorra. “As I was saying, I had actually expected you to fail in that regard. I must offer my apologies, but the deception was necessary for the next phase of my plan. So, tell me, did you succeed in the second part of your mission?” he inquired.

Ulquiorra nodded. “Yes, Lord Aizen; but it was Grimmjow who had fought Ichigo Kurosaki. The information you require would be best received from him.” He advised.

Aizen glanced over to the Sexta Espada. “You may speak, Grimmjow. So please, tell us what you have learned.”

Grimmjow raised his head back and scoffed. “What ‘can’ I say? The guy was a wuss. I didn’t even have to draw my zanpakutō. I was about to kill him when that…” he was silenced when he was assaulted with a monstrous spiritual pressure.

He looked back at Aizen as he struggled to breath, seeing that he now had a cold and deathly look in his eyes.

“Was it your mission to kill him, Grimmjow?” Aizen asked in a calm, yet stern tone.

More pressure was forced on the blue-haired Espada as he was now forced to the ground; Ulquiorra and Yammy next to him completely unfazed and not paying him any mind. Grimmjow could feel the life draining from his body as he began to choke from the suffocating pressure on him.

“The next time you are given a mission, Grimmjow, I expect you to follow its parameters with no mistakes. Do not let this happen again.” He warned, then dropped the pressure off the man.

Grimmjow gasped for breath, then after a few seconds returned to his knee, his breathing fast and shallow. Aizen watched him for a moment more, then turned to Yammy.

“Yammy, I understand you fought against the man we had discussed in a previous meeting, Timothy Durn, correct?” Aizen inquired.

The large man answered without moving. “Yes, Lord Aizen. He was nothing more than a bug. Pissed me off, but I about got em; until that witch showed up.” He answered.

Aizen rose a brow a fraction. “So, she was helping them?”

“That’s what it looked like. Ulquiorra said we had to leave before I could get to her.” Yammy informed.

The ex-Captain’s brow dropped. “I see. Well, considering the circumstances, I would say that he had indeed made the correct choice. Had you have remained there, all three of you would have undoubtably lost. That is all I require of you. You are all dismissed.” He concluded.

Ulquiorra gave him one of his bows while the other two dropped their heads lower. All three then stood straight, turned, and walked back down the stairs; then leaving the room. Aizen turned to the other Arrancar who had been watching.

“I have nothing further for all of you as well; you may all go now.”

Every one of them stood and gave him a brief bow before leaving the room themselves. After a few moments of silence, it was again broken by the light footsteps of a man behind Aizen.

“Well, that was quite exciting. Eh, Captain Aizen?” Gin said as he came to a stop right next to Aizen’s chair.

“Yes, it was very interesting, Gin.” Aizen answered in an amused tone.

“I guess Nelliel decided to jump the fence afterall. What ever shall you do, Captain Aizen?” the silver haired man asked mockingly.

Aizen smiled at his comment. “For right now, nothing. We will continue to observe her and see what she does.”

Gin looked closely at the man. “Oh? Do you have something planned you’re not telling me, Captain Aizen?” he inquired.

The man chuckled lightly. “You shall see soon enough, Gin.”

** World of the Living, Urahara Shop, 20 Minutes Later **

The three ex-Captains, Timothy (after finding and getting back into his gigai), Ichigo, and Nel sat at the dining room table drinking some tea, while Orihime sat behind Timothy healing him with her Shun Shun Rikka. At first, Timothy was a bit startled when her barrier had surrounded him, but that turned to amazement when he saw he his injuries slowly vanishing.

Within a matter of a few minutes, he was shocked to see that all of his injuries had been healed; even his clothes had been repaired. What he found even more amazing was that she had replenished nearly all of his spirit energy.

Her barrier dropped away, and the two pieces of her hairpins returned to their places. He flexed his shoulder a few times, feeling no pain or tightness, then turned and smiled at her.

“Thank you. Nice ability you got.” He said kindly.

She smiled back as she waved her arms shyly. “Oh no, it’s fine; I’m happy to help.” She said quickly.

He nodded, then turned back to the group. “So, where do we start with this?” he asked.

Kisuke turned to Nel. “Well, it’s obvious that they were here to eliminate miss Nel. You would think that it was to prevent her from revealing information about Aizen and his plans; but considering that they waited for almost an entire day to come for her, I doubt that’s the case.” He observed.

Nel glanced to him. “I’m wondering if they believe that I would side with you against Aizen.” She offered.

The shop owner snapped his fan open and waved it at himself. “That definitely seems to be the case. If Aizen was truly fearful of you giving away information on him, I highly doubt you would have ever made it out of Hueco Mundo; and even if you did, they would have sent somebody right behind you to finish you off right then. Now, with that in mind, how about you tell us your true intentions, Nel. Are you looking to join with us?” he asked.

“I believe we’ve already discussed this, mister Urahara.” She pointed out.

“No, we discussed ‘cooperation’ as an ally, I’m talking about if you’re intending to be a part of the group.” The hatted man clarified.

She looked at him for a moment, then each person at the table to judge their looks; seeing that none of them seemed bothered by his question. She sighed heavily as she closed her eyes.

“I see. And you think that would be wise? After Ulquiorra and the others came here, even I am aware that the soul society will likely be sending more soul reapers here for added protection. And when I helped Timothy earlier, I was likely also detected. It won’t be long before I’m discovered now.” She reminded.

Kisuke nodded. “That’s true, but I’ve been hiding from the soul society for over a hundred years, and they never once found me. So, hiding you won’t be a problem at all. So, now we return to my previous question; are you willing to join our group as a companion?” he offered again.

Nel thought the offer over hard, looking for anything that could go against her if she accepted his offer. She was currently on her own; for the exception of the little bit of assistance that her and Timothy offered each other. She didn’t want to be alone.

It reminded her of her years as an Adjuchas. She was always alone, trying to survive. It wasn’t until she had finally evolved into a Vasto Lorde that she had met Pesche and Dondochakka, who were Adjuchas.

They quickly got along, and became very close. She protected them, and they helped her with anything she needed. They were always together, never going anywhere without the other.

But when she inadvertently killed her two best friends because of Aizen’s cruel hallucinations, her world suddenly became an empty void. And now, she was being given a chance to fill that void with new friends.

She opened her eyes and looked back at the group in front of her; again, seeing that they were not against his request. She briefly looked at Timothy who gave her a quick and shallow nod. She turned back to Kisuke and gave him a weak smile.

“I’d like that.” She answered lowly.

She was amazed to see that everyone now had smirks on their faces. Yoruichi, who was sitting next to her, slapped a hand on her shoulder with her cat-like grin.

“Welcome to the club, girl!” she said happily.

Ichigo scoffed at her. “Just don’t let her seduce you with that smile.” He moaned lowly.

The golden eyed woman turned to him with a suggestive grin. “Oh? Are you getting a bit jealous there, Ichigo?~” she asked.

He turned to her with anger. “No, I’m not! I just don’t want you teaching her your tricks! Just one seductive demon is enough!” he yelled.

Timothy turned to him with a raised brow. “Seductive? Her? Hah, you should meet my zanpakutō. She’ll put her to shame.” He stated, now hearing Kitsune cackling in his head.

**_“Oh, come on. I’m not ‘that’ bad.”_** She stated.

_“The fuck you ain’t!”_ he returned in anger.

The teen quickly slapped a hand over his mouth to shut him up, but it was already too late. Yoruichi turned to the young Lieutenant with a raised brow.

“Oh ho! Is that so? I should definitely meet her then; I welcome a challenge.” She said, now leaning on the table.

**_“Oh! I ‘like’ her! Pleeaasse let me out!”_** she begged.

_“Maybe later, ‘if’ you behave, and ‘if’ you promise not to use ‘me’ as your seduction target.”_

**_“I won’t. Promise. Besides, I think Ichigo would make the better target.”_** She pointed out.

Timothy almost snorted trying to hold back from laughing. _“I don’t think Yoruichi would have a problem with that.”_

Timothy slapped Ichigo’s hand away and faced her. “Really? I doubt there’s anything you could do that she hasn’t already tried.” He returned.

Ichigo gave him a serious stare. “I’d shut up right now, if I were you.” He advised, but Timothy turned back to him.

“I ain’t scared of her, Ichigo. I’ll admit that I might get a bit skittish around women sometimes, but at least I’m not a prude, like you are.” The Lieutenant shot back.

Kisuke snorted while trying to hold back a laugh while Yoruichi was laughing up a storm. Ichigo meanwhile glared at him in anger.

“What the hell did you say!?” he growled.

“What? You’re a prude. Besides…” Timothy paused to face a still laughing Yoruichi. “…after having to listen to my own seductive vixen in my head for twelve years, I’m used to it.”

The golden eyed woman finally calmed down and gave him a wide grin. “Oh, we’ll see about that. I think I’m starting to like her.” She stated.

He grinned back, but Ichigo gave him a look of remorse. “You have no idea of the hell you just unleashed.”

**_“Oh, ‘you’ do, ‘he’ don’t! That poor boy don’t know what’s coming!”_** Kitsune stated.

Timothy rose a brow at him in confusion, and was about to ask what he meant when Kisuke cleared his throat to get everyone’s attention.

“Anyway, with all of the…pleasantries out of the way, now we need to discuss the possibilities of the soul society sending more soul reapers here. I’m sure we can all agree that it’s going to happen within the next couple of days, so we should prepare for it.” Kisuke stated, then turned to Nel.

“Miss Nel, I’ll be making you a gigai that can suppress spiritual pressure. As long as you are in it, they won’t be able to tell what you are. Unless it’s an emergency, or if we send you downstairs to train, you must stay in it; no matter what. I’ll have you pose as a shop helper that just happens to live here to act as cover.”

She nodded at him before he returned to Timothy. “I think you should stay here with us as well, Tim. I would also recommend that you get as much training in as you can. After what you told me this morning about your…connection with your zanpakutō, you’ll need to improve your abilities. Meanwhile, I’ll do some research on miss Nel’s zanpakutō and see if there’s a way to re-establish her connection with her powers. During that time, it might be a good idea if you conduct some training sessions with miss Nel on occasion.”

Timothy looked at her and nodded. “Be happy to.” He said, then turned back to Kisuke with a concerned stare. “What about the way they took down your barrier? You got a plan on that?” he asked.

Kisuke sighed as he fanned himself. “The device the Espada used seemed to be a prototype, and really wasn’t that powerful. The barrier that Tessai had set up was not that strong to begin with; merely just to prevent miss Nel from going anywhere. While it was strong from within, it was quite weak against outside attacks. But that’s what I had my counter barrier for, to repel any attacks against it. But the device somehow got past it and attacked the inside barrier itself. But don’t worry; I’ll be looking into that as well.”

He snapped his fan closed and dropped his hand to his lap. “For now, we should be prepared for the soul reapers that the soul society sends here. So, the plan for now is to simply continue on with our daily lives and pretend that you’ve never met miss Nel. Yoruichi, if you don’t mind, I’d like you to go to the soul society and see if there’s any news floating around about our new friend here. As I said, it’s likely they detected her spiritual pressure when she fought with Tim; so, it would be nice to know if they suspect that she’s still here.” He stated, now looking at the golden eyed woman.

“Got it. I’ll check with Suí-Fēng and see if she knows anything. I’ll be sure not to mention about Nel directly.” She answered firmly.

The shop owner nodded. “Sounds good. That should be everything; so, Ichigo and Orihime, you two go ahead and head home. I’ll be sure to let you know if something comes up.”

“Alright. Come on, Orihime.” The teen said as he stood up.

“Ok.” She responded, standing up next to him and bowing to the group. “Thanks, mister Urahara. Bye Yoruichi.” She said, then waved as the pair walked out of the room and left the shop.

Yoruichi got up and began stretching her arms out. “Well, I should get going as well.” She stated.

“Right, I’ll meet you downstairs in just a minute, Yoruichi.” Kisuke responded.

The flash-goddess walked out of the room the go down to the underground training area and wait for the shop owner to open a senkaimon for her; followed closely by Tessai as his help would be needed for it.

Waiting a few seconds until the two of them were gone, Kisuke turned back to Timothy. “Now that we have a moment Tim, what was it you wanted to talk about?” he inquired.

Timothy rose a brow. “Do I even want to know how you knew I wanted to talk to you?” he deadpanned.

The shop owner replied by giving him a knowing smirk. The Lieutenant scoffed, then turned to Nel.

“I actually wanted to ask ‘you’ something, Nel.” He stated, getting her attention.

“Yes?” she responded.

“In the past day, you’ve saved my ass twice. The second time, I can understand; but the first time, I can’t figure out. That hollow was about to kill me, no doubt about it. I was an enemy to you, one that you should have known would have killed you without a second thought. So, my question is, why? Why would you take a hit, that ‘should’ have killed you, to save someone who would kill you and allow that person to kill one of your own? Why not let the hollow kill me, or do the job yourself?” Timothy asked sternly; Kisuke turning to her in wonder about the answer himself.

She dropped her head and took a deep breath before answering. “I…I was about to. I was hidden behind the trees not far from where you were, watching you fight. I was waiting for the right time to finish you off, but…” she paused and turned her head away.

“But?” Timothy pressed.

She took another breath, then turned back to him with sorrowful eyes. “I couldn’t. My mind kept going back to what Aizen had done to you, and…I felt guilty. I felt that…after everything that you’ve been put through, you didn’t deserve it.”

Her explanation confused him. “And why would you feel that way? Kisuke told me that when a hollow becomes an Arrancar, they regain their emotions; but are you saying that you actually felt sorry for me?” Timothy asked skeptically.

Nel nodded. “I can’t really tell you how I did, but I felt really bad about what you went through because of him; and that you didn’t deserve to die.” She answered.

“I see…well, either way, thanks for saving me, twice. Now let me ask you something else; what are your feelings about working against your former comrades? You have to be somewhat hesitant, right?” he asked next.

She deeply sighed as she closed her eyes. “I…really don’t know. I can’t really explain how I feel about that. A part of me doesn’t want to fight against those who I used to be a part of; but another part keeps telling me that…” she sighed again and dropped her head with now open eyes. “…I don’t know…it’s like…I’ve been fighting for…the wrong side. Aizen’s intentions had always been against my morals. I never really approved of…not really us fighting against the soul reapers, but rather ‘how’ he was doing it. I’ve always believed that if you had to fight someone, even a mortal enemy, you should do so with honor and humility. Aizen has neither of those; and as time went on since he took over Las Noches, I grew more and more…resentful towards him. And when he had told the Espada what he…did to you, I just…I couldn’t do it anymore. I didn’t want to be a part of his cruelty anymore.”

Timothy’s eyes widened a bit when he saw a stray tear run down her cheek, and he suddenly started to feel guilty for causing her to feel the way she was. He had misjudged her, thinking that she was just like the rest of the hollows; a cold and heartless being.

Instead, what he was seeing sitting in front of him was a woman with the body of a darker species, but with the heart and soul of a human. He then remembered that Hetoku had told him that hollows were human souls that had not been saved in time; souls that had been ‘forced’ to become these evil beings. She was obviously one of these souls, so it really wasn’t ‘her’ fault that she was an Arrancar.

He closed his eyes with a painful sigh. “I understand.” He said quietly. “Let me ask you one last thing, Nel.”

She raised her head just enough to look at him. “Yes?” she responded in a chocked voice.

He opened his eyes back to her, but with a calmer and kinder face. “After we defeat Aizen…what will you do? By then, if not sooner, the soul society will be aware of you; may try to hunt you down. Are you gonna return to Hueco Mundo and go back to killing soul reapers; or do you plan to just…disappear? What are your intentions for when this is all over?” he asked with hesitation in his voice.

Nel closed her eyes and gently shook her head. “I don’t know. At that point, I doubt I would care what happened to me. Like you, Aizen took everything from me; I really have nothing to go back to Hueco Mundo for. I’d probably…just let the soul society do whatever they want with me.” She relented.

Kisuke, who had remained silent through the conversation, chose to speak up here. “I wouldn’t be so quick to give up just yet, miss Nel. Like Tim here said, it’s possible that the soul society may forgive you for any past crimes.” He tried to reassure.

She turned to him in doubtfulness. “Even ‘if’ they did, mister Urahara, what then? You have no idea how lonely Hueco Mundo can be; and where else could I go that would accept something like me? I’m an Arrancar; nothing more.”

“Yes, you are…” Timothy said, getting her attention. “…but only because you choose to see yourself as such. I admit, I judged you too quickly at first, because of your appearance and where you came from. When I was alive, a hobby of mine was studying world history; and one of the things I learned is that not all good ‘is’ good, and not ‘all’ bad is bad. There can be some bad people on the good side, but there can also be some good people on the bad side. You and Aizen are the perfect examples of this fact. Aizen was once on the good side, but now look where he’s at; and you were on the bad side, and now here you are, showing us that you’re not the evil being that everyone thought you were.”

She lowered her head, but when Timothy knocked on the table with his knuckle, she looked back at him to see him pointing at her. “You’re the one who needs to choose what kind of person you are, no one else. All you can hope for is that others won’t be too stupid and blind to see that.” He assured.

Nel dropped her gaze to the floor in confusion and shock. She was exactly what she said she was; an Arrancar. Yet, here were two people that were supposed to view her as evil, but instead were sitting here and telling her that she wasn’t; that she was actually a good person.

She found herself hating what she was, hating the constant feeling of something missing inside her. Hollows were supposed to have lost their hearts, their souls when they became such. Yet, she couldn’t understand why she was feeling a pain in her chest. She knew that something was missing from her soul, but she could still feel the pain from it.

“Hey, dum dum.” Timothy called out, getting her to look back at him. “Quit worrying about where you were, and plan for where you wanna go instead. If you wanna be the good person that I think you are, then ‘be’ that person.” He offered, then stood up and raised his arms high, stretching his back. “Well, I’m gonna go back out and look around some more. Care for a drink later, Kisuke?” he asked.

The man grinned with a hum. “Sure, we’ll see ya later, Tim.” he returned. Timothy nodded and walked out of the shop, when Kisuke turned to Nel. “What he said is true, miss Nel. I don’t see you as a bad person either; just a good person with a rough past. Just keep your head up.” He advised, then stood up himself and left the room to help Tessai open the senkaimon for Yoruichi.

Nel was now left in the room by herself to her thoughts. The more she thought about it, the more she came to realize that it really wasn’t the fact that she was lonely, but rather that she had nothing to fight for, live for.

When she was a Vasto Lorde, she had Pesche and Dondochakka to fight for. When she had become an Espada, even though she hated Aizen’s morals, she still had something to be a part of. But now that Pesche and Dondochakka were gone, and being forced to leave the Espada, she had nothing but her hatred towards Aizen; and that wasn’t enough.

She wanted more, to again be a part of something that she could give herself to. When she had accepted Timothy’s and the other’s offer to join them, she felt a weight lifted off of her. But after hearing what Timothy and Kisuke told her, it felt different…familiar. It somehow felt the same as when she had her two fracción; like a close bond between them.

With a deep breath, she pushed the thoughts to the back of her mind and stood up. After a brief stretch of her arms and neck, she gingerly walked back to her assigned room to lay down for a nap.

She was still a bit tired and recovering from Nnoitra’s and the Adjuchas’s attacks that nearly killed her. As see laid down on her side, she was finding it difficult to fall asleep; her thoughts from earlier were still plaguing her mind. She gently shook her head and took another deep breath, again pushing the thoughts away as she closed her eyes; sleep slowly taking her away.

** Karakura Town City Center, 2 Hours Later **

Timothy was sitting down at an outdoor patio to a coffee and pastry shop, enjoying an iced coffee and reading a book on world history that he had bought from the store he was in before the Espada attacked. He figured a good way to spend some down time would be to get caught up on important things that have happened since he died.

As he picked his disposable cup up to take a sip, he heard a familiar voice call out to him. “Yo, Tim!”

He looked over the top of his book to see Ichigo, Orihime, and a large brown skinned man walking towards him. He set the cup down and waved at the group as they walked up.

“Hey, Ichigo, Orihime. Feeling alright?” he greeted.

The group walked around to the small gate that led from the walkway to the patio and stopped at his table.

“Yeah, a bit sore, but I’m fine. You?” the teen asked in return.

Timothy shrugged his shoulder. “About the same. Who’s this?” he asked, pointing at the large man.

“Oh, this is Chad. He’s one of my best friends.” Ichigo answered.

“Hey.” Chad greeted in a low and monotone voice.

“Hey, nice to meet ya. I’m Tim.” the Lieutenant returned.

The large teen simply nodded, not saying a word. Timothy rose a brow at him.

“Quiet type?” he inquired.

“Yeah, Chad don’t say much unless he needs to. But don’t let his size fool you, he’s as kind as they come.” Orihime stated.

Timothy scoffed. “That’s the problem with the world, people are always too quick to judge others. It’s sickening.” He said in a growl.

Ichigo nodded. “Yeah, I know what you mean.” He said as he rubbed the back of his head.

The Lieutenant used his foot to push a chair out from the table, gesturing with his hand towards it.

“Plenty of room, care to join me?” he offered.

Ichigo nodded and the three of them all took seats around the table as Timothy gestured for a waiter. The female staff came out with a pen and paper, where the three teens placed their orders for drinks. The woman nodded, then left to get their orders.

“So, anything new happen after I left?” Ichigo questioned.

Timothy closed his book and set it on the table. “Not really. Yoruichi left for the soul society, Kisuke is looking into Nel’s zanpakutō problem, Tessai…who knows, and Nel’s…I guess you could say ‘having a hard time’.” He answered, then took a drink of his coffee.

“What do you mean, sir?” Orihime asked.

“It’s Tim, and…how can I explain this…I guess she’s feeling insecure about her current situation. From what she’s told me and Kisuke, she’s lost everything important to her; so now she’s lost on what to do after we’re done with Aizen.” Timothy explained.

“You mean she doesn’t know what she wants to do with her life after Aizen is defeated?” Chad asked in his low tone.

Timothy nodded. “Essentially. I can tell that she’s not a bad person, just a person with a bad life. She’s really kind, and I’d like to help her, but considering her…situation, I’m at a loss.” He said with a shoulder shrug.

“You really seem to like her.” Orihime pointed out with a smile.

“I wouldn’t say that, exactly; but after spending twelve years avoiding people and turning a blind eye, I grew sick of what I became. So now I try to help people out where I can. I had a friend of mine and my Captain to help me; but Nel, she’s got no one but us. And we can all agree that Nel is someone who really needs help right now. I know from experience how it feels to have lost everything and feel all alone; and I can tell you, it’s a horrible thing to live through. I wouldn’t wish it on anyone.” The Lieutenant stated firmly.

The waiter then came back to the table with the teens’ drinks, where Timothy paid for them.

“Oh, you didn’t have to do that!” Orihime stated.

Timothy waved her off. “Nah, it’s fine. You fixed me up earlier, so this is the least I can do for ya.” He returned.

Ichigo took a sip of his drink, then turned to Timothy. “So, what have you got planned for later?”

The older man shrugged his shoulders. “Depends on how much longer I stay around here before heading back to the shop. I might swing back the bar and have a couple drinks, but I did offer to have a few with Kisuke. So, I might just get a bottle of my own and take it back with me. Besides that, not much except wander around and see the sites. I was catching up on my history when you guys came by.”

“Do you wanna do something with us this weekend, si…I mean Tim?” Orihime inquired.

“Depends on what goes on when those other soul reapers get here. For all I know, I might be running around like crazy. I’ll let you guys know something by Friday. It might be interesting to see what there is to do around here. Who knows, it might be possible to bring Nel along.” Timothy answered.

The girl nodded. “Yeah, she looks like she could use some cheering up.” She agreed.

Ichigo then stood up and finished his drink. “Well, we need to get going. We were on our way to catch a movie when we saw you. Wanna join us?” he offered.

“Nah, thanks though. I’m just gonna wander around for a bit. Nice to meet you, Chad.” The Lieutenant said with a smile.

The large teen nodded. “You too, Tim.” he returned as he stood.

Orihime stood as well and waved. “Bye, Tim. See you later.”

“Later.” He returned again, then picked up his book as the three teens left.

** Urahara Shop, 3 Hours Later **

Timothy walked out the front door of the shop, followed by Urahara, where they both sat down next to each other on the front deck. He had a bottle of Jameson whiskey, and a couple shot glasses that he had bought earlier, plus a small bowl of ice, while Kisuke had a bottle of sake with a couple saucers.

Grabbing one of the glasses and filling it with ice, he poured himself two shots worth of his chosen spirit while Urahara poured himself some sake. Touching their containers together, they both took a sip and exhaled.

“So, tell me Tim, when do you intend to start training with your zanpakutō?” he inquired.

He took another sip, then answered. “Tomorrow. I might do a round with Nel, if she’s up for it. I really need to get my spiritual pressure up, so I can unlock my Bankai. Kinda interested what the new look is about.”

**_“Hey Tim, let me out for a bit.”_** Kitsune asked.

He let out a sigh and turned to Kisuke. “Mind if Kit joins us for a bit?”

The shop owner took another sip and shook his head with a grin. “Not at all. I’d actually like to meet her.” He admitted.

He nodded back. _“So…how do I let you out?”_

**_“Just relax your mind and imagine me coming out.”_** She instructed.

He took a deep breath and let his mind relax, picturing her standing in front of him. Kisuke rose a brow when Timothy’s zanpakutō started to emit steam, before fire shot out from the hilt and gathered together in the lot in front of them.

After a few seconds, Kitsune’s body was standing in front of the two men. Timothy opened his eyes and was surprised to see that the flames that normally surrounded her body were no longer there.

“Uh, what happened to the fire that covered you?” Timothy asked.

She smiled at him warmly. “You’ve never released me when we weren’t fighting, Tim. The flames only come out when I fight.” She then got into a fighting pose, and the orange flames surrounded her body again. “See?” she said, then relaxed; the flames turning blue and slowly dissipating.

“That’s pretty interesting.” Kisuke stated.

She turned to him with a kind smile. “Thanks. I’m Moeru Kitsune, by the way. But, you can just call me Kit for short.”

“Kisuke.” The shop owner returned the greeting.

“I can’t stay out long though; maybe fifteen to twenty minutes. Being materialized like this wears me out. Still trying to recover from being placed in Tim’s inner world.” She informed, then sat down next to Timothy. “So, don’t be stingy, pour me one.” She demanded.

Timothy rose a brow at her. “You can drink while materialized?” he asked in surprise.

“Oh course, stupid. Now hand me that other glass.” She insisted.

He shrugged his shoulders and prepped a glass for her while Kisuke chuckled. Timothy handed her the glass, then took a sip as she did. She let out a relaxing breath and closed her eyes.

“Now I know how you felt earlier; I also missed this taste.” She admitted.

Timothy chuckled and finished his own drink before pouring another; Kisuke did the same. After taking another sip, the shop owner turned to her.

“So, care to tell me about Tim’s Bankai? Clearly, he’s already acquired it, but you chose to keep it from him because of his current spiritual pressure.” Kisuke inquired.

She snorted at him. “Really? Do you really think that I would tell you without telling him? Come on, Kisuke.” She said in a slightly annoyed tone.

“Ok, that’s fair. Well then, care to tell me more about yourself?” he pressed.

Kitsune looked at him. “You mean before I became Tim’s zanpakutō?” she asked in a depressed tone, getting a nod from the man. “Well, it’s simple, I used to be Tim’s wife; until Aizen did this to me. So now, I’m his zanpakutō…or at least one of them. There’s really nothing more to it than that.” She answered in a lower voice with sadness.

They were interrupted by footsteps coming towards them from inside. Kisuke twisted around to see Yoruichi walking out and sitting down in the doorway behind him.

“Well, the soul society ‘is’ sending a team here; they’ll be here tomorrow. The only thing I know so far about who’s in it is Captain Hitsugaya from Squad 10, Rukia, and because you’re already here, you, Tim.” she informed.

Timothy turned and rose a brow at her. “So…I’m staying here then?” he asked.

She nodded and took the saucer that Kisuke had filled and handed to her. She took a sip and rested the hand in her lap before looking past Timothy to just now notice the weird being sitting next to him.

“Who are you?” she asked.

Kitsune chuckled. “Moeru Kitsune, but call me Kit. I’m Tim’s zanpakutō spirit. Nice to finally meet you, Yoruichi.” She greeted.

The woman grinned at her. “Oh? So, are you the ‘seductive one’?” she asked in amusement.

Timothy moaned as he dropped and shook his head while Kitsune grinned back, exposing her pointed canines. “That’s me. Why? You wanna back out?” she inquired playfully.

Yoruichi widened her eyes with a wide smile. “Oh, I’m not backing out, Kit. If you think you can do better than me when it comes to seducing a man, you’ve another thing coming.” She shot back.

The spirit cackled. “Oh please…you may have the body, but you ain’t got the moves.” She returned.

Kisuke snorted from trying to hold back his laugh. Yoruichi turned and gave the man a hand chop to the top of his skull. The unfortunate shop keeper hunched over and moaned in pain with his hands cradling his head.

“Just what’s so funny, Kisuke?” she asked in a stern and temperamental tone.

He quickly turned around and wave her off with one of his hands. “Nothing, my dear Yoruichi! Nothing at all!” he placated.

Kitsune laughed at the poor man, then finished her drink. “What’s wrong, Yoruichi? Is it really true?” she teased.

The woman turned back to her with a death glare. “I’m starting to not like you very much.” She stated.

Timothy jumped in and held up a hand. “Hey, she’s just messing with you, Yoruichi.” He said, then turned to the spirit. “And you, knock it off and be nice.” He demanded.

She nodded and looked at the woman. “Sorry, I went too far. But I still say that I’m better at seduction than you. And to prove it, I’m willing to put in a wager.”

Yoruichi rose a brow with a grin. “Oh? I’m listening.” She said, now very interested.

Timothy snorted and shook his head while Kitsune grinned widely. “Simple; whoever can be more seductive towards a certain person, wins. If you win, I’ll let you seduce Tim here.”

He quickly turned to her. “Nuh uh! Ain’t happening! You keep me outta this, or this will be the ‘last’ time I ‘ever’ let you out! And you ‘know’ I mean it!” he growled.

She growled back, but knew he had her there. “Killjoy.” She moaned, then turned back to her new friend. “Fine…then how about an IOU?” she tried.

Yoruichi touched a finger to her cheek in thought. “Hm…how about we just skip the wager and go with bragging rights?”

Kitsune nodded. “Sounds good to me.”

The golden eyed woman dropped her hand to her lap. “So…who’s this ‘certain person’ that’s going to be our victim?” she asked.

Timothy snorted and shook his head. “God help him.” He whispered, peaking Yoruichi’s curiosity.

The woman looked back at the spirit to see the widest, most bestial grin she had ever seen. “Who?!” she demanded.

Kitsune cackled at her. “Ichigo.” She answered.

Yoruichi’s eyes widened, then narrowed as she smiled seductively and purred. “I take back what I said earlier…” she started, getting the spirit to raise a brow. “…I don’t like you, I ‘love’ you!” she stated in a purr.

Both woman and spirit raised their glasses to each other, then dropped them back, finishing theirs drinks. Kitsune cackled again before turning back to her new ‘best friend’.

“Well, I’m outta time here, so I’ll catch you guys later, Yoruichi, Kisuke.” She said.

The woman nodded. “Don’t be a stranger now.”

Kitsune nodded, then closed her eyes and allowed her body to dissipate into flames that then returned back into the zanpakutō at Timothy’s side.

Kisuke chuckled, then finished his drink and shook his head. “Ichigo…if only you knew the torture you’re about to face.

** Urahara Shop Underground Training Area, The Next Morning **

A medium-sized rock in the distance shattered as a blast of blue, electrical energy impacted it, kicking up a cloud of dust and debris. Timothy was inwardly pleased, but pushed the thought aside as he used Kitsune’s abilities to transit to another location.

He had woken up a bit early that morning and felt like getting some early training in. Over the past half hour, he continuously shifted from place to place, casting a random, medium-level kidō at a nearby boulder each time; all while keeping three clones up.

His breathing was slightly elevated, but still under control. Kitsune had advised him before he started that the best way to increase his spiritual pressure, besides actual combat, would be to keep his soul under a constant state of stress. What better way than to transport over and over while using kidō?

While he wanted to practice with higher level kidōs, his zanpakutō spirits both suggested that by staying below the forties level, he could use his spirit energy as he recovered it; albeit at a slower rate.

**_“Spawn…another clone…Timothy.”_** The male spirit instructed.

He appeared at his next location, sending a Shakkahō at a large boulder, before doing as instructed. He mentally observed that his spirits were having him add another clone roughly every ten minutes. Three or four were no problem, but when it came to using six or more at his current level, then it became one.

He continued his assaults with fierce determination, never noticing that he now had an observer.

Nel walked up to a distant boulder in her new gigai, being sure to keep her distance. She was impressed that he hadn’t noticed her yet; complements of Kisuke’s gigai that completely hid her spiritual pressure. Even Timothy made a comment on it last night when she had first got into it, saying that she felt like a regular human.

As with Timothy’s gigai, her body features were the same, for the exception of her face. Her hollow mask and the pinkish line that ran over her nose were no longer there. And rather than her hair being a teal color, it was now a light brown.

She came to a stop and crossed her arms under her breasts, looking on with interest. She had seen him use his odd teleporting technique before, but seeing it used in this manner, by producing clones of himself, actually impressed her.

And just like when she had watched him when he fought against the Adjuchas, she couldn’t sense his spiritual pressure when he was moving from one spot to another. It felt like that, for that brief instant that he was transporting, he no longer existed; not even her pesquisa could pick him up.

Even though she had only seen his abilities three times now, she could ascertain that his teleporting ability was limited to only where his flames were; making this one of the technique’s weak points.

But even though she could see the places where he could appear from, she was still unable to determine exactly which flame he would appear at. Add in his cloning technique, and it could very easily confuse most opponents.

Speaking of his clones, she also noticed that none of them were giving off any spiritual pressure; unlike Zommari’s sonído clones that gave off a bit of spiritual pressure from each one while active.

She continued to watch Timothy as he teleported a few more times, using a random kidō each time he appeared before vanishing immediately afterwards. But it surprised her when he didn’t reappear this time.

His clones were still in their respective spots, but Timothy himself was gone. She again tried to reach out and detect his spiritual pressure, but was again unsuccessful. She rose a brow as she started looking around for where he might be.

“Ain’t it a little impolite to snoop on others?” a familiar voice spoke from behind her.

“Eep!” she yelled as she jumped a few feet in the air from shock.

She landed on her feet and quickly turned around to see Timothy now standing behind her with his zanpakutō at his side tapping his right leg with the blunt side. She placed a hand on her chest as her breathing and heartrate steadily came back down.

She then noticed that one of his flames were now right behind where she was just standing only seconds ago.

_‘When the hell…?!’_

Nel looked back at him to see that he had a slight grin of amusement on his face. Her cheeks turned red from embarrassment as she narrowed her gaze at him in anger.

“You idiot! Don’t sneak up on me like that! And how the hell did you get one of your stupid flames so close to me without me noticing it?!” she demanded.

Timothy lightly snorted from trying not to laugh at her. “It’s all about the timing. It takes a second for my flames to fully light up. During that time, and for a split second afterwards, they don’t emit any spiritual pressure; not like they release that much anyway. I used that brief instant from the time that it became fully lit, to the time before it started giving off spiritual pressure to teleport. Pretty handy when I want to surprise an enemy who is focused on something else; like you were, no offense.” He educated.

She took a deep breath to calm down with a loud exhale as she dropped her hand to her hip with a fist. “If that’s the case, where were you for the few seconds before that? You were gone for nearly ten seconds before you surprised me.” She inquired further.

He pointed behind her towards his still present clones, mimicking his movements. “I’ll tell ya a little secret, Nel; those aren’t really clones. Those ‘are’ me. But I move so fast that it leaves after-images of me behind.” He said, then dropped his hand and causing the clones to do the same before they disappeared, along with the flames. “My teleporting, or whatever you wanna call it, is much faster than shunpo; so fast in fact, I don’t think anyone can keep up with me while I’m moving from one spot to another. That’s how I spawn my clones, by moving from one flame to another in very rapid succession. If you had paid close attention to the exact moment when I used a kidō, you would’ve noticed my clones vanish for just an instant while I was casting it.”

He paused to sheath his zanpakutō and sit down on the boulder next to them with a relaxed breath. “That’s the downfall of my cloning technique. While using it, my movement is restricted. I can move my body, but I can’t move from that spot. Doing so would disrupt the synchronization and cause the clones to vanish. I also can’t attack while using the clones. Again, it’s all about the timing; Moeru Kitsune is heavily reliant on my timing. One misstep, and the technique will fail.”

She dropped her hip hand and sat down next to him, looking at him with a curious stare. “That still doesn’t answer my question about why I couldn’t sense you before you appeared behind me.” She informed.

“Actually, it does. Like I said, my flames take a split second after appearing before they can be sensed; when I teleport, my body acts in the same manner. For a brief instant after I appear at a location, I’m undetectable. It’s only for an instant, barely even noticeable; but because I’m transitioning between the flames so fast, you can’t detect me because I’m not in one spot long enough for you to detect me.” He clarified.

Nel crossed her arms and raised her head to think about it, but nodded a few seconds later in understanding. “I think I’ve got it. So, you said your zanpakutō’s abilities are based on timing?”

The young Lieutenant nodded. “Yeah. So, let me ask you something.”

She turned back to look at him with a raised brow. “Yes?”

“That double cero ability of yours…”

“Cero Doble.” She interrupted for clarification.

He nodded again. “Cero Doble, sorry bout that. Anyway, this ability of yours, does it only work on ceros, or can you use other energy attacks, like kidō?” he asked.

The former Espada shook her head slowly. “No, it only works on an incoming cero. However, I can hold onto the absorbed cero for a short time, that way I can send it back with my own at a later time. I can also absorb more than a single cero, provided that the combined energy is not too much, and send everything out at once. But doing so is risky, as holding on to too much for too long can cause me to lose control of the energy and cause me harm.”

Timothy leaned back to recline against the boulder and folded his hands over his stomach. “Is that your only ability?” he inquired.

She reclined as well will a sigh. “No, I also have a special sonído that is quite fast. It’s called Super Acceleration. While Zommari’s sonído is fast enough for him to make sonído clones, mine is by far much faster. The only downside is that I can’t change direction; I can only go in the direction I was facing when I used it. Also, I can only take a single step, meaning that I can’t go far by using it. Another ability I have is that I can use my saliva to heal minor injuries.”

Timothy turned to her with a puzzled look. “Are you telling me that you can heal people with your spit?” he asked in a deadpanned manner.

Nel lightly chuckled at his face and tone. “Yes, I guess you could put it that way. But like I said, it can only heal minor injuries, or to help stop bleeding in an emergency. Think of it like medical care while fighting. In fact, it’s thanks to this ability that I’m even alive right now.” She finished in a low tone.

The Lieutenant’s look turned a bit sorrowful. “You were hurt that bad, huh?”

She sighed heavily. “Yes, I’m actually amazed I didn’t die while still in the garganta. I managed to stop most of the bleeding, but the wound was too severe to stop all of it. That attack from Nnoitra should have killed me on the spot to be honest.” She admitted.

Taking a deep breath, Timothy decided to take a chance at a sore question. “Mind if I ask what happened over there to cause you to leave?”

Nel flinched at the question, then leaned forward and stood up, taking a few steps away before stopping. Silence stood between the two warriors for a moment before Nel took a deep breath.

“Aizen…tricked me.” She said in a low voice; so low that Timothy barely caught her words.

“Why does that not surprise me?” he asked to the air.

He let out a heavy sigh and looked back to Nel to see her fists clenched and shaking with her shoulders. He slightly narrowed his gaze at her as she turned her head to face him. His eyes widened a bit when he saw a tear run down her cheek and rage in her eyes.

“He made me kill my friends.” She said in a deep hiss of anger.

“…What?” Timothy asked in stupor.

She turned to fully face him. “He tricked me into thinking that ‘he’ killed my friends! I attacked him and Nnoitra in rage, killing the both of them! But…” she choked up and dropped her head, unable to finish.

“It was all an illusion, right? Captain Komamura once told me about how his zanpakutō works. He fooled you into thinking that it was him you were attacking, but it turned out to be your friends?” he asked in shame.

She gritted her teeth, but nodded. “I…I killed them…they died…by ‘my’ hands.” She stated in a breaking voice.

More tears ran down her face as memories of the event came rushing back into her head. Her two closest friends had been killed because of her blind rage. The memories continued to torture her, until a set of hands rested on her shoulders and broke her from her thoughts.

She raised her head to see Timothy standing in front of her, resting his hands on her shoulders and giving her a stern look.

“That…was ‘not’ your fault. He tricked you, made you believe that he had killed your friends, forcing you to attack him; to attack your friends. It is not your fault, it is ‘his’. Not yours, ‘his’! It was nothing more than one of his sick games that he’s been playing with you. If you want to get back at him, I’m all for that, as I owe him a piece of my mind as well; but don’t let him beat you by blaming yourself for what ‘he’ did.” He said in a growl.

She flinched, then dropped her head again. Giving a heavy sigh, Timothy released her shoulders and crossed his arms.

“Did Kisuke give you some of that soul pill stuff?” he inquired, getting a nod back. “Good. Get out of that body and start tearing that boulder apart with some Ceros.” He demanded as he pointed at a very large boulder in the distance.

She looked at him with a tearful and confused look. “What?”

He shook his head at her. “Dummy, I said to get out of your body and start tearing that boulder apart with your Ceros. Quit screwing around and just do it.” He demanded again.

With a defeated sigh, she did as instructed, pulling out a soul pill dispenser and swallowing one of the mod soul pills. Her Arrancar body was ejected from the gigai, where the supplemented soul then jogged away to sit on a faraway boulder to watch.

Facing the large boulder that Timothy had pointed out earlier, she raised her hand and charged a violet colored cero in her palm. Her thoughts drifted once again to her two fallen friends, causing her anger to flare up, along with her spiritual pressure and energy.

Timothy backed up a few steps and held a hand close to his eyes as the force from her spiritual pressure started to cause the air around them to swirl and pick up dust from the ground. He watched as she clenched her teeth and narrowed her gaze at her target, her Cero steadily increasing in strength until the mass of energy was slightly bigger than her hand.

“Cero.” She said in a hissing tone.

The violet mass of energy shot forth from her hand and sailed towards the boulder; pushing the air around it away as it flew. The Cero impacted the stone target and exploded in a massive burst of power; kicking up dust and throwing chunks of the target in multiple directions.

Timothy and Nel were pelted with small, random pieces of the boulder, but neither moved from there spots. The dust cleared enough for them to see that the boulder was, for the most part, still there. Albeit, it was now rather quite damaged.

“Cero.” Nel said, quickly charging and shooting another one of her hollow attacks at the same target.

The attack again struck the target, sending even more dust and chucks of debris into the air.

“Cero!” she called again, sending yet another mass of energy at the boulder.

Before the previous attack even made it to the target, she swiftly charged and sent another Cero out at the rocky surface. Over and over, she sent Cero after Cero at the boulder, neither of them even caring that the large boulder more than likely no longer even existed.

After about her eighth, or ninth cero, she swiftly turned and started attacking a different large boulder to their right.

For the next three minutes, she continuously sent an endless series of Ceros out at random boulders. Timothy turned his head to see that her eyes, filled with anger and rage, were also flooded with tears that kept running down her cheeks.

A few seconds later, she finally stopped her constant barrage with her left hand clenched in a tight fist and her right hand still extended from just firing one of her attacks. She was panting heavily from exhaustion; her exhales being a deep and throaty growl.

She continued her heavy breathing for a few moments, then dropped her right hand in a tight fist. Her arms and shoulders shaking from anger, she took a deep breath before lifting her head and yelling up into the air.

Running out of breath, she took a final deep one and yelled again as she thrusted her right hand out; quickly charging a powerful Cero, slightly larger than her first one, and sent it out towards a mountain sized rock formation far out into the distance.

The force from the mass of energy, from the time she charged it, to the time it left her hand, threatened to push Timothy away. He could actually see the air around the Cero get pushed away as it flew through the air towards its unfortunate, rocky victim.

The Cero collided with the small mountain in silence, due to the distance it was from the two of them. The sound of the collision, along with the shockwave from it, came to them only a split second later.

Timothy held his arm up to shield his eyes as dust and debris sailed past the two of them; Nel simply lowered her head to the barrage. After a few seconds of being nearly forced back, the shockwave passed them, and the dust began to settle.

The Lieutenant turned to the mountain that fell prey to her onslaught to see that a decent sized chunk of it was broken away. His eyes slightly widened at the sight, not believing the sheer amount of power that her attack had. If he had to guess, it looked to be more powerful than a Raikōhō.

He dropped his arm and turned to Nel to see her drop to her knees and clutch her head in her hands tightly, starting to sob. He let out a heavy sigh, then began walking over to her, stopping and crouching down next to her. He rested a hand on her shoulder and started squeezing and releasing it gently to try and sooth her.

Pushing her legs out a bit, she leaned back to where she was now sitting down fully and pulled her hands back further along the sides of her head as she dropped it down to grip her hair at the back of it.

Her sobbing continued as Timothy released her shoulder to place his hand onto her back and start rubbing it in large circles.

**_“Tim, let me out for a minute.”_** Kitsune said in a low tone.

Taking a deep breath as he closed his eyes, he then nodded and relaxed his mind. His zanpakutō started glowing, where a stream of flames poured out to collect together a few feet to his right. After a few seconds, Kitsune was now standing next to him.

She walked up to him and Nel, stopping in front of her and using her hand to raise the Arrancar’s head to face her. Nel lightly gasped as her eyes widened when she saw the spiritual, anthropomorphic fox standing in front of her with a hint of a small smile.

“Hey, cheer up Nel.” Kitsune said in a calm and kind tone.

“Who…are you?” Nel asked in surprise.

The spirit chuckled and released her face. “I’m Tim’s zanpakutō spirit, Moeru Kitsune; but you can just call me Kit.” She greeted.

Nel’s eyes widened even more when reality dawned on her. “You’re…you’re the spirit of his wife?!” she said in shock.

Kit held up a finger to her. “Former’ wife. My old life is gone now, has been since this happened to me. Now, I’m simply the spirit of his zanpakutō.” The spirit clarified.

“But…aren’t you the same person?” Nel inquired.

Kitsune gave a heavy sigh. “I may still have my memories from my previous life, but I’m not the same person. It was hard to accept at first, not being Susan Durn anymore, but I eventually accepted it; we both have. If anything, it was much harder on Tim than it was me.” She informed, causing Timothy to turn away from her in sorrow.

Nel noticed this, and turned to him. “I’m…so sorry Tim.” she said in a breaking voice.

Timothy gave a heavy sigh and waved her off. “It’s fine, Nel. We both have our own troubled pasts. There’s nothing we can do to change them, so all we can do is accept them.” He stated, then turned to her. “Your friend’s deaths were not your fault. As I said, they died because of that madman’s antics. You can’t change what happened to them, just like I can’t change what happened to Kit here. I’ve chosen to accept what happened and live with it. Do you think your friends would want you to sit here and blame yourself for what happened?”

After hesitantly shaking her head, he continued. “Thought not. So, you need to accept what happened, that their deaths were not your fault, and go on with your life. Kit here might not be my wife anymore, but we’ve both chosen to accept it and move on. It may hurt inside, but it’s what you’re gonna have to do.”

Kit nodded in agreeance. “Yeah, you don’t have to forget them, but you don’t need to tear yourself apart about what happened. Don’t think about what your life ‘could have been’, but instead, think about what it ‘can be’.” She added.

Dropping her head a moment to wipe away the tears from her eyes, Nel then raised her head back to face Timothy with a light smile.

“Thank you…both of you.” She finished, now looking at the spirit.

Kitsune smiled more and nodded. “Sure. And it’s nice to finally meet you face to face.”

Nel sniffed, then nodded back. “Nice to meet you as well.” She returned.

The spirit then stood up and sighed. “Well, I’m heading out. Keep an eye on him for me, please.” She said as she gestured to Timothy with her thumb. “He has a tendency to start trouble sometimes.” She added with a grin.

Timothy quickly turned to her with a growl. “I do not! Quit spreading your damn lies, you stupid, seductive vixen!” he hissed.

She glanced at him with a skeptical face. “It’s not a lie, you really ‘do’ have a tendency to get into trouble. Remember that guy, Zaraki?”

He then stood up and glared at her. “He’ started that! He came to me ‘looking’ for a fight!” he yelled.

She closed her eyes and scratched her cheek. “Ok, I’ll give you that one; that brute really did have it out for you. But still, trouble does somehow keep finding you.” She pointed out.

“But I’m ‘not’ the one who starts it.” He stated.

Kit simply waved him off. “Yeah yeah, whatever you say, Mr. big guy.”

Timothy growled at her with clenched fists. “I ‘really’ wanna smack you right now.” He hissed.

She rose a brow at him and grinned. “Oh, I’m sure you do.” She said as she flashed her brows in a suggestive manner.

The young Lieutenant slapped a hand to his face with a moan. “Damn seductive, hormonal demon. I’m really starting to feel bad for ‘Johnny’ for having to be stuck with you in my inner world.” He said, his voice muffled by his hand.

Kit chuckled and patted his shoulder. “There there, Tim. It’ll be ok. At least you have someone inside to keep me busy most of the time.”

He lowered his hand a bit to look at her. “Why do I not feel any better?” he inquired to no one in particular.

She chuckled at him one last time before dissipating and returning to his inner world, leaving the Lieutenant and Arrancar alone. Running his hand down his face with a moan, he finally returned his gaze to a still sitting Nel.

“Well, I’m getting a bit hungry. Ready to head upstairs for breakfast?” he asked as he held a hand out to her.

Nel smiled and nodded as she accepted the hand and let him help her to her feet. “Yes, I’m a bit hungry myself.” She admitted.

After returning to her faux body, the two of them walked back to the ladder that led back up to the shop. Timothy grabbed the ladder and was about to start climbing, when Nel spoke up.

“Tim…”

He stopped and turned back to her to see her head lowered. “Yeah?”

She raised her head back to him with tearful eyes and a smile. “Thank you.”

He smiled back and nodded. “Not a problem, happy to help.” He replied, then continued climbing.

Nel watched as he climbed up the ladder, then followed suit when there was a little distance between them.

_‘He truly does care about me…even though I was once his enemy. I never thought a soul reaper could be so caring, and not like the heartless warriors that I always thought them to be. After everything he’s been through, he still cares about others. I really do admire him.’_

The pair continued their ascension back to the shop while a grateful smile remained on Nel’s face.

** Squad 7 Headquarters, Seireitei, 2 Hours Later **

Minato ran his finger across and down the form he was looking at, ensuring that the information entered was correct before being turned in to the Captain. It was one of the morning forms from the stack he had retrieved from Squad 1 earlier that morning.

Once he confirmed everything was correct, he signed his name towards the bottom and set it aside. As he grabbed the next form, the sound of footsteps drew his attention towards the door to the office he was in.

“Morning, Hinata.” He greeted as she walked up to the table.

“Morning.” She replied and joined him sitting down at the table. “This the morning paperwork?” she inquired with a sigh.

“Yes. Thankfully, it’s not that much today. Should be done in about an hour and a half between the two of us.” He answered, then returned to his form.

She let out a deep breath and grabbed one of the forms as well. “That’s good.”

He noted her low tone and glanced at her. “Something wrong?” he asked in a bit of worry.

She stopped working on the form and sighed heavily. “For the most part.” She half answered.

Minato put his pen down and leaned back into the chair. “Thinking about Tim?” he inquired.

The woman closed her eyes and nodded. “Among a few other things, yeah.”

The officer crossed his arms over his chest. “Wanna talk about it?”

Hinata dropped her hands to her lap and interlaced her fingers with a heavy sigh. “The Captain offered me the 7th seat position.”

His eyes widened in surprise. “Really?! Congratulations!” he said happily.

She closed her eyes and shook her head. “I turned him down.”

Now he was confused. “Why? I think you’d be good as our 7th seat. Sure, you still need some practice with some things, but for the most part you know what you’re doing.”

The young woman leaned forward and rested her elbows on the table while resting her head in her hands. “I’m just not ready for it yet. After what happened with those hollows, and losing one of my friends and another member, I’m don’t feel like I’m ready to take on that responsibility yet. I want to get some more training first before I take on that responsibility.” She admitted.

Minato let out a breath and nodded. “Yeah, I see what you mean. How did the Captain take it?”

She lifted her head and crossed her arms on the table. “At first, I thought he was gonna force it on me, like he did with Tim. I was…a little bit relieved when he simply accepted it. Actually, he seemed a bit impressed when I told him why I didn’t want to be an officer yet. He said that he was impressed that I was willing to realize that I wasn’t ready for the position.”

He nodded in agreeance. “He would be. A lot of other people would have likely taken the offer because they would be a seated officer. But you, you understood that you might not have been ready and declined the offer. I’m sure that he’s actually proud of you, and so would Tim for that matter.”

At the mention of his name, Hinata looked at the officer. “I wonder when he’s coming back.” She stated with concern.

Minato dropped his arms and got back to the form in front of him. “Not for a while, more than likely. Tim’s been reassigned to Captain Hitsugaya’s team in the world of the living. Could be a few days, could be a few months.”

She widened her eyes a bit. “Tim’s been assigned to Captain Hitsugaya’s team? Why?” she inquired.

The officer signed his form and set it aside. “Because he’s already there, I guess the Head Captain thought it would be best to simply keep him there as a part of the team. Last I heard, his team leaves in a few hours.” He said as he grabbed the next form.

“Do you know who else is on the team?”

Minato lifted his head to think. “Lieutenants Matsumoto and Abarai, and the 3rd and 5th seats of Squad 11 I believe. Why do you ask?” he inquired glancing at her.

“Do you think…you could ask Lieutenant Matsumoto if she could give Tim a message? I feel that…he should know about…about Junya. I’ll write it up for her.” She said with a sorrowful tone.

The officer matched her look, but nodded. “Yeah, I’ll ask her if she can deliver your message.”

She nodded at him and bowed her head. “Thank you, sir.”

He waved her off. “It’s fine, Hinata. He should know what happened, and a message from you would likely be the best way to let him know. Just do me a favor…” He paused for a second, getting her to look back at him. “…Don’t blame yourself for what happened. Considering your opponent, you were lucky that the team didn’t end up with more than two deaths. These things happen Hinata, and what did happen wasn’t your fault.” He assured.

Hinata nodded and sighed. “I know…but it still doesn’t make me feel any better. I’m far more worried about Yuka. Junya was her brother, and it took almost an hour to calm her down when I told her. The Captain gave her some time off to recover, and I’ve been helping her as well. She’s recovering, but…it’s a slow process.” She finished with her head down.

“I’m sure. The loss of a loved one is always the hardest. Just give her time and keep on helping her as much as possible; she’ll eventually get better. Here…” he paused again and grabbed the complete stack of forms. “Can you run this to the Captain’s office?” he asked.

“Sure.” She answered as she stood up, grabbing the stack from the officer and turning to leave.

“Also, I’m gonna have some things to take care of this afternoon, so I’ll be leaving the afternoon training to you.” He added.

She glanced over her shoulder and nodded. “Yes sir.” she replied, then turned back and left the office.

Minato returned to the form he was working on, but then sighed and set his pen down. Bringing his hands up to his face, he massaged the front and sides of his face as he exhaled deeply. Dropping his hands back down to his lap and tilting his head back to the ceiling with another sigh, he took a few deep breaths to calm his mind.

“I wonder how Tim’s gonna take the news of his friend’s death…if Hetoku’s death was anything to go by…” he mumbled to himself.

Taking a last, deep breath, he dropped his head back down and returned to his work.

** Urahara Shop Underground Training Area, World of the Living, Present **

With a loud screech, a medium sized wave of deep red energy sailed through the air, its intended target vanishing a brief instant before it made contact. The energy wave continued on its course until it collided with a large boulder.

Timothy reappeared far to the attacker’s left, the palm of his off-hand raised and pointing at the man. Small orbs of orange energy began charging at the end of each finger.

“Hado #45, Amegafuru!” the Lieutenant yelled.

The five masses of energy shot forth from his fingers towards his target at different angles. His opponent got ready to move away, but was just a bit too late. The orbs of energy landed on the ground all around the target, each one exploding in a large burst of fire and consuming the target.

Timothy lowered his hand and remained in a ready stance, waiting for the kidō to dissipate. One thing he learned ‘really quickly’ was that this opponent was not someone to take lightly.

His eyes suddenly widened, and he immediately transitioned over to a flame over at his front right. He reappeared, but quickly grabbed the forearm of his main arm, hissing in pain. His opponent had surprised him, yet again.

“I told you not to take me lightly, Tim.” his opponent stated.

Timothy looked down at his arm to see that it was bleeding; not profusely or life threatening, but not really a scratch either.

_‘Damn…If I was just a fraction of a second later, he would have easily rendered my arm useless.’_ He mentally observed, then turned back to the man to see his opponent standing where he was just seconds ago.

“I wasn’t taking you lightly, Kisuke; I just never expected you to be so damn fast.” Timothy returned.

After breakfast, Timothy had asked Urahara if he wouldn’t mind sparring with him for a while. The man gladly accepted, first starting out with simple swordsmanship skills, then elevating to kidō, then to releasing their zanpakutōs. So far, they were only five minutes into the fight after release.

The shop owner smiled and placed a hand on top of his striped hat, tilting it down just enough to conceal his eyes.

“Now now Tim, nothing’s changed since we started; I’m just as fast now as I was when we began.” He lifted his head enough to look at the younger man. “You simply need to be more aware of your surroundings.” The man stated in a joyous tone.

“Tsk…alright, you wanna play that way Kisuke, fine by me.” Timothy returned.

Using Kitsune’s abilities, he then spawned five clones surrounding the shop owner. Kisuke glanced briefly at each one, determining where each one was. When he returned to where Timothy was, he saw that he was now gone.

Kisuke rose a brow in surprise as he looked back at each clone. He couldn’t detect Timothy’s spiritual pressure. For the past hour while they were sparring, he could always detect the younger man’s pressure; but now he was sensing nothing.

Then it clicked in his head and he smiled with a hum. “Oh, I see now…” he started, then looked at a clone in front of him. “…You’re moving from one place to another so quickly, so that you’re not in one place long enough for your spiritual pressure to be detected. Am I right?”

All of the clones rose a brow with widened eyes at the same time. “How the fuck did you pick that up so fast?! This is the first time your seen this!” the voice of Timothy said from each clone.

Kisuke held the hand from his hat in front of him with his index finger extended and pointing up; grinning madly.

“Simple: I noticed from the moment that you first used your zanpakutō’s ability to move from one place to another, that for a very brief moment, your spiritual pressure can’t be detected. I will grant you that it is something that is very easy to miss; most opponents would never catch it. But ‘I’ did. I’ll admit that at first, I really didn’t think much of it; but when you created your clones, I put it all together.” He then dropped his hand and grinned more.

“Let me guess, you were hoping to keep yourself undetectable; let the lull of battle weigh on my mind and make me panic?” he inquired.

Timothy stopped his rapid movement, appearing in front of him and causing his clones to disperse.

“You scare me.” He said with a raised brow.

Kisuke’s hand returned to his hat as he chuckled. “My dear friend, you should know not to try and play with the mind of a scientist. Your method of attacking the mind is actually quite impressive, something that most would not expect. But when it comes to someone like me, who has spent centuries working his mind over numerous, tedious projects and experiments, a test of the mind is child’s play. So then…”

He dropped his hand back down to grab the hilt of his zanpakutō in a two-handed grip. “…Shall we continue?”

Timothy returned to his fighting stance, recreating his clones before vanishing. Kisuke watched with knowing eyes and waited for the Lieutenant to make his move. But he didn’t have to wait long.

The younger man did the same as he did with Nelliel earlier that morning, spawning a flame right behind the scientist and appearing a split second before it could be detected. He had his zanpakutō held low and to the side for an uppercut to the man’s back.

Kisuke, being the man that he was, expected this, and quickly turned to block the attack. The two blades collided, surprising Timothy. But what surprised him the most was that Kisuke was holding the index and middle finger of his offhand pointing directly at Timothy’s chest.

“Bakudō #61, Sajō Sabaku.” He chanted with a wide and pleased grin.

Timothy’s eyes widened in shock as he realized that the shop owner was fully prepared for his attack. The yellow mass of energy collected and immediately shot out of the man’s finger tips, reforming into a yellowish chain of energy that began wrapping around Timothy’s torso.

Kisuke smiled more when he saw that he had the young Lieutenant, but rose a brow when Timothy simply grinned back at him.

“Got ya.”

A barely visible field surrounding Timothy’s body suddenly shattered, taking the shop owner’s kidō along with it. Kisuke’s eyes looked down and widened when he saw the palm off the young man’s offhand held right up and only inches from his sternum.

“Hadō #33, Sōkatsui.” Timothy said with a toothy grin.

A blue mass of electrical energy erupted from the man’s hand. With nowhere near enough time for Kisuke to react, the kidō struck the shop owner in the chest, sending him back several feet to land on the ground.

Timothy used one of his clones to end up near where Urahara had landed, his clothes slightly charred and a few singe marks on his arms from being so close to the point of impact from the kidō and only just making it out in time to avoid serious damage from the explosion.

The Lieutenant got into a two-handed ready stance to wait for his opponent to get back up, who remained lying on the ground.

He knew once the shop owner told him that he knew about his ability to hide his spiritual pressure, that he would use that ability to try and catch the man off guard. That was why he appeared behind him, knowing that the scientist would likely expect it.

Considering how close he would have been to the man to surprise him, he figured that the man would block his attack, then use a kidō while he was ‘shocked’ from his quick reflexes. He then used his thin, protective barrier to shield him from that kidō and send another one back in the man’s own shock.

“Scream Benihime.” A familiar voice spoke from behind, followed by an all too familiar screeching sound.

Timothy gasped as he glanced over his shoulder to see the red wave of spirit energy sailing right at his exposed back.

_‘What?!’_

The wave crashed into the man’s back before he had time to turn or use his teleporting ability. His body was thrown from the ground and sent flying through the air to collide with a boulder in the distance.

He crashed into the rock with his back and facing upside down, creating a body-sized crater on the side of the rock formation. With a low moan, his body slid out of the crater and down the side of the boulder until it landed on the ground with a dull thud.

Kisuke shunpoed to be right in front of the now prone body of the Lieutenant, pointing his zanpakutō at him while resting his offhand on the top of his hat with a serious face.

“How many times must I tell you ‘not’ to take me lightly?” Kisuke asked in a deathly tone.

Timothy slowly raised his aching, blood covered head to look at the man. “H…how…did you…” he tried to ask, his voice strained and scratchy. The flames around them suddenly faded away and his zanpakutō returned to its sealed state.

**_“Sorry Tim, but you’re done for now.”_** Kitsune stated in reluctance.

Kisuke rose a brow at him. “How did I attack you from behind when I was ‘clearly’ down on the ground in front of you from your kidō? Why don’t you look again?” he said.

The Lieutenant turned his head to see the man’s body still lying on the ground where it was at before. After looking at it for a moment, the realization then dawned on him.

“A…gigai…?”

“In case you’re wondering: yes, I switched myself out with a gigai at the last second. If you had taken the split second to reach out with your senses, you would have been able to determine that that body was a fake, and that I was already behind you to attack. You let your guard down when you thought that you had defeated me. If this had been a true battle, you would be dead right now.” He paused to let it sink in as Timothy returned his gaze to him.

Urahara’s face then slowly morphed into a small grin. “You covered your body with a barrier so thin that it couldn’t be seen or detected. By appearing right behind me, you expected me to immediately counter you and try to bind you with a kidō. You then dropped that barrier right as I sent the kidō, disrupting it; then you sent your own kidō right back at me when I was caught off guard. I’ll admit that I’m impressed with your tactic; you actually managed to catch me off guard for a moment there. To be honest, I’ve actually never seen a barrier used in that manner before. Quite innovative I must say.” He finished.

Timothy grunted in pain as he slowly tried to get back up to his feet, using his zanpakutō as a brace. When he finally made it to a crouching position, he looked down to see that he was in a really rough shape, telling him that the shop owner hadn’t held back in his last attack.

Pulling his fan out from under his top, Kisuke opened it and started lightly fanning himself with a small smile as he let Benihime return to her sealed state as well. He watched the Lieutenant as the man got up to a slouched standing position.

“You zanpakutō’s ability is quite unique, Tim; but, you rely too heavily on it and not your own skills. A good warrior uses the perfect balance between his zanpakutō’s abilities, ‘and’ his own.” He gave a brief pause before continuing.

“According to Yoruichi, the word in the soul society is that you managed to defeat Captain Komamura in a duel, and you also managed to hold your own against Captain Zaraki. Although that is quite impressive, it is also due to your zanpakutō’s unique abilities that are difficult to fight against, rather than your own skills. There is still plenty of room for improvement, Tim; with both your basic skills in swordsmanship, as well as using your zanpakutō’s abilities.”

He was stopped when Tessai walked up and nodded at the shop owner. “Excuse me boss, but it would seem that the team from the soul society has just arrived here in the world of the living and are on their way here.” He informed.

Kisuke turned to him and nodded back. “Thank you Tessai, we’ll be right there.” He returned. The man nodded again and left the two alone. Kisuke looked back at Timothy. “We’ll conduct more training at a later time, Tim. For now, let’s head back upstairs and greet our guests. I’ll have Tessai heal you up while we talk with them.”

Timothy stood up straight and returned his zanpakutō back to its sheath. “Alright. Thanks for the ‘lessons’, Kisuke.” He answered with a light bow of the head.

Urahara simply waved him off with his fan. “No need to thank me, Tim. Always happy to help.” He said, then returned his fan to cover his mouth. “By the way, don’t forget that miss Nel is a new assistant of mine for the shop; just in case anyone asks. I’ve already reminded her, so as long as neither of you two say anything, they shouldn’t suspect anything.” He warned.

The Lieutenant nodded, then held a hand out to the side; gesturing towards the ladder to the shop. “Shall we?” he insisted.

Kisuke closed his fan and nodded back. “After you.”


	18. A New Team

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 18

**(A New Team)**

** Karakura Town, World of the Living, Present **

Captain Hitsugaya, along with his Lieutenant, Rangiku Matsumoto, Lieutenant Renji Abarai, Squad 11’s 3rd seat Ikkaku Madarame, and 5th seat Yumichika Ayasegawa, walked down a secluded side street; guided by the short, raven haired woman, Rukia Kuchiki.

The white-haired Captain turned to her with an annoyed face. “Kuchiki, you’re positive that you know where this place is?” he inquired.

Rukia turned her head to look at the man. “Of course, Captain. It should be just ahead. You don’t trust me, sir?”

He turned away with a light scoff. “I didn’t say that. I just didn’t expect someone like him to live in a secluded area such as this.” He admitted.

3rd seat Ikkaku Madarame looked at the woman with a slightly puzzled face. “I actually agree with the Captain, Rukia. Kisuke Urahara is not a simple man. You should know this, seeing has how you’ve dealt with the man before.”

5th seat Yumichika Ayasegawa glanced at his higher-ranking friend. “Yes, but don’t forget about what we were told about him. Urahara is an outcast of the soul society, so it would make sense for him to keep a low profile.” He pointed out.

Renji scratched his cheek as he glanced to the sky. “True, but what I would like to know is why the Head Captain’s having us get our gigais from him and not Squad 12.” He said, then tucked his arms into his sleeves.

Rangiku touched a finger to her chin. “I wonder what this other guy is like. You know, that new Lieutenant for Squad 7? What do you think, Captain?” she asked as she looked at the man.

Hitsugaya shrugged his shoulders. “I’m not sure myself. All I know about the man is what Captain Komamura told me after the man’s fight with Captain Zaraki.”

Ikkaku chuckled as he turned to the Captain. “The Captain told me he was a good fighter; he actually said that he was impressed with him. I can’t wait to meet him.”

Renji gave him a deadpanned look. “Tetsuzaemon told me the guy’s got a bit of an attitude problem sometimes. But then he also said that the guy don’t, and I quote, ‘tolerate nonsense or time waisted’. Said the best way to deal with him is to just get to the point from the start.” He said, then turned to Rukia. “Reminds me of you, Rukia.” he teased with a grin.

The small woman turned to him in anger. “What the hell is that supposed to mean, Renji?!”

“Exactly how he/I said it.” Renji, Ikkaku, and Yumichika said in unison with deadpanned looks on their faces.

Rukia held a fist up to her face and bared her teeth. “Why I outta…” she started.

“That’s enough! From all of you! We have work to do and don’t have time for you all to bicker amongst each other!” Toshiro interrupted, shutting them up.

“Yes sir.” they all droned out.

The group continued on in silence with Rukia giving Renji an evil glare. ‘This isn’t over!’ she mouthed to him, causing him to shiver.

Ikkaku leaned over to his ear. “You’re dead now, my friend.” He said with a slight chuckle.

“Shut up!” Renji growled back, then stepped forward a bit to get away from him.

The group came to a small, open lot and stopped to look at the wooden, old style building with various looks. Hitsugaya rose a brow, Rangiku couldn’t care less, Renji and Ikkaku gave confused looks at each other, then back to the shop, Yumichika gave a distasteful shrug of the face, and Rukia rolled her eyes, clearly not happy with having to deal with Urahara again.

“Quite hideous. The man clearly has no taste in outward appearance.” Yumichika said as he turned away from the sight.

Renji side glanced him. “You find anything that’s not decorated by a woman to be hideous.” He mocked.

Rangiku turned back to the red-haired man with an insulted face. “And what’s that supposed to mean, Renji? Are you trying to insult women?” she inquired.

Seeing a chance to get back at him, Rukia turned to him with a look of fake insult. “Yeah Renji, just what are you saying?”

The man looked at the two women in confusion. “What the hell are you talking about? How in the hell could you take that as an insult? I’m merely stating that if something wasn’t decorated by a woman, Yumichika would think it’s ugly.” He clarified.

Rukia rose a brow, then looked at the 5th seat. “He does have a point.” She mumbled.

Yumichika furrowed his brows. “Why is this coming back at me? Renji is the one who made the comment about women and decorations. All I did was say that I found the building to be ugly, nothing more.” He defended.

A vein pulsed on the Captain’s forehead, then he turned to the two. “All of you shut up! We’re here on a mission, not to determine if a building is ugly or not!” he growled.

“Yes Captain.” They all said in unison.

Hitsugaya turned back to the building, then with a last look dropped his face. “Though it is a little shabby.” He mumbled.

Rangiku glanced down at her superior. “Did you say something, Captain?”

He side-glanced her with annoyed eyes. “No! I didn’t! Now shut up and let’s get a move on.” He instructed.

The group continued walking to see a man with a striped hat sitting on the porch and fanning himself. As the officers came to a stop a few feet from the building, the man looked up and smiled widely at them.

“Well, good morning my friends; and hello to you, miss Rukia! Have you come to buy some supplies from my shop this fine day?!” he asked in a joyous manner.

The vein from before pulsed once again on the Captain’s head, as well as Rukia’s. “Knock it off, Kisuke! I’m sure you can guess why we’re here!” she yelled at the man.

The man smiled even more with closed eyes. “Why, my dear Rukia, why would I, a simple candy store owner, know what a group of soul reapers could possibly want?” he said, playing dumb.

Now the man was really testing Hitsugaya’s patience. “I’m Captain Hitsugaya of Squad 10. We’ve been sent here by the Head Captain in response to a recent occurrence. We were told that you would help us. Also, would there be a Lieutenant Durn here?” he inquired.

Kisuke snapped his fan closed and stood up. “Yes, he is. Perhaps we should go inside then. I’ll have Tessai make us some tea.” He said as he gestured for the group to enter.

Toshiro nodded and led his group in through the front door of the shop, Kisuke following behind them; locking the door and flipping his sign to signal that his shop was closed for the day. The owner turned around and walked through the group, gesturing to the dining room table.

“Please, have a seat and I will go get Tim.” he said, then walked down the hallway towards the man’s room.

Hitsugaya and his group did as they were asked and sat down around the table, with Rangiku to his left, Renji to her left, and Rukia to the far left; and Ikkaku on his right with Yumichika on the 3rd seat’s right. Tessai then entered the room with a tray with several filled cups of tea.

Toshiro looked at the large man with a raised brow. “You were expecting us, weren’t you?” he inquired.

Tessai sat down next to Yumichika and nodded. “That we were. We figured after what happened that the soul society would send someone to investigate this matter.” The man then turned to the shorter woman. “And hello to you, miss Rukia. It is good to see you again.”

Rukia nodded, but the Captain’s brow twitched in high annoyance. “He knew we were coming and acted like he didn’t? I’m already starting to dislike him.” He stated.

The black-haired woman leaned forward a bit and glanced at him. “Join the club, Captain.” She said in a low tone.

“Now now Captain Hitsugaya, no need to be so serious all the time. Live a little. And Rukia, you wound me! How could you say such a thing after all the services I’ve provided for you?” Kisuke joked as he entered the room, with Timothy right behind him.

“Oh for god’s sakes, ‘please’ don’t put it like that, Kisuke! You make yourself sound even weirder than you already are.” Timothy moaned as he walked around Rukia.

Toshiro turned to the newcomer and raised a brow. “Would you by chance be Lieutenant Durn?” he asked.

Timothy nodded and sat down. “Yes sir, I’m Timothy Durn, the Lieutenant for Squad 7.” He replied, then gave a respectful bow of the head, that Toshiro returned.

“I’m Toshiro Hitsugaya, Captain of Squad 10. Captain Komamura has told me a little bit about you, Lieutenant; especially about your little…encounter with Captain Zaraki.” He finished with a slightly amused grin.

The man rolled his eyes with a scoff. “He started it, Captain. He’s the one who came to me, heavily ‘insistent’ on a fight.” He said, then waved the Captain off. “But it’s whatever. We fought, I lost, it’s over. Anyway, who are the others with you?” he asked, pointing towards Renji.

“These three are Lieutenants Renji Abarai and Rangiku Matsumoto, and this is Rukia Kuchiki…” he said as he gestured to the three on his left, then switched to the two on his right. “…and these two are Squad 11 3rd and 5th seats Ikkaku Madarame and Yumichika Ayasegawa.” He finished.

At the mention of Squad 11, Timothy glared at Ikkaku and Yumichika. “You two aren’t gonna try to fight me as well, are you?” he asked in a low tone.

Ikkaku glared back at him. “I will if you’re up for it. The Captain told me about your fight with him, he even told me that he was impressed. You should consider yourself honored, very few people manage to impress the Captain.”

Toshiro glanced at Ikkaku. “That’s enough, Madarame, we’re not here to fight each other; we’re here to fight the Arrancar. Now, Lieutenant Durn…” he paused to return to the man. “…since you fought against the Arrancar yesterday, could you tell us what you’ve learned?”

Timothy turned to the shorter man, thinking hard about how to reply. He knew that he needed to be careful on what he said, or he could very well accidentally give up his secret about Nel. Taking a deep breath, he began to explain.

“Well, for starters, there were three of them, Captain. I remember that their names were Ulquiorra, Grimmjow, and Yammy; Yammy being the one I fought against. Kisuke here fought Ulquiorra, and Ichigo took on Grimmjow. Yammy told me that he was the Diez Espada, which if I’m not mistaken means the tenth Espada. Ulquiorra was the Cuatro Espada, which I think means the fourth, and Grimmjow was the Sexta, I think meaning the sixth.” He informed.

“And would you say that these three were powerful?” Toshiro inquired.

“Ha!” Timothy broke out. “Captain, that word is a very serious understatement. No offense to Ichigo, but he got his ass handed to him on a golden plater, as did I. Kisuke was holding his own and likely could have won; but to be honest, if Yoruichi and Tessai didn’t jump in when they did, Ichigo and I would have both ended up in body bags. These guys are no fucking joke, Captain. I don’t mean to be disrespectful, but I doubt even you could handle one of these guys on your own. Neither Ichigo or me could lay so much as a scratch on our opponents.” He admitted reluctantly.

Renji turned to him in shock. “You have got to be kidding! You’re telling us that Captain Hitsugaya can’t take em?”

Kisuke chose now to jump in. “That’s exactly what he’s saying, Renji. Every word Tim here said is the truth. These were not your average Arrancar, these were Espada; Aizen’s elite.”

The Captain nodded. “I see…and could you tell us anything about any of their abilities?”

Timothy shook his head. “Not really. From what each of us saw, they only used basic sword skills and Ceros. I’m sure that you can see now just how powerful they are; considering that neither Ichigo or me could hurt them in their sealed states. I don’t want to even imagine what it would be like once they’ve released. But, I can tell you a bit about their personalities. Ulquiorra seems to be a…quiet person, I guess like a tactician. Yammy…well I guess you could say he’s a bit of a hothead; he seems to get angry ‘really’ easily. But…” He paused for a moment.

“Well…the bad news on him is that for some reason, the madder he gets, the stronger he gets.” He said as he scratched his head.

Ikkaku gave him a skeptical look. “He gets stronger by getting angry?” he asked.

Timothy nodded quickly. “Oh yeah, I learned that one the hard way. I tried to use the same tactic I used when I fought Captain Komamura, getting him to lose his temper and make him blind with rage. But when I did, his attacks ended up packing a lot more punch behind them. So, if you end up fighting him, try to kill him quickly before he has a chance to get mad. And for Grimmjow, he seemed to be…I guess you could say a calmer version of Captain Zaraki. Going by what Ichigo told me, he seems to enjoy fighting, but he’s calmer and more collected than Captain Zaraki is. You’d have to ask Ichigo if you want to know more about him.”

The Captain nodded, then turned to Kisuke. “Mister Urahara, if you don’t mind, we’d like to ask if you could make up some gigais for us. We’ll go and talk with Ichigo once you’re done.”

Kisuke grinned and nodded. “Of course. I’ll have them all ready this afternoon.” He answered.

Timothy held up a hand, getting Toshiro’s attention. “One last thing, Captain, and this is very important.”

Toshiro rose a brow. “Go ahead.”

The Lieutenant lowered his hand and took a deep breath as he put the words together the best way he could for what he was about to say.

“It seems that we have a very serious problem on our hands besides the Espada. When those three first arrived, Ulquiorra had some kind of device on him. He used it on me, and…I…I can’t really explain ‘how’ it happened, but when he used it, I couldn’t release my zanpakutō.” He lied.

Timothy knew that the information regarding what happened to Nel’s zanpakutō had to be told to the soul society; and short of risking Nel’s exposure, this was the best way he could get that information out without raising any questions regarding its validity.

The eyes of Toshiro and his group all widened at the same time. “What the hell do you mean?! The Espada prevented you from releasing your zanpakutō?!” Renji demanded, getting a heavy nod from Timothy.

“That’s impossible!” Toshiro followed.

Timothy glanced at him. “That’s what I thought, but he somehow did it nonetheless. As soon as he activated it, I assumed that he was going to attack, so I tried to release my zanpakutō. But, I couldn’t reach her, like she wasn’t even there.” He stated, using what Nel had told him about not being able to reach her zanpakutō spirit as a basis. “I’m thinking that may be why they were here in the first place. They must have known I was still here in the living world and decided to use me as a test subject or something.” He paused to hold up a finger.

“But the weird thing, is that as soon as we all split off to our own fights and I was away from him, I could release my zanpakutō again.” He added.

**_“Oh, good catch, Tim.”_** Kitsune complemented.

_“Thanks…truth is, I’ve got no idea what they could, and could not have seen from the soul society. Best to use actual events to help cover the story.”_ He mentally stated.

Toshiro held his chin in his hand. “This is very bad. If Aizen has found a way to keep us from releasing our zanpakutōs, it may be impossible to defeat him.”

Kisuke turned to the white-haired Captain. “I’ve been looking into this matter since they left to try and find a way to counter this new weapon of his, but so far I’ve had no luck.”

“The Head Captain needs to learn about this immediately.” The Captain stated.

Timothy turned to him. “I was going to head back to the soul society tomorrow since my three days would be up. I’ll give this report to my Captain and he’ll more than likely have me report this to the Head Captain personally.”

Toshiro turned to the Lieutenant. “You don’t need to worry about having to go back right now. The Head Captain has assigned you to this team as well, considering that you were already here. You and I will report this to the Head Captain once we’ve established communications with the soul society.” He paused to look back at his other team members. “Once Urahara has completed our gigais, we’ll pay a visit to Ichigo Kurosaki and hear his information on the matter regarding the Espada.”

Rangiku and Renji both nodded, then the woman suddenly remembered. “Oh, by the way Durn…”

Timothy held up a hand to stop her. “For the hundredth time, just call me Tim. I’m really starting to hate my own name now.” He moaned.

Rangiku smiled at him. “Oh, don’t be like that. Anyway, your 6th seat asked me to give you something.” She informed as she pulled out a small envelope out from her top and held it out to him.

The man reached out and grabbed it with a light scoff. “For me? Aw, and here I thought he didn’t love me no more.” He joked.

Her and Renji both chuckled while Ikkaku rolled his eyes. Timothy let out a deep breath as he tore the parcel open and unfolded the paper to see that it was a small letter from Hinata.

_Tim,_

_I’m hoping that you’re doing ok, considering the circumstances of having to leave while you stayed behind. Besides the Captain telling me that you are fine and that you were going to_

_stay in the world of the living a few more days, I was starting to worry._

_I know the Captain hasn’t said anything about what happened when the team returned to the soul society. I believe he was going to wait until you came back, but seeing that you’re part_

_of Captain Hitsugaya’s team now, Minato said you may be gone for much longer._

_I’ve thought long and hard about the best way to tell you this Tim, but the truth is, is that there isn’t a best way. Junya didn’t make it, Tim, along with the other member who died at the scene._

_Needless to say, Yuka is taking it very hard, and I’ve been trying to help her recover, but of course, it’s going to be a while._

_Regardless, I really felt that you should know what happened after we left, Tim. Knowing you, you’ll likely blame yourself for what happened, just like I did. But Minato keeps telling me that what happen was neither of our faults, ‘things just happen’ he said._

_Like I said, I don’t know when you’ll be back, Tim, but I hope you’re doing alright. And by the way, the two idiots (Kenta and Issei) said hi. So, I guess I should let you go for now. Hope to see you back here soon, Tim, and stay safe._

_Hinata_

As he came to the end of the letter, Timothy’s eyes shot back to the paragraph Hinata wrote about Junya. After reading it once more, he dropped his hands with the letter to his lap and lowered his head.

Kisuke side glanced at him and rose a brow. “Bad news?” he inquired.

Hitsugaya looked at Urahara, then followed the man’s gaze to Timothy; tilting his head a bit when he noticed the young Lieutenant was obviously trying to hold back tears in his eyes.

“Lieutenant?” he followed.

Closing his hands tightly and crushing the letter in his grip, Timothy suddenly stood up and took a deep breath. He then spoke without raising his head.

“Sorry, I just need to take care of something. Please, excuse me.” He said, then turned to Toshiro with a slight bow. “Captain.” He addressed.

The shorter man returned the gesture, then watched as the Lieutenant walked around the group and walked into the hallway. The group faintly heard the sound of a door opening, then closing a second later.

Toshiro turned to his Lieutenant with a raised brow. “What was that about, Rangiku? What was in that letter?”

She looked at him and shrugged her shoulders. “I don’t know, Captain. 6th seat Minato of Squad 7 gave it to me before we arrived at the senkaimon and asked me to give it to him when we got here.” She admitted.

Kisuke waved the two of them off with his fan. “I wouldn’t worry too much about it, Captain Hitsugaya. Since he’s a part of your team now, I’ll assume that he’s going to be staying here with us for a bit longer. I’ll keep an eye on him. Anyway, please help yourself to more tea if you’d like. I need to get to work on your gigais. I should have them done by the time Ichigo gets out of school, so you can meet up with him there, or at his house.”

Toshiro nodded firmly. “Very well. We’ll be paying for them with the squad’s mission budget. I hate to intrude, mister Urahara, but do you perhaps have accommodations for my team and I?” he inquired.

The shop owner stood up and shook his head. “I’m afraid not. I only had two spare rooms, with Tim taking one, and my new shop assistant taking the other. My apologies, Captain Hitsugaya. Perhaps Ichigo and his friends would be able to give you a hand.” He said, then left the room to begin working on the teams’ gigais.

Back in his temporary room, Timothy stood leaning his back against the door with his head low. Both of his hands were still closed in tight fists with the letter crushed in his right hand.

He knew when his team left the soul society to deal with those hollows that there would be casualties, but he couldn’t have possibly been mentally prepared to lose a friend in the end.

Timothy didn’t know Junya, or his sister Yuka that well, only spending off time with them once and working with them a couple of times during team training. But nonetheless, Junya was still a friend of his.

He felt horrible about the man’s death, but now he wondered how his sister was taking it. Did she blame him for getting him involved? Did she now hate him for what happened? Was Junya’s death ‘his’ fault?

The truth was, he did feel that Junya’s death was partially his fault. Afterall, he had asked him to be a part of the team, knowing that it was very dangerous.

And what about the other member that had fallen? He honestly couldn’t remember the man’s name, considering that he would more easily drown in a desert than remember someone’s name; but it was still another death on his shoulders.

**_“Tim, you wanna talk?”_** Kitsune carefully inquired.

Timothy a deep breath, then slid down along the door to sit down on the floor. _“Why? I know what you’re going to say, Kit. ‘It’s not your fault. There was nothing you could have done. These things happen.’ Well, I may not have been the one who killed him and that other guy, but I was the one who got them involved.”_ He pointed.

**_“No, you should stop and think more about that one. You ‘offered’ for him and the others to join the team. He ‘accepted’ the offer, on ‘his’ own free will.”_** She clarified.

He scoffed at her. _“Does it matter? Of course he was going to accept, because he saw me as his friend.”_

**_“Yes, he did join because you were his friend. But in the end, he knew what the risks were when he decided to join you. News flash Tim, he joined you because he wanted to help you and make sure that you and the others came back safely. The same with Kenta, Issei, Hinata…Yuka, everyone.”_** She yelled at him, now severely agitated.

**_“Her words…hold great value…Tim…Instead…of feeling guilt…and shame…for his death…you should…be glad that…he had fallen…doing his duty…with his dignity…and honor…intact.”_** ‘Johnny’ added.

Timothy scowled at them. _“Tsk, so what? I’m supposed to be happy that he died? That Yuka no longer has her brother?”_ he shot back.

Kitsune screamed out. **_“That is ‘not’ what either of us said, Tim! And you know it! You blamed yourself for Hetoku’s death, though how the fuck you could ever come to think it was your fault I can never imagine, and now you wanna sulk and think that Junya died because you brought him along! Shit happens, Tim! What happened to us, happened! What happened to Hetoku, happened! What happened with Junya and the other member, ‘happened’!”_** she yelled, then paused more a moment.

**_“Even when we were still alive, you blamed yourself for things that ‘I’ did! That’s always been one of your biggest issues, Tim; blaming yourself for the actions of others. Both of us have that problem. I should have gotten after you about it long ago, but what right did I have to say anything when I was just as guilty? You gave that girl, Nel, some really good advice just this morning; so how about you take your ‘own’ advice and stop blaming yourself for something you had no control over?”_** she demanded.

He dropped his head even more, not responding to her ranting. **_“Whatever, Tim. I’ve said all I can to help you. If you wanna sit here and sulk, go ahead. When you finally decide to get your head out of your ass and accept what happened, I’ll be right here.”_** She concluded, then went silent.

Pulling his knees to his chest and clutching his head, Timothy sniffed as the first tears ran down his cheeks. He held his head tighter as he sat there in the dim room, reminiscing on everything his zanpakutō spirits said.

** Karakura Town City Center, Present **

Nel gaped at the many tall buildings and random shops that littered the main entertainment sector of Karakura Town. She had been to the world of the living a couple times in the past after she had evolved into an Adjuchas, but that was to feed on human souls and never took the time to stop and look at how things were there.

Yoruichi walked next to her on her right side, keeping an eye on her and watching her amusing antics in her peripheral vision. Even though the golden-eyed woman didn’t hold anything against the, now brown-haired, busty woman, she still didn’t fully trust her.

Had it been normal circumstances, that might not have been the case. But, considering that it was Aizen that she had fought for in the past, this could easily all be a sham; an elaborate ruse that was part of the man’s master plan…whatever that was.

During breakfast, Kisuke had made the suggestion that Yoruichi take Nel out to get some spare clothes and see the sights, considering that she was going to likely be staying with them for a while.

But the shop owner also wanted to get her away from the shop while he and Timothy spoke with the advance team from the soul society. The spiritual pressure cloaking gigai that Urahara made for Nel might hide her from being sensed for what she is, but one thing said at the wrong time could potentially break her cover.

Although she didn’t like the idea have having to escort the former Espada around, even she had to agree that getting her away from the shop was a good idea. Besides, with just the two of them alone, and Nel currently unarmed, for the exception of her basic skills, now would be a good time for her to ask more about the woman; verbally back her into a corner and see if she was hiding anything.

Yoruichi turned to Nel with a fake grin. “Admiring the sights, are we?” she inquired.

Nel turned to her and nodded. “It’s been a long time since the last time I came here to the world of the living; at least twenty, almost thirty years I think. Back then, I never really took the time to look at how things were here. I’m actually really impressed with the humans.” She stated as she looked at a few shops across the street.

Yoruichi hummed in agreeance. “They are a bit impressive, even I will admit that. So, tell me, what’s it like in Hueco Mundo?” she asked.

The former Espada held a finger to her chin in thought. “Hmm…first thing that comes to mind is ‘boring’.”

The golden-eyed woman rose a brow at her. “Boring?”

Nel moved her hand to the back of her head and scratched her scalp. “Yeah, besides the occasional meetings that Aizen had us go to, and the training spars that we had every couple of days, there’s really not much else to do; besides read what few books we had or go for walks around Las Noches. Sometimes I would go visit Stark and Lilynette to play chess or have a simple conversation.” She informed.

“And who is ‘Stark and Lilynette’?” Yoruichi asked with a slightly narrowed gaze.

The brown-haired woman side glanced her. “Stark is the Primera Espada, and Lilynette is his fracción. Besides Pesche and Dondochakka, they were my closest friends. Actually…” he paused and scratched her temple. “…I guess it was a bit more than that.” She admitted.

Yoruichi tilted her head. “Care to explain?” she pressed.

Nel waved her hand in the air. “Stark and I were really close. We really looked out for each other. I somewhat considered Lilynette to be like a younger sister to me, and Stark as an adopted brother.”

The other woman’s eyes slightly widened, clearly not expecting an answer like that. She figured that Arrancar could become close enough to consider each other friends, but not close enough to consider themselves as a part of a family.

The busty woman chuckled lightly, causing Yoruichi to raise a brow. “Sometimes, I would visit them just to keep Lilynette occupied so Stark could go hide somewhere for one of his naps. I even helped him by pointing out some good places to hide…until Lilynette found him again.” She said happily.

Yoruichi turned back to the front, but then saw Nel’s expression fall a second later. “I know that we’re no longer on the same side…but I still miss him. He and Lilynette made life in Las Noches…bearable at least. As a hollow, my life has always been in danger, simply because I’m a female. The males are always preying on the females, either outright killing them, or taking them as slaves or for procreation. An Adjuchas is rare, but female Adjuchas are close to non-existent. I’d guess that, for every twenty male Adjuchas, there’s only one female Adjuchas.”

The golden-eyed woman turned her eyes to observe the woman next to her. “But Stark, he looked out for me from the moment I came to Las Noches. Harribel did too, but it was more along the lines of…I guess you could say the unspoken code that females should always look out for each other. We got along, but never really considered ourselves as close friends. It was more for survival than friendship. But Stark, he actually tried to get close to me, saw me as a true friend.”

Yoruichi then chose to take a shot at the woman’s current stance. “So, if you were given the chance to go back to Las Noches and be back on the same side as this Stark guy, would you take it?”

Nel shook her head slowly. “I miss him and Lilynette, and I hate the fact that they could now be my enemies, but…” she stopped walking and dropped her head.

The other woman stopped as well and turned to her with a hand on her hip. “But?” she pressed.

She looked up at the woman and Yoruichi was a bit shocked to see tears in the woman’s eyes. “But what Aizen has done…what he is doing, is wrong. He’s nothing but a cruel, sadistic man. He destroyed Tim’s life, he made me kill my closest friends, he’s doing such horrible things simply because he can. I may be an Arrancar, an enemy of your soul society; but I could never go back to serve such a horrible person. I’d rather let the soul society kill me than go back.”

Nel walked up and stopped only a foot from Yoruichi. “I know what you’re asking, Yoruichi; and I can tell you right now that I have no intention to return to the Espada, nor do I intend to fight against the soul society. If they want to kill me, that’s fine, I’ll even turn myself in. As long as Aizen pays for what he’s done, I couldn’t care less.” She stated with a serious, but sorrowful stare.

Yoruichi looked the woman in the eyes, trying to decipher if there was any hesitance or deceit in them; but saw nothing. As hard as it was for her to believe, she could actually see that the woman was telling her the truth.

“I see.” She finally answered, then grinned. “Well, if that’s the case, I guess I could trust you a little bit.” She admitted.

Nel lightly smiled and looked down at the ground. “I’m glad.” She said in relief.

Yoruichi patted her on the shoulder, regaining the woman’s gaze. “Tim and Kisuke seem to trust you, and I trust them. So, I guess we can get along.” She said, then waved the woman off. “Anyway, let’s get back to getting you some clothes and such. Afterall, we can’t really leave you with only the clothes that Kisuke provided.” She said as she looked the woman over.

Nel was currently wearing a t-shirt that was obviously designed for someone with much less in stock in the chest department. It was a woman’s shirt, but it was easily stretched to its limits because of Nel’s rather large assets.

Her pants were no better. Kisuke had fitted her faux body with a pair of ‘Daisey Dukes’ shorts that clung ‘very’ tightly to the woman’s slightly wide hips. Yoruichi was actually surprised that the man had managed to do the button without it ripping out.

Kisuke Urahara could build a gigai faster than any three Squad 12 members put together, including Captain Kurotsuchi; but when it came to the choice of clothes that he used to cover them, all Yoruichi could say was that the man was one hell of a pervert.

Nel looked down at her clothes, then turned a bit red in the face. “Yeah, I do feel a bit…exposed.” She admitted as she tried to pull her shirt’s front down a bit.

Yoruichi laughed a bit and gestured with her head towards a clothing store nearby. “Come on, let’s get started. We gotta have you looking good for your new boyfriend, afterall.” She teased.

The Arrancar raised her brow at her in confusion. “Boyfriend?” she inquired.

The golden-eyed seductress grinned evilly at her. “Oh, come on, you know who I’m talking about. A certain blonde-haired Lieutenant?” She said as she flashed her brows suggestively.

Nel’s face began to turn a light shade of pink. “I…He’s ‘not’ my boyfriend! I barely even know him!” she defended.

Yoruichi rose a brow. _‘Oh, she is way too easy. I may not be able to toy with him, but I can sure use him as an excuse to toy with her.’_

“Oh, is that so? Then what about the little conversation you two had this morning in the basement?” she inquired.

Nel turned her head away, her pinkish cheeks beginning to turn red. “I…I don’t know what you’re talking about. I was having a hard time about my friends’ deaths and he cheered me up. That’s all.” She insisted.

_‘Oh, this is going to be so much fun!’_ Yoruichi mentally stated.

Yoruichi leaned forward to the woman’s ear. “That’s not what your smile said as you two were heading upstairs for breakfast. You ‘like’ him, don’t you?”

Nel backed her head away and gave her an angry glare. “I do not ‘like’ him! He’s a friend, nothing more!” she hissed back.

The seductress leaned back straight and waved her off. “Sure, whatever you say, Nel. You don’t have to be embarrassed about it; it’s natural to be interested in a man. Or…” she paused and touched a finger to her chin. “…could it be that you swing the other way?” she wondered in a low tone.

The former Espada’s eyes went wide as possible. “W…what?! What…what are you talking about?! I am ‘not’ interested in women!” she sternly stated.

Yoruichi side glanced to woman while keeping her finger on her chin. “So…you don’t like Tim? Is he not handsome enough for you?” she asked, baiting the poor woman.

Nel growled and stomped her foot. “I ‘do’ like him, and he ‘is’ handsome!” she yelled just loud enough to get her point across.

_‘Hook. Line. And sinker.’_

The golden-eyed woman flashed a toothy grin. “Oh?!”

_‘Oh, Kisuke is going to ‘love’ this! I almost feel bad for the poor woman…‘almost’.’_

Nel suddenly caught on to what she said, then quickly slapped a hand over her mouth, her face now beet red. “I…I didn’t say that! I…uh…I meant…he’s not ugly, or anything! And I like him ‘as a friend’! There’s nothing between us!” she insisted through her hand.

“Not yet, at least.” The demon woman said as she flashed her brows again.

The Arrancar buried her face in her hands. “I hate you.” She moaned.

Yoruichi laughed and wrapped an arm around the woman’s shoulders. “Cheer up, Nel. Once were done here, you’ll be looking perfectly ready to take him as your own.” She teased.

Nel whined and pushed the woman off of her. “I told you, there’s nothing, ‘nothing’, N. O. T. H. I. N. G. ‘Nothing’, between us!” he hissed.

Yoruichi smiled wide and pointed at her face. “Then why are you blushing?” she inquired.

The woman quickly turned away. “I’m not blushing, it’s just a little warm out is all.”

The seductress smiled wider. “I wonder what Tim would say if I told him about this conversation, that you think he’s handsome.”

Nel flashed her gaze towards her in shock. “You wouldn’t!” she said in a low and disbelieving tone. Yoruichi’s face didn’t change, scaring the woman. “…you would…” she mumbled, getting a snicker from the evil woman.

Yoruichi turned and began walking towards the store, leaving Nel to watch her with wide eyes. The woman suddenly stopped and looked across the street.

“Hey, is that Tim holding hands with a woman?” she wondered aloud.

Nel quickly turned to where she was looking, trying to see if it was true. She looked, but didn’t see him, then it clicked in her head that she had been played…again. She slowly turned back to the woman with a deathly glare to see her grinning wide enough that her face nearly split in two.

“That. Was. Not. Funny!” Nel hissed as she blushed more for falling for the woman’s trick.

“What’s wrong Nel? Jealous?” Yoruichi teased further.

“I’m gonna kill you!” she growled and started running at the woman.

Yoruichi bolted down the street, followed closely by a raging, and embarrassed Arrancar. “I’ll take that as a yes.” She said, making the woman even madder.

“Get back here, you stupid…idiotic…Ah!” she yelled as she continued to chase the woman down the street.

** Five Hours Later **

Nel stomped down the narrow side street, growling and her face red while Yoruichi walked next to her with the biggest grin she had worn in over a century. The whole time that they were shopping for clothes, Yoruichi endlessly pestered the poor woman about trying on certain clothes that would ‘impress’ a certain Lieutenant. The former Espada had never, in her entire life, been so embarrassed.

Time after time the woman, that Nel came to call ‘the demon’, had hinted to her about ‘liking’ Timothy. And time after time, she kept falling for the woman’s tricks, causing her say things that she really didn’t mean to say.

A couple of times, she found herself pleading that a random soul reaper would discover her and take her away to be executed. In her opinion, execution sounded more appealing than having to be mentally, and emotionally tortured by the evil seductress walking next to her.

Yoruichi, who was carrying the bags with the clothes they bought, glanced over at the sulking woman. “Oh, cheer up Nel. We’ll be back soon, then you can try out your new clothes and see how they impress Tim.” she said happily.

Nel turned her eyes to the woman. “Shut up. I don’t want to talk to you right now.” She stated through her teeth.

‘The demon’ simply shrugged her shoulders. “Fine, I guess I won’t be giving you any pointers on how to seduce a man.”

The Arrancar turned her head fully to the woman. “I do ‘not’ want to seduce him! How many times do I have to say that there is nothing between us?!” she insisted.

Their conversation was interrupted when they heard a loud crash. They turned in time to see Timothy rolling back along the ground, crashing into the wall at the back of the lot and landing on his face.

Yoruichi and Nel looked at each other in confusion, then turned back to the shop entrance as they stopped to see a red-haired soul reaper walking up and stopping on the porch with his zanpakutō released and resting on his shoulder.

“Get up, Tim. You’re done with your stupid sulking.” Renji stated.

Timothy slowly got back up to his feet and glared at the man. “What the fuck, you idiot?! It’s ‘my’ business what I do, not yours!” he yelled back.

Renji turned his head and scoffed. “You’re a part of this team, so it makes it my business. The last thing we need is a little crybaby hiding in his room.” He taunted.

“Asshole!” Timothy said through his teeth, then turned to see the two women watching the whole ordeal. “Nel? You guys down with your shopping?” he inquired with a raised brow.

Nel nodded, then Renji looked at her. “Who are you?” he inquired.

Yoruichi saw Timothy freeze, then she rested her hand on Nel’s shoulder. “She’s Kisuke’s new assistant. She just recently moved here about a month ago and needed a job, so Kisuke hired her. We just went out shopping for a bit.” She said, then whispered lowly to Nel. “Play along and ask me who I’m talking to.” She instructed.

Seeing what the woman was getting at, she obeyed. “Uh…Yoruichi, who are you talking to?” she asked with a raised brow.

The golden-eyed woman meekly laughed and rubbed the back of her head. “Uh, no one, just talking to myself.” She lied.

Nel turned back to Timothy. “What happened to you, Tim? And who are ‘you’ yelling at?”

Timothy also saw what the two were implying. “Nothing, I just tripped and started ranting at no one in particular because of it.”

Yoruichi gave him an approving nod. “Kisuke still not done with his…task?” she inquired, hinting at the gigais.

The younger Lieutenant shrugged his shoulders. “I think he’s working on the last one now. Afterall, Renji deserves to be last.” He mocked while glancing at the man.

A tick mark appeared on Renji’s forehead. “What did you say?!” he hissed.

Yoruichi glanced at Nel. “Go ahead and head inside. If anybody besides Kisuke talks to you, ignore them and pretend you can’t see them.” She instructed in a whisper.

Nel nodded and took the bags from the woman before walking past Renji and into the shop. Yoruichi turned back to Timothy and narrowed her gaze.

“Now, what’s this about, Tim?” she asked in a serious tone.

Renji scoffed and glared at the man. “The guy’s sulking because of the death of his friend from his response team.” He answered.

Yoruichi rose a brow. “I’m sorry to hear that, Tim. But why would Renji attack you like that from just feeling bad about your friend’s death?” she pressed.

“That’s ‘my’ business, Yoruichi.” He hissed in a warning tone.

“The idiot thinks that the guy’s death was ‘his’ fault.” Renji interrupted.

Timothy glared at him. “Shut up! I was the one who brought him along, and he died because of it!” he yelled as he crossed his arms.

Before he could say anything further, he was sent flying into another wall by Yoruichi, who thrusted a fist into his side after flash stepping next to him. His body fell forward after stopping, but was caught and held up by the collar of his shirt by the woman. He looked up to see a displeased look in her eyes.

“Is that true? Are you really blaming yourself for something you had no control over? Now I can see why Renji had it out for you. Just how did you ever make Lieutenant, Tim?” she said, then threw his body back against the first wall before turning back to Renji. “Take the idiot downstairs and I’ll deal with him in a moment. I’ve gotta talk to Kisuke first.” She instructed.

The man nodded, then walked over and slung the, now unconscious, body of Timothy. And turned back towards the shop and glanced at her. “Make sure you give this idiot a good beating. He’s just as bad as Ichigo…if not worse.” He commented, then walked back into the shop.

Yoruichi crossed her arms as she watched the red-haired man carry the younger man inside. She then shook her head with a heavy sigh.

“Looks like I’ll have to train another ‘Ichigo’.” She said, then followed Renji inside the shop.

** Urahara Shop Underground Training Area, 10 Minutes Earlier **

After showing Captain Hitsugaya and his team his ‘secret’ training area, Kisuke told them that they were more than welcome to use it to fine tune their skills. Toshiro was more than happy to oblige the idea, and directed his team to start one-on-one sparring matches.

Currently, he had Rangiku facing off against Ikkaku, while Rukia fought with Yumichika. He was having them fight for around twenty to thirty minutes, then he would switch the teams around while he observed.

Seeing that there were six of them, not including Timothy at the moment, that meant that one of them would have a chance to rest up for an iteration. Renji was the one currently taking a breather and was sitting down on a small boulder next to Toshiro, watching Rukia’s fight.

They had been at their training session four a little over four hours now, and the white-haired Captain was beginning to wonder where Timothy was. He figured that whatever was in that letter Rangiku gave him, it was likely bad news; but they had a job to do and he wanted to see Timothy’s skills first hand.

With an agitated sigh, he turned to the ladder leading up to the main shop. “Where is he? He needs to be down here training with us.” He stated and an annoyed tone.

Renji glanced to the ladder as well with a shrug. “Must have been really bad news that he got. Want me to go get him, Captain?” he asked.

Toshiro thought about it, but eventually decided that the man, regardless of what news he received, needed to be down there with them training.

“Yes, please do.” He answered, then turned back to watch Ikkaku and Rangiku’s fight.

“Yes, Captain.” Renji responded, then stood up and started walking towards the ladder.

In his room, Timothy was sitting down on the floor with his back propped up against the wall near the window. He had his right knee pulled to him and his right arm resting on it; the letter from earlier crumpled in his hand.

He had expected Kitsune to be constantly berating him for sulking this long, but was slightly surprised that neither she, nor ‘Johnny’ had said a single word to him since he first entered the room.

He then heard a knock on his door, and without moving a muscle, he answered. “Yeah?” he said in a low tone.

The door slid open and Renji took a step in. “Hey, you alright? We’re starting to worry about you down there.” He said, pointing his thumb over his shoulder.

Timothy moved his eyes to look at the man. “I’m fine.” He said with a hint of annoyance.

Renji rose a disbelieving brow. “Really? Don’t look to me like you’re fine.” He said skeptically.

The younger man narrowed his eyes at him. “Okay, so? I said I was fine, so quit worrying about it and just go back to whatever you were doing.” He shot out with a dismissive wave.

The red-haired Lieutenant crossed his arms and stood firm. “What the hell is your problem? Here I am, saying that people are worried about you, and you go trying to toss us aside. What the hell could have happened to turn you into such an ass?” he said, insulted.

Timothy glared at him in anger. “Look, I appreciate that you guys are worried; but my problems are my own.” He hissed, then stood up and walked up to the taller man, stopping only a couple feet away from him. “I’m tired of, whenever someone close to me ends up dying, everyone’s gotta get in my face.” He added.

Renji rose a knowing brow at him. “Oh, I see now, so one of the members that were killed was a close friend of yours. So, I’m gonna take a guess that you’re blaming yourself for what happened, right?”

The shorter man then touched a finger to the taller one’s chest. “You shut your mouth, Renji! I’m not going to listen to your ‘It’s not your fault.’ speech! I told you that I would be fine, so take that answer and leave me be!”

Timothy lowered his hand and started walking back to his previous spot on the floor. Renji watched him for a second, then scoffed.

“Tetsuzaemon was right…” he started, causing Timothy to stop and glance at him. “…you really ‘do’ have an attitude problem. I swear that you and Ichigo have ‘got’ to be related somehow.” He stated as he rolled his eyes.

The blonde turned to face him fully with clenched fists. “I’m telling you right now Renji, it’s in your best interest to shut your face, before ‘I’ shut it for you.” He warned through his teeth.

Renji had finally had enough. Dropping his arms, the red-haired Lieutenant march up to the young man, grabbed him by the collar, and swiftly pulled him forward. The man’s sudden action caused Timothy to lose his balance and fall forward; being held up by his shirt and rolling onto his back as Renji started dragging him across the floor and out of the room.

“What the fuck you think you’re doing?! Let me go, you idiot!” Timothy demanded.

The taller man didn’t respond, he simply kept on dragging the man through the dining room, and into the main shop area. Stopping momentarily to open the front door, he then threw Timothy out the front entrance and sending him rolling into the wall at the far end of the open lot, right in front of a returning Yoruichi and Nel.

** Timothy’s Inner World, 5 Minutes Later **

With a twitch of his brow and a low moan, Timothy awoke and opened his eyes to a familiar sight; a weed covered field, slightly smoking buildings, and an endless rain that seemed to be a bit heavier than it was the last time he was there.

Rubbing his head as he sat up, he looked around to the large cathedral to see ‘Johnny’ sitting in front of it with a knee held close to his chest and his arm resting on it. Looking closely, he could see that the spirit had anger in his only exposed eye.

“Well, seeing that I ended up here, I’m guessing Yoruichi knocked me out, right?” he stated flatly. He then looked around and noticed that something, or rather ‘someone’ was missing. He turned back to the male spirit with a raised brow. “Where’s Kit?” he inquired.

Silence followed for a moment before ‘Johnny’ replied. **“She is…avoiding you.”** He answered in a hissing tone.

Timothy turned his head and sighed. “So, she’s still pissed at me, huh? Seems like ‘everyone’s’ wanting to be pissed at me because of how I feel.” He said in an agitated tone, then looked back at him. “So, what now? You gonna tell me I’m acting like an idiot for blaming myself?” he asked.

‘Johnny’ narrowed his glare at the man. **“No…it will not…be ‘I’…who will deal…with you.”** He stated.

The Lieutenant rose brow at the answer. “What do you mean?” he inquired carefully.

His eyes widened a bit when he saw the lower part of the spirit’s eye rise up, telling him that the being had to be smirking at him through the bandages on his face.

**“You shall see…soon enough…Prepare yourself…for this…shall not…be pleasant…for you.”** The spirit said with, what Timothy could swear on his life was, an amused tone.

Timothy opened his mouth to ask what the man meant, but before he could speak, he was suddenly pulled back from his inner world.

** Underground Training Area, Present **

Timothy slowly came to as Renji stood hunched down next to him and lightly smacked the man’s cheek, rousing him back into consciousness. Toshiro and the rest of his group stood by and watched as the younger man started to stir.

“Yo, I think he’s coming to.” Renji called over his shoulder.

The blonde man groaned as he opened his eyes to see Renji and the others looking at him with agitated faces. He looked down to see that he was out of his gigai, then to Toshiro to see that the Captain was holding his zanpakutō with his arms crossed over his chest.

The short Captain turned his head to the side. “He’s all yours. Just make sure you don’t kill him.” He said.

Timothy followed the man’s gaze to see Yoruichi with her hands on her hips, glaring deep into his eyes with anger.

“Can’t make any promises, sorry.” She replied.

Toshiro nodded and signaled for the others to follow him as Timothy slowly sat up, holding a hand to his head that was now throbbing.

“Hey, where are you going with my zanpakutō?” he asked.

“I wouldn’t worry about that right now, Tim.” Yoruichi stated, getting his attention. “I’d be more worried with what’s about to come.” She added.

Timothy rose a brow at her. “What are you…”

He was silenced when the woman instantly flashed up next to him and delivered a forceful kick to the man’s side, launching him from the ground and out towards a large boulder. He crashed into it with a loud huff of air.

The boulder exploded as his body sailed through it, landing on the ground beyond it and rolling to a stop. But before he could collect himself, Yoruichi was already there and sending his body back into the air with another harsh kick.

Toshiro and his group watched from a distance as Timothy’s body went flying again, with Renji and Ikkaku scrunching their faces and giving a silent ‘ooohh’ with each hit.

“Oh, that’s gotta hurt.” Ikkaku commented with Renji, Rukia, and Yumichika nodding in agreeance.

Toshiro was sitting on top of a boulder next to them with his arms crossed and Timothy’s zanpakutō lying on the ground next to him. He nodded as well with a sigh.

“He clearly deserves it. I just hope she doesn’t kill him.” He commented.

He suddenly felt a rise of spiritual pressure next to him, and turned to see flames coming out of the Lieutenant’s zanpakutō.

He rose a brow and watched as the flames gathered on the ground in front of him and solidified into a human sized figure. His eyes widened a bit when he realized who this figure was; the Lieutenant’s zanpakutō spirit.

“Are you…” he started, getting Kitsune’s attention.

“Yes, I’m Tim’s zanpakutō spirit. I’m Moeru Kitsune, nice to meet ya.” She said with a toothy grin, then turned back and started walking toward the two in the distance.

Toshiro watched her walk away in surprise, as did the others who just now noticed her. Not only because that she was there in the real world, but because they all knew that if a zanpakutō spirit could materialize on its own, that meant that its owner possessed a Bankai, or was really close to achieving it.

“Captain, is that…who I think it is?” Rukia asked in shock.

The Captain gave a slight nod. “That’s Lieutenant Durn’s zanpakutō spirit. I had heard that the man has a Bankai, but I honestly didn’t believe it. I guess I was wrong.” He admitted.

Rukia turned back to look at the spirit with an amazed stare as Ikkaku glanced at her. “My Captain said the guy fought against him using his Bankai. He said that his Bankai allows his zanpakutō spirit to fight alongside him in battle.” He informed.

Rangiku looked over her shoulder at the 3rd seat. “If that’s true, then that means he’s the only one with a zanpakutō like that.” She stated.

“Actually, he would be the second person with that ability. Captain Komamura’s zanpakutō spirit also comes out when he is in Bankai.” Toshiro corrected without turning away from Kitsune.

The woman’s eyes lit up in realization. “Oh yeah, that’s right! I completely forgot about that!” she said in surprise.

Everyone’s eyes darted around to look behind them as Timothy’s body suddenly flew right past Toshiro’s head and crashed into another large boulder.

“She’s ‘really’ giving it to him.” Renji commented, getting nods from everyone there.

Yoruichi stood in place and returned her hands to her hips after giving Timothy another solid kick that sent him past their observers. She then turned her head and rose a brow when she saw Kitsune walking up to her and waving.

“Good to see you again, Yoruichi.” She greeted with a smirk.

The woman smirked and waved back. “Hey, Kit. Hope you don’t mind if I beat some sense into your partner, do you?” she asked.

Kitsune wave her off and grinned. “Nah, it’s about time someone made his ass wake up and quit with his sulking.” She responded, stopping next to the woman.

“So, what brings you out here? Doesn’t Tim have to let you out?” the golden-eyed woman inquired.

The spirit snickered. “Sorry about that, but I lied. Unlike most other zanpakutōs, I can come out whenever I want; though, I am still restricted with how far I can be away from Tim. Besides, you really think I’m gonna stay inside his inner world and miss the ass whooping that he deserves? Not a chance. So, don’t worry about how I feel about kicking his ass, just make sure…”

Yoruichi held up a finger to stop her. “Hold that thought for just a second. Be right back.” She said, then flashed away.

The spirit turned to where Timothy’s body had landed earlier just in time the see it being sent out and to her right; straight into another large boulder. Not two seconds later, Yoruichi was right back next to her.

“Sorry about that. You were saying?” she said in a calm and polite manner, getting a snicker from the spirit.

“Kisuke wasn’t kidding when he said you were fast, Yoruichi. I’m very impressed. But anyway, I said as long as he learns his lesson, do what you need to do.” She finished.

Yoruichi nodded, then something came to her. “Oh, now that we have a second to talk, perhaps you could help me with something.” The woman said with an evil grin.

Kitsune rose an interested brow. “I’m listening.”

Her friend rose her finger up again. “One sec.” she said, then flashed away again. After hearing another crashing sound a second later, the woman returned again and let out a deep breath. “He’s out cold again, so we should have a few minutes before he wakes back up for another round. Anyway, I wanted to ask for your help with a…a little fun shall we say.” She repeated with her trademark grin.

The spirit knew that grin, so she could already tell that whatever the woman had in mind was indeed going to be entertaining.

“Go ahead.” She said, returning the grin.

“It would seem that our new friend, Nel, might have a little bit of ‘interest’ in your partner.” Yoruichi said as she flashed her brows.

Kitsune widened her eyes in surprise. “Really? With Tim? You’re kidding?” she said.

Yoruichi gently shook her head. “Nope. Every time I joked with her about Tim, she turned red. I don’t think she realizes it yet, but I think she’s starting to ‘like’ him. Not only that, I had some fun with her earlier while we were out shopping, and she’s just ‘too’ easy to fool with.” She informed.

The spirit narrowed her gaze. “Knowing you, that means you’ve been making suggestive comments to her all day. So, how is she, compared to Ichigo?” she inquired.

“Worse! Oh, sooo much worse!” the woman answered with a roll of the head.

Kitsune’s grin widened exponentially. “Oh, this, I have ‘got’ to see! If that’s the case, you willing to trade out Ichigo as our target for Nel?”

Yoruichi deeply snickered, then smiled proudly. “Honey, you just read my mind. Though, to be honest, I am a bit curious.”

“About?” Kitsune asked.

Yoruichi placed her hands on her hips again. “Out of curiosity, how would you feel ‘if’ the poor woman ‘did’ have feelings for Tim? I mean…you ‘were’ his wife afterall.” She questioned.

Kitsune took a deep breath and looked up to the ceiling. “That’s the thing, I ‘was’ his wife, but not anymore; haven’t been for twelve years now. I’ll admit, I probably ‘would’ feel a bit sad about him being with someone else; but then, I can’t expect him to remain alone for the rest of his life, can I?”

The other woman crossed her arms with a heavy sigh. “I can see you still love him, in your own way. But, I do see what you’re saying. I gotta say, I don’t envy you, Kit. You two are in one hell of a tough spot.” The golden-eyed woman then turned to where Timothy’s body had landed, seeing that he was still out cold. “Has Tim said anything about feelings for her?” she asked.

The spirit looked over at Timothy’s unconscious form as well. “No, nor has he had any thoughts about it. But then again, Tim’s as dense at a brick wall. I first met him when I moved to his hometown when we were in the seventh grade. It wasn’t until we entered college that it finally clicked in his thick skull that he had feelings for me. Hell, Nel could probably throw herself at him all lovey dovey like, and he would still more than likely not see it.

Yoruichi turned to the spirit with a raised brow. “So, although you might feel a little bad about him being with someone else, you don’t have a problem with them being together?”

The spirit turned to her friend with a look of slight sorrow. “I don’t have anything against Nel, I really don’t. Afterall, she did save Tim’s life twice now. And I really do want Tim to be happy, even if that means that he finds another person to love. But, there is that one problem that I’m sure you realize.” She said with a stern look.

Yoruichi nodded in agreeance. “The fact that Nel’s an Arrancar.” She filled in.

Kitsune nodded. “She seems nice, and I’ll admit that she has suffered from…unfortunate circumstances, becoming a hollow and all. Like I said, I personally have nothing against her, but if the two of them do end up having feelings for each other, do you think the soul society would ever even ‘consider’ such a relationship? I highly doubt it. I just…” She sighed heavily and returned her gaze back to Timothy. “I just don’t want to see him suffer anymore. You have no idea what he’s been through; all the pain he’s felt. And to be honest, I seriously doubt he can take much more emotional pain before he breaks down.”

“You’re referring to what happened between you two and Aizen…aren’t you?” Yoruichi inquired solemnly.

The spirit lowered her head and nodded. “It hurt me inside…becoming what I am now. But for Tim…he suffered worse than I did. For twelve years, he blamed himself for what happened; no matter how many times I told him otherwise. In fact, I think he’s still blaming himself for it.” She closed her eyes and dropped her head lower. “He’s always been this way. It was a fault that we both had. I, too, had a high tendency to blame myself for things that I had no control over.” She then looked back at the woman next to her.

“Tim is everything to me. He stood by me regardless of what I put him through. I want to see him happy again, even if that means having feelings for Nel. But, let’s face it, you and I both know that it’s just not possible for them to be together; not while he’s a soul reaper. I didn’t want to say anything to him and hurt his feelings, but regardless of Tim’s hopes, we both know that the soul society will never forgive Nel for being an Espada; regardless of what good she does. Tim’s only been a soul reaper for about a month, and I can already tell by how they do things that Nel can never be accepted.”

She turned to face the woman fully. “Even if Nel was the one to kill Aizen, even in front of every soul reaper in the soul society, they would still view Nel as nothing more than an enemy to be killed.”

Yoruichi looked back to Timothy to see that he was finally coming back to the light. “I wouldn’t be so sure, Kit. He may be gruff, and exceedingly stern, but the Head Captain is still very wise, and not without morals. He’s most certainly ‘not’ heartless. Afterall, Ichigo ‘did’ invade the soul society, causing a good amount of damage; but in the end, it was the Head Captain that pardoned him and allowed him, a human who is still living, to become a substitute soul reaper. Even Rukia, who had committed the very severe crime of giving Ichigo her powers, was pardoned.”

The woman glanced over at the spirit. “So, don’t be so quick to judge the soul society, Kit. The Captains can be bullheaded, and often blind to things if they’re not right in front of them; but they’re not as big of fools that you may think. I mean, take Tim’s own Captain, Komamura. Even you have to admit that the big guy, even though he ‘looks’ like a beast, he’s one of the more gentle and caring Captains of the 13 Court Guard Squads. Right?”

Kitsune scoffed. “Yeah, he is a bit of a giant teddy bear. But still, do you really think that the soul society would give Nel a chance?” she asked, now looking at her friend questionably.

Yoruichi shrugged her shoulders. “It would be a hell of an argument that we would have to make, but there ‘is’ that chance.” She admitted, then looked back at Kitsune. “For now, I’m gonna get back to Tim’s punishment. We’ll talk more about Nel’s ‘own’ punishment later.” She finished with a grin.

The spirit snorted, then shook her head. “I almost feel sorry for her.” She said.

The woman and spirit glanced at each other instantly. “Almost!” they said in unison, followed by heavy laughter.

After a few seconds of their laughing, Yoruichi finally waved at Kitsune and flashed away to continue ‘teaching’ Timothy about his sulking. Kitsune placed her hands on her hips and shook her head when she saw Timothy go flying again.

She returned her gaze to Timothy’s crashing body as she sighed heavily.

_‘Tim’s got a heart of gold, always caring for others before he would ever care for himself. That’s why I married him…and why I ‘still’ love him. If he and Nel did start having feelings for each other, there’s no telling what he would do for her. Knowing him, he would likely turn on anyone who tried to come after her…just like I would for him.’_

With a last heavy sigh, she dropped her hands to her side, then began to dissipate to return to Timothy’s inner world.

** An Hour Later **

Timothy landed against the side of a small mountain, creating a small indent before falling loose and rolling down the side of it to land on the ground with a thump. He grunted in pain as he fought his muscles to try and get up.

Yoruichi flashed to a few feet away from him and crossed her arms, giving him a serious glare. “Are you done feeling guilty about stupid things yet?” she inquired.

The man flinched in pain as he lifted his head to look at her. His body was completely covered in cuts, scratches, and bruises, and his breathing labored. His left eye was swollen shut and blood threatened to seep into his other eye.

“It’s…it’s not…stupid!...They…they died…because I…took them along.” He said between breaths.

The woman closed her eyes and shook her head in disappointment. “You’re unbelievable, you know that?” She raised her head back and held a hand up with her palm facing the ceiling. “Yeah, you took them with you; and yes, they died while you were in charge. But think about it, Tim; did they join your team because you ‘told’ them to, or did they join because you asked if they wanted to?” She waited for an answer, tapping her foot on the ground as she did. “Well, I’m waiting. I actually expect you to answer me, Tim.” she informed.

Timothy pushed himself up enough to make it to a half sitting, half kneeling position. “I…I asked them…if they wanted…to join.” He answered.

She rose a brow. “And did they say ‘yes’?” she asked further, getting a slight nod back in acknowledgment. She crossed her arms and scoffed. “Well, there’s your answer, idiot. ‘They’ chose to join your team. ‘They’ wanted to go with you. It’s admirable that you feel for their deaths Tim, but it’s insulting when you go thinking that their deaths were your fault when it’s clearly not.” She pointed out.

She gave a deep sigh and walked over to sit down next to him. “Tim, Kisuke told me about those two hollows you and your team fought against. In case you’ve forgotten, those two were ‘not’ just any hollows; they were Adjuchas. Just one Adjuchas is powerful enough to prove a challenge for a Captain, but you and your team took on ‘two’ of them. Even with so many members in your team, with the abilities those two had, you were clearly outmatched.” She informed.

She turned to see him with his head down, so she knocked her fist against his temple. “Hey…” she called, getting his attention and an angry glare. “If you want the painful truth about it, none of you should have lived through that; even Kisuke thinks so. In fact, if it wasn’t for Ichigo using his Bankai, you all would be dead. So next time, before you decide to go straight into a sulking mood, how about you think it over and see ‘if’ it was really your fault.” She instructed.

He turned away, but nodded. “Yeah.” He responded in a low tone.

Yoruichi nodded back and stood up, offering a hand to him. “Good, cause next time you decide to act like this, I won’t go so easy on you. Now come on and we’ll get those wounds treated.” She concluded.

Timothy looked at her in resentment, but nodded once more and accepted her hand, getting pulled up to a standing position.

“Thanks…Yoruichi.” He said in a solemn tone.

She smiled at him and patted his shoulder. “You need to learn to lighten up, Tim. I know it was the Head Captain himself that made you a Lieutenant, something that I personally have never seen. He did it for a reason, he did it because he must have seen quite a bit of potential in you. And frankly, I see a bit of that potential myself. You just need to learn to stop blaming yourself for everything. Just remember what I said, alright?” she said as she patted his shoulder again.

He sighed heavily, then nodded. “Alright.”

The woman then grinned, and thrusted her fist into his side, but not as hard as she had done earlier. He stumbled over and held his side, glaring at her.

“What the hell was that for?!” he yelled.

She planted her hands on her hips. “For making me have to take my time to knock some sense into you.” She said amusingly.

The Lieutenant growled at her. “I hate you.”

A simple shrug of the woman’s shoulders was his only reply before she walked off. Timothy turned to his left to see Toshiro and his group walking up.

“Are you finished now?” the short man inquired.

Taking a deep breath, Timothy nodded. “Yeah, I’m done with my ‘sulking’. Sorry bout that, Captain. Not leaving a very good first impression, am I?”

The Captain rose a brow with a smirk. “I already had a first impression about you after I heard about your fight with Captain Zaraki.”

Timothy dropped his head with a moan. “How many times do I have to tell everyone that ‘he’ was the one who started it?”

Toshiro lightly chuckled, then crossed his arms. “Well, regardless of ‘who’ started it, I will admit that I was impressed with everything I’ve been told about it. But that’s another matter. Right now, we should get back to training.” He instructed, then looked at the group behind him. “Renji, you and Ayasegawa will be a team.” He said, getting a pair of nods before the two flashed away. “Madarame and Kuchiki will be another.” Those two nodded, then left. The Captain then turned to his Lieutenant. “Rangiku, you’re on break for the moment.”

He finally faced Timothy. “And Durn, go upstairs and have your injuries treated. When you are finished, the teams will switch out and you will spar against Rangiku.”

The woman’s eyes lit up instantly. “Really? I get to fight the handsome one?” she inquired with a grin.

Timothy rose a brow. “Sorry, but you’re not my type; you’re too…” He paused to briefly look her over, from her head to chest, then back. “…bubbly.” He stated.

Toshiro snorted and turned his head to avoid laughing while Rangiku gave him a pouty face. “Aw, you don’t have to be like that. I’m sure we could get ‘along’ just fine.” She insisted.

The man turned to the Captain with a deadpanned expression. “Is she always like this?” he moaned.

The Captain turned his head to him, but his eyes moved on to look at Rangiku. “Unfortunately.” He moaned back.

Rangiku swung her head to her superior. “Captain! That’s not nice!” she whined.

A tick mark appeared on the shorter man’s face, then he glared at her. “Be quiet, Rangiku! Or I’ll have you running laps around the entire facility!” he demanded.

Taking a deep breath and huffing, she planted her hands of her hips and turned her head away. “Fine.”

Timothy sighed deeply and began walking towards the ladder, stopping next to the Captain and leaning down to his ear. “My condolences.” He whispered.

Toshiro turned his eyes to him. “You have no idea.” He returned, then took a ‘very’ deep and calming breath.

Sparing a last glance at the busty Lieutenant, Timothy shook his head and continued his walk to have Tessai heal his injuries.

When he arrived upstairs, he saw Kisuke, Yoruichi, Tessai, and Nel sitting at the table…with Nel’s head turned away from the woman sitting next to her and her face a bit red. Glancing at the woman, who had just gotten finished beating the living crap out of him, he saw her evil grin plastered on her face.

“Yoruichi, what are you doing to Nel?” he inquired in a depressed voice.

Nel fidgeted, drawing his attention back to her to see her face turn even more red. He then sighed defeatedly. “Nevermind…knowing you, you’re probably filling her head with lecherous thoughts.” He moaned as he waved the matter off and turning to Tessai. “Hey Tessai, could you do me a favor and fix me up a bit?”

The man nodded. “Of course. Let us step into your room, where you can lie comfortably.” He said as he stood up.

Timothy returned the nod and walked around the table to follow the man to his room. He stopped in front of Nel and tapped her on the head, getting her attention.

“Just ignore her, Nel. At least you’re only dealing with her, and not the vixen that’s my zanpakutō spirit.” He pointed out.

**_“Don’t start, Tim. In case you haven’t noticed, I’ve actually been keeping quite lately.”_** She warned.

Timothy snorted at her mentally. _“I’m only pointing out the facts, nothing more.”_

He then sighed and looked back down to see Nel with her head now turned away from ‘him’. He rose a brow. “Nel?”

She shirked a bit. “I’m…fine. Thank you though.” She replied lowly.

“Uh, ok.” He returned, then left to go to his room.

Yoruichi rose a brow at the scene and watch as Timothy left. _Wow, she wasn’t kidding. He ‘is’ dense. I’ll have to find a way to talk privately with her again to find out how to break him._ She mentally observed.

She then looked back at Nel to see her with her head down again. With a scoff and a roll of the eyes, the woman slapped the back of Nel’s head. The Arrancar held the spot with her hand and turned to her.

“What did you do that for, Yoruichi?!” she whined.

The woman grinned and tilted her head away with closed eyes. “Just making sure that you didn’t pass out from being in your boyfriend’s presence.” She teased.

Nel turned red again, but with a bit of anger mixed in. “He’s not my boyfriend! Why do you keep insisting that he is?!”

Yoruichi opened her eyes halfway, turning them to glance at her. “Really? Then why did you turn away from him when he simply asked if you were okay?” She inquired, then turned her head fully to her. “You too embarrassed to look at him?” she added with a flash of her brows.

The Former Espada then slammed her fists on the table with a yell through her teeth. “That’s it!” she yelled, then quickly turned to the woman and jumped at her with her hands poised to grab the woman’s throat.

Falling back and grabbing Nel’s hands with her own, Yoruichi propped a knee up to hold the raging woman off her while she laughed.

“Oh? Defending our boyfriend’s honor now, are we?” she instigated.

With a quick thrust of her raised knee, she flung Nel over her head and onto her back on the other side of her. Letting go of her hands and twisting around and up to a kneeling position, the woman watched in humor as Nel rolled herself around and darted at her again.

“I’m gonna kill you! You damn demon!” Nel growled as she was once again held back from her target with the woman’s knee.

Kisuke, being the man he is, couldn’t resist grabbing his cell phone and start recording the little ‘physical encounter’ between the two women as he held his fan over his face to hide his wide, and amused smile.

In Timothy’s room, him lying down and Tessai on his knees with a healing kidō over the Lieutenant, the two of them stared blankly at the wall with sweat running down their faces. They could both hear the muffled yelling and rummaging around; the wall vibrating every few seconds.

“…I knew it was only a matter of time before Yoruichi pissed her off.” Timothy commented.

The two men turned to each other to share an understanding glance, then turned back to the wall just as a loud thump sounded against it with it nearly giving way. It was at this time that Kitsune materialized herself to stand next to Tessai.

She looked at the wall, then down at Timothy. “She’s not going to ‘kill’ Yoruichi…” she started, then turned back to the wall. “…is she?”

Timothy glanced at her. “If she does, then Yoruichi deserved it.”

Kitsune then sighed heavily. “She could have at least let ‘me’ have some fun first.” She mumbled.

Her partner turned to her fully. “What do you mean? Do you know what Yoruichi’s torturing her about?” he inquired. The spirit froze with wide eyes and he could swear she was sweating. He narrowed his gaze at her. “Kiiiiit?” he droned out.

She slowly, so slowly, turned to him, then sheepishly smiled. “Uhhhh…no?”

Timothy furrowed his brows at her. “What?” he hissed at her.

“Nothing! Oh, look at the time! Gotta go!” Kitsune blurted out, then quickly returned to Timothy’s inner world.

He growled, then turned back to the wall. _“We’re gonna have a talk about this later!”_

**_“…”_ **

_“Kit?!”_

**_“…”_ **

_“Kit!”_

**_“…”_ **

_“Oh, ‘now’ you wanna keep your mouth shut?!”_

**_“…”_ **

_“Johnny’, get her out here!”_

**_“I am not…getting involved…in this.”_ **

With a heavy, depressed, growling sigh, Timothy finally gave up and laid back down in defeat to let Tessai continue working on healing him. As he did, he began thinking of the best way to get Yoruichi back for all the trouble she’s causing the poor ‘former’ Espada.

_‘Wait a minute…why am I getting so upset at Yoruichi for just teasing her a bit? If anything, it’ll at least help Nel be more associated with us and loosen up. So…why am I so mad about it? It’s like I’m trying to protect her from the woman._

Lightly shaking the thought from his head, he took a deep, relaxing breath and waited for the man next to him to finish his healing.

** 3 Hours Later **

After he had been healed enough by Tessai, Toshiro included Timothy in with the team’s training session; first being pitted against Rangiku, then Renji (who he really wanted to fight), Ikkaku, then finally Toshiro, who wanted to test out the man’s zanpakutō abilities himself.

The white-haired Captain quickly realized that all the rumors he heard about Timothy’s abilities being hard to fight against were in fact true. Due to the basis on how the Captain’s own abilities worked and how the short man fought, Timothy found it quite easy to keep dodging the shorter man’s attacks.

But then again, ‘because’ of the nature of the Captain’s abilities, Timothy couldn’t get close enough to land direct hits on him either. In the end, Timothy had to resort to using medium ranged kidō while the Captain had to enter Bankai to increase his range of influence.

After the two fought against each other for almost an hour, and both of them close to exhaustion, they ended up having to consider it a draw. Toshiro had told him that he was impressed, but he made it a point that the Lieutenant’s raw sword skills needed some work.

But now that Kisuke had finished their gigais, the Captain decided that it was now time to go and speak with Ichigo about his fight with the Sexta Espada. Timothy had requested to stay at the shop to train some more; and seeing that he had nothing else to report on the matter, Toshiro agreed.

So now Timothy was down in the training area sparring against Kisuke again. And yet again, getting his ass handed to him. No matter what trick he used to get the better of the man, even using a three phased trick, the scientist saw right through it and was two steps ahead of him.

He had been fighting Kisuke now for a little over a half hour, and not taking some time to rest after Toshiro’s training session, he was completely beat.

Flashing into place near one of his flames after being knocked away from them, he came to a stop and stumbled; falling to a knee. Panting heavily, he tried to get back up to his feet. But his muscles were so worn out, that he only ended up falling further to lay on his side.

“Get up, Tim. I’m sure you’re tired, but you can rest up later.” Kisuke said as he came to a stop a few yards away from the man.

Timothy glanced up at the shop owner weakly. “You’re…you’re worse…than Tet…Tetsuzaemon.” He stated between breaths.

Kisuke grinned at him. “I’ll take that as a complement. Nonetheless, your spiritual pressure is currently weak, so you need to be pushed to the limit in order to help correct that. From what I can see, you’re not quite there yet.”

The Lieutenant rose a brow at him. “Kit…said the…same thing…She said…that’s…that’s why…I can’t use…Bankai.”

His opponent nodded at him. “That’s what I figured, and she’s right. I can tell that your spirit energy is quite high, as high as a Captain’s in fact. You’re able to use high powered kidō numerous times without having adverse effects on you. But I could also tell that those kidōs didn’t quite pack the punch that they should have, and on some occasions backfiring; telling me that your spiritual pressure is a bit low.”

The man then pulled out his fan and began fanning himself as he continued. “In order to increase a person’s spirit energy, that person needs to use attacks that pull on it over and over. Over time, that person’s spirit energy will steadily increase. However, spiritual pressure is another matter. In order for a person’s spiritual pressure to increase, that person’s soul needs to be put under heavy stress, or in danger.”

He snapped his fan shut and held it next to his face. “Think of it like this; if you were to run a marathon, your spirit energy would determine for how long you can run; while your spiritual pressure would determine how 'fast' you can run. With the way you are now, you could run several miles without having to stop. However, your running speed wouldn’t be that great; more along the lines of a leisurely jog. So, if you wanted to increase your spirit energy, a.k.a. your running distance, you would need to keep running farther and farther each time you ran, increasing your cardio.”

The fan was then pointed at Timothy. “But, if you wanted to increase your running speed, a.k.a. your spiritual pressure, you would need to do a lot of sprinting and increase your muscles.”

Timothy finally found the energy needed to make it back to his feet; granted that he needed to use his zanpakutō as a crutch.

“So…what you’re saying…is that my…spirit energy is the…’cardio’…of my spiritual attacks…and my…spiritual pressure…is my ‘muscle’…behind the attack.” He panted in clarification.

Kisuke grinned and returned to fanning himself. “Exactly. So…shall we continue?”

With a scoff and shake of the head, Timothy finally nodded. “Now that…I know ‘why’…you’re trying to…kill me…” He paused to grin at the man. “…bring it.” He finished and got back into a fighting stance.

The shop owner snapped his fan shut with a wide smile. “Alright…but you asked for it.”

Timothy’s grin dropped. “…Oh fuck.”


	19. Unknown Feelings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 19

**(Unknown Feelings)**

** Urahara Shop, World of the Living, 9 Days Later **

Over the past week and a half, Timothy’s schedule was beginning to become monotonous. Every morning, before anyone had woken up and Captain Hitsugaya’s team arrived for their daily training, Timothy would be down in the training area working on his zanpakutō abilities and improving his spiritual pressure.

After training for about an hour, Nel would come down to watch for a moment, talk with him for a few minutes more, then they would both go upstairs to join the others for breakfast. By the time they had finished eating, Toshiro and the rest of his team would arrive, and they would begin training.

After having a little talk and with the recommendation from Kisuke, Toshiro agreed that Timothy should be forbidden from releasing his zanpakutō during his spars. He was an avid fighter, but that was only ‘if’ he was using his zanpakutō’s abilities; so, he needed to learn to fight without them.

The young Lieutenant tried to argue the fact that there was no way he could fight against his peers while they were released, and he wasn’t. But after Toshiro made the suggestion to have him fight against Yoruichi, he quickly dropped the subject with a defeated moan.

The others could see that Timothy was still bothered about his friend’s and the other member’s deaths, but other than a few occasional depressive sighs, his sulking had stopped. In fact, Toshiro and Kisuke had noticed when either of them sparred against him, that he was using their deaths to push himself harder.

Their training would sometimes get interrupted by a sudden hollow attack, and they would have to put it on hold to go deal with the situation. They would have let Ichigo deal with the hollows, seeing that most of the attacks were during times when he wasn’t at school, but lately no one has seen him.

After coming by the shop a couple days after Timothy’s ‘beatdown’ to let them know that he was going off somewhere to train, no one had seen him, or heard from him since he left the shop. Kisuke assured them all that Ichigo was fine, he was just in a place where contact was not feasible.

Timothy had his own training as well. Toshiro’s training sessions for the team normally lasted until lunch time, where they would stop to eat, then continue for a couple hours longer. Afterwards, per Timothy’s request, Kisuke would take the young Lieutenant and spar with him until the shop owner ‘determined’ that the man could no longer continue.

As with his previous sessions with the man, Timothy’s spar with Urahara was more along the lines of being pushed to his limit, before his opponent would come at him with the full intent to kill him.

At first, Timothy argued that there was no point in asking the man for help if all he was going to do was try to kill him. But after only arguing the fact twice, he gave up on the whole matter and instead focused on trying to stay alive.

It’s now been ten days since Kisuke had first sparred against Timothy; and even though the man’s spiritual pressure has indeed gotten much stronger than when he first arrived, nearly twice as strong, it was still nowhere near where it needed to be.

Yesterday, after Kisuke had beaten Timothy to within a quarter of an inch of his life, the shop owner commented to the Lieutenant that, if he had to guess, Timothy’s spiritual pressure was currently at the level of around a fifth seat. He estimated that the man was about a third of what a Lieutenant ‘should’ be.

The session then ended the way it did every other time that the two trained, with Timothy falling unconscious and the shop owner having to carry the man back upstairs to his room to rest and allow Tessai to heal him. This was the case for today.

Kisuke walked into Timothy’s room, carrying the man’s limp form over his shoulder, and setting him down on top of his bed. Usually, the man would wake back up in a few hours; a couple of times not waking up until the next morning, much to the man’s chagrin.

After setting the man down on his bed, Kisuke remained in his kneeling position next to him and glanced over to the Lieutenant’s zanpakutō with a curious glance.

“Can you hear me, miss Kit?” he inquired quietly.

A second later, his zanpakutō started smoking as flames left the sheath to gather on the opposite side of Timothy’s body from the man. The flames solidified into Kitsune’s spiritual body, kneeling down next to Timothy.

“Yes, need something?” she inquired in a low voice.

The man nodded gently. “I was hoping you and I could have a chat, if you don’t mind.” He said politely.

She nodded back, then looked down at Timothy’s sleeping form to brush a strand of hair away from his face.

“He’ll be out for a while, and ‘Johnny’s’ keeping him occupied for a bit; so, we can talk for a moment.” She responded, then stood up with the man and followed him out of the room.

The shop owner led her to the dining room table, where he had a cup of tea prepared for her, and gestured for her to sit down. She did as such and took a sip of the tea in front of her, sighing afterwards.

“So Kisuke, if you’re wanting to talk to me without Tim, I’m guessing it’s something you don’t want him to know about…right?” she said as she placed the cup back down on the table.

“You’re quite observant.” Kisuke observed with a grin.

Kitsune returned the grin. “Thanks. But, whatever it is you wanted to talk about, I suggest you make it quick; before Tim realizes I’m not in his inner world anymore. He’s dense, but not stupid. He’ll know right away that somethings up.” She advised.

The shop owner nodded and began fanning himself. “I agree. So, let me start with this, how is he doing…mentally? We can all see that he’s still a bit upset about what happened to his team, but you’re the one who can see his thoughts.” He inquired.

She crossed her arms and sighed. “A lot better than before, that’s for certain. As you know, zanpakutō spirits, like me and ‘Johnny’, don’t sleep like you do. When Tim is sleeping, we’re both awake. He’s had a couple of nightmares about what happened, but from what we can see, it doesn’t look like he’s viewing it as his fault anymore. I think…I think he just needs a bit more time to come to terms with it.”

Kisuke drank some tea and nodded as he set his cup down. “That’s understandable. What happened is not an easy thing to overcome. I expect he’ll be like that for a while. So, moving on…” he started, putting his free hand in his sleeve. “…do you think he’s ready to handle your Bankai?” he asked with a raised brow.

Kitsune sighed as she scratched the fur on her cheek. “He’s gotten stronger than he was before, I won’t argue that; but to be honest, I’m not sure if he’ll be able to handle it or not. I know that some zanpakutō abilities require large amounts of spirit energy to use, while others require a decent amount of spiritual pressure. Mine is a mix of the two. My abilities require a lot of spirit energy to use, but my Bankai requires a lot of spiritual pressure in order to handle it; along with the energy to use it.”

She dropped her hand down to her lap. “Tim clearly has to energy to use it; but right now, I can’t say for certain that he has the power to handle the strain it’ll put on his body. If you want my opinion, I’d recommend waiting a bit longer.”

Kisuke lowered his head a bit in thought. “Normally, a soul reaper would never learn of their Bankai until their zanpakutō spirit feels they are ready for it; meaning that it wouldn’t be possible to learn it until the spirit allows it. When the zanpakutō feels that they ‘are’ ready, they normally set an extremely difficult goal that the soul reaper must attain in order to learn it.” He paused to look back at the spirit.

“Your case is vastly different, miss Kit. Technically, Tim has already acquired Bankai; not needing to fulfill a certain requirement that you set for him. So, I’m curious as to how it will work for him to be able to use it. I’m sure you are aware of your Bankai’s name?” he inquired.

The spirit nodded. “I am. And to be honest, I’m a bit curious on how this would work as well. He hasn’t used Bankai because I haven’t told him its name, but I’m wondering if that’s all there is to it. I’m not sure if simply telling him its name is enough for him to use it, or if there’s more to it.” She admitted.

The shop owner held his fan over his chest with a serious expression. “If it’s alright with you miss Kit, I’d like to ask that you train him to use it, starting tomorrow.” He instructed.

Kitsune rose a questioning brow. “Are you sure about this, Kisuke? You should know this ain’t no simple matter. If he’s not ready, and he uses my Bankai, it would put a great deal of strain on him. I may not have been a zanpakutō spirit for long, nor did I become one by conventional means, but I do know what happens if a soul reaper uses a Bankai when his or her body can’t handle it. It puts the soul at a risk of destroying itself…meaning that it could kill him. You really sure about this?” she asked carefully.

Kisuke turned his eyes to look over the spirit’s shoulder at the wall behind her where Timothy’s room was. “Tim is a strong soul, one who refuses to give up if something he loves is at risk. He needs the push to become stronger, and my training can only go so far. I believe that this will benefit him greatly.” His gaze returned to the spirit. “Afterall, if something was to happen, and you discover that he can’t handle it yet, couldn’t you disperse it as you did before?”

The spirit crossed her arms again with a deep breath. “Risky. With last time, as I’m sure you felt, for the few seconds after I became a part of his inner world, his spiritual pressure was sky high; likely because of the amount of pain and suffering his soul was going through during the event. For that brief moment, his spiritual pressure was just high enough to handle being in my Bankai state; but it was quickly dropping as his soul began recovering from the ordeal. I managed to drop my Bankai before his pressure became too low and threatened to hurt him, but you saw what it did anyway; it left him unconscious for hours.”

“So, you’re saying that if he uses it, and his body can’t handle it, you might not be able to withdraw your Bankai in time?” Kisuke asked in clarification.

Kitsune nodded. “Yes. And if I can’t drop it in time, it will likely kill him. But again, we have no idea what all would be involved in allowing him to use Bankai; won’t know until we try it. So, with all this in mind, I have to ask again Kisuke; are you really sure we should try this now? If this doesn’t work, there might not be a second chance for him.” She asked cautiously.

Kisuke gave her a solid nod. “I am. As we both know, Tim works at his best when under heavy duress. This may be the push he needs.” He informed.

Sighing heavily and rubbing her temples, Kitsune finally agreed. “Alright, Kisuke. I have no idea how long this will take, nor do I know what will happen when we try it, so I think it would be best if you keep the Captain and his group from training downstairs tomorrow.”

“Agreed. However, I’d like to ask you do this at the far end of the training area. While you are working with Tim, I’ll also be down there on the opposite side working on another project.” Kisuke informed.

Kitsune rose a curious brow. “What’s that?”

Kisuke waved her off with his fan and a smile. “It’s best if I not say anything about it for the moment. I would like you to just focus on training Tim tomorrow.”

The spirit nodded, then picked up her cup and finished her tea. “Well…” she started, then set the cup down and stood up. “…I need to get back. If he hasn’t already, Tim will see that I’m gone real soon. But Kisuke…” she paused, getting the man to look at her. “…I really hope you’re right about this. Tim is everything to me, and I just can’t afford to lose him.” She informed, then turned to walk back to Timothy’s room.

She then stopped and glanced back at the shop owner with a knowing grin. “Before I forget, what the was the result of Yoruichi and Nel’s little…talk?” she inquired.

The man grinned widely before reaching into his robe and pulling out his phone, holding it up between his index and middle fingers. “Care to see for yourself?” he asked.

Kitsune widened her eyes at him. “You recorded it?” she asked in surprise. The shop owner’s expression didn’t change, causing her to snicker. “Oh, I would ‘love’ to!” she said as she walked around the table while Kisuke opened the phone and pulled up the video of the two women going at it.

** Three Hours Later **

After waking up with a serious headache, which normally happened after waking back up from his training sessions with Kisuke, Timothy walked out to the front porch and saw Kisuke sitting down with Nel next to him.

“Hey Kisuke, Nel.” He greeted as he walked up to the edge of the porch and sat down.

Kisuke nodded as Nel turned to him with a slight smile. “Hi, Tim. How are you feeling?” she inquired.

Timothy laid down on the porch, with his legs sticking out over the edge, with a heavy sigh. “Like I’ve been run over by a damn freight train full of liquor. I’m telling you Kisuke, I don’t mind the sparring sessions we have, but I could really do without the throbbing headache that comes after.” He moaned.

Nel smiled more, reaching over and patting his leg. “It’ll be fine, Tim. Afterall, it ‘is’ to help you get better, right?”

The Lieutenant turned his head over to look at her with a deadpanned expression. “But are the headaches ‘really’ necessary? Even my worst-ever hangover wasn’t this bad.” He stated, then turned his head back. “Speaking of hangovers, mind pouring me a drink, Kisuke?” he asked.

Kisuke chuckled and obliged the man, grabbing one of the unused saucers and pouring him a drink before handing it to Nel to give to him. Timothy sat up, causing him more pain from the sudden movement, and took the saucer from the woman.

“Thanks.” He said, then took a long sip; giving a disgusted face immediately afterwards. “I’ll never get used to this stuff.” He stated with a sigh. He then turned back to Nel. “You drink, Nel?” he inquired.

She shook her head gently. “Not really. I used to sometimes have a drink or two with Stark when I visited him and Lilynette, but I don’t drink regularly. But I’ll join you for one now, though.” She answered, then poured herself a saucer.

“I used to drink a lot, not excessively, but a good amount when I was younger…and dumber.” Timothy admitted.

Kisuke held his fan over his mouth. “Care to explain, Tim?” he asked with a grin.

Nel turned to him with a raised brow, also interested in what he meant. Timothy snorted and took another sip.

“Where to start? I was like the other underage drinkers of the 80’s; getting into drag races with old, beat up trucks, avoiding the cops by tearing through corn patches, just acting stupid like most kids. If anything, Susan was a lot worse.” He stated.

As if in response, Kitsune materialized herself to stand in front of Timothy with her arms crossed and an insulted look on her face.

“I was not!” she defended sternly, then looked at Nel. “Hey, Nel.” She greeted.

Nel chuckled at her, then took a sip before glancing at Timothy. “So, how was ‘she’ worse?”

Kitsune turned back to Timothy and planted her hands on her hips. “Yeah, how was ‘I’ worse?” she demanded.

Timothy gave her a deadpanned expression. “Try thinking it’s a good idea to break into the college pool to go swimming.”

She simply shrugged her shoulders. “So? Everyone does that. It still doesn’t explain how it makes me worse.”

He narrowed his gaze at her. “With all of your clothes still on?” he added.

Kitsune threw her hands out to her sides with her fists clenched tightly. “I couldn’t get the damn jeans off! I was too drunk to undo the stupid button!” she yelled.

“And getting caught by security because you wanted to hear your ‘horrible’ singing voice echo in the halls?” he stated, adding further insult to injury.

She flinched and began to sweat. “Well…I was…I just felt like singing…that’s all.” She said in a quieter voice.

“You nearly got us kicked out of college, dummy! We were lucky that it was the assistant dean that talked to us!” he hissed.

Nel suddenly started laughing, causing Kitsune to turn to her in anger. “S…Shut up Nel! At least I don’t turn red every time Yoruichi says something!” she mocked.

The Arrancar immediately stopped laughing, turning a bit pink and glaring at the spirit. “Don’t you ‘dare’ go there! That woman is nothing more than a damn demon! And don’t turn this around on ‘me’ because Tim called you out and proved it!” she shot back.

The spirit crossed her arms and gave the woman an evil glare. “Oh really?! You wanna play that way?! Fine!” she said, then slowly walked forward.

Nel flinched a bit, expecting the spirit to attack her, but rose a brow when Kitsune leaned forward and got close to her ear.

“A little birdie told me that you have feelings for my partner over there.” Kitsune said in a whisper.

The former Espada’s face turned beat red from both embarrassment and anger. “I…I do not! Yoruichi’s lying to you!” she whispered back.

Kitsune backed up just enough for Nel to see the wide grin on the spirit’s face. “I’m not stupid, Nel. Yoruichi might not see it fully, but ‘I’ do. And you wanna know something?” she paused, causing the woman to lean back a bit, not liking what might come. The spirit leaned forward to her ear and cupped her furry hand around the woman’s ear. “I’m Tim’s zanpakutō, so I can hear ‘every’ thought that crosses his mind.”

The spirit paused to snicker lightly. “And I can tell you, that you’re not the ‘only’ person who has feelings for another.”

She had just told the woman a blatant lie. Kisuke could just make out what was being said and knew it was a lie, but Nel didn’t. The man held his fan over his face, only exposing his eyes to avoid giving the lie away with his amused smile, while the former Espada’s eyes widened and her face began to steam up.

After the shop owner showed Kitsune the video of Nel attacking Yoruichi because the woman teased her too much, Kitsune immediately declared to herself that she needed to get in on this as well.

Nel’s muscles then began twitching as she responded in a stutter. “I, I…I don’t know…what you’re talking about! You’re bluffing! You’re just trying to make fun of me!” she said.

Kitsune rose a brow at her. She couldn’t believe what she was seeing in front of her. Yoruichi was not, in any way, exaggerating when she told the spirit that Nel was an easy target. She almost felt sorry for the poor woman…’almost’!

“Oh? Really? You seem to forget that I was once Tim’s ‘wife’. He may be dense, but after having to spend years trying to win him over, I learned how to tell when he has feelings for another. So, trust me when I say that he apparently has feelings for somebody right now. I can only wonder who that someone might be.” She lied further.

In reality, Kitsune honestly had no clue as to whether or not Timothy ‘really’ did have any feelings for the Arrancar. She liked Nel, and hated messing with her like this, or at least this bad; but the woman had the nerve to call her out, and she was ‘not’ going to let her win this one.

The phone inside suddenly started ringing, so Kisuke swiftly stood up and walked inside to ‘answer’ the phone. A few seconds later, he called out to the porch.

“Tim, it’s for you.” He stated.

Timothy rose a brow, wondering who the hell would be calling for him there; but simply sighed and stood up to answer the phone. Kitsune looked inside to see a smile plastered on the shop owner’s face and his open cell phone in his hand, and knew right away what happened.

She looked back at Nel to see her with her head turned away. Kisuke had given her a perfect opportunity to have a bit of fun, and she was ‘not’ going to let it go to waste. Waiting only a few more seconds to ensure Timothy was gone, she continued her teasing.

“So, tell me…” she started, causing the other woman to turn her eyes to her in reluctance. “…are the feelings mutual?” she inquired with a toothy grin.

Nel lowered her head. “Why are you doing this? Why are you and Yoruichi trying so hard to make fun of me?” she asked in a whisper.

Kitsune rose a brow at her. “Why? Because it’s obvious you care for him, don’t you?” the spirit inquired.

The Arrancar set her, now empty, saucer down and pulled her knees to her chest as she turned her head away from the spirit fully. “Of course I care about Tim. He’s done so much…risked so much to help me, to protect me. He’s putting himself at risk of being punished by the soul society to help me. ‘Me’. An Arrancar. Someone who he’s supposed to hate and kill. I was his enemy, but he still risked everything to help me.”

The woman turned back to the spirit, surprising the anthropomorphic woman when she saw tears in the Arrancar’s eyes.

“I ‘do’ care about Tim! He’s doing for me what others wouldn’t! I don’t know what the hell I’m feeling towards him, because the truth is, I really don’t ‘know’ what I’m feeling! You and Yoruichi are both adamant that I have feelings for him, but I have no idea what that truly means!” Nel hissed back.

The spirit’s eyes widened as she realized what the woman was saying. “Wait…are you trying to tell me you have no idea what love is?” she inquired.

Nel shook head, then rested her arms on her knees and her head in her arms. “I’m a hollow, Kit. I lost all of my humanity when I became one. All we know is anger, hatred, and hunger. When a hollow becomes an Adjuchas, it gets ‘some’ of its humanity back; it regains ‘some’ of its lost emotions.”

She paused and glared at the spirit next to her. “This…feeling that you call love, isn’t one of them. So no, I don’t know what love is, Kit. You say that I have feelings for Tim, right? Maybe I do, and maybe I don’t. How the hell should I know if I do or don’t, if I’ve never experienced it before?!” she hissed through clenched teeth.

Kitsune took a small step back at the Arrancar’s voice. There was no ‘almost’ to it now; now she ‘really’ did feel sorry for the poor woman. The whole time that she and Yoruichi had teased her about feelings towards Timothy, the woman had actually had no idea what they were talking about.

Now feeling a heavy guilt on her shoulders, Kitsune took a step forward to place a hand on the woman’s shoulder. “Nel, I…”

She was stopped when Nel pulled away and stood up. She stood there for a moment with her fists at her side and shoulders shaking.

“Just…go away.” She demanded in a low, shaky tone, before swiftly turning around and walking into the shop.

Because she had her head down, she bumped into Timothy, then looked at him. The Lieutenant’s brow rose when her saw tears running down the woman’s cheeks.

“Nel? You alright?” he asked.

She dropped her head again. “Sorry Tim, I didn’t mean to bump into you. Good night.” She responded, then quickly walked around him and down the hallway to her room.

Timothy watched her leave, then when she was out of sight, turned to his zanpakutō spirit to see her with a look of extreme guilt. “What did you do?!” he demanded.

Kitsune turned her head away and held her arm to her side. “Nothing. Don’t worry about it.” She whispered back, then dematerialized to return to Timothy’s inner world.

He then growled in anger. “Oh, ‘hell’ no!” he said in a low and dangerous tone.

He turned back and stormed over to the kitchen where Tessai was cleaning the dishes from dinner. The large man turned and rose a brow when he saw the look in Timothy’s eyes.

“Ah, Tim. Can I help…”

“Where is Yoruichi?” he hissed.

The man, who was easily twice the Lieutenant’s size, began to sweat at the evil aura that bellowed from the smaller man.

“I’m…afraid she’s not here at the moment. She left a few hours ago. Is there something you need?” Tessai asked cautiously.

“Where did she go, and ‘when’ will she be back?” he demanded.

“I’m not sure where she went, nor do I know when she’ll be back. I’m sorry.” He said as he held up his dripping hands in surrender.

Timothy rose a brow. “I see. Well, when she comes back, tell her she had ‘better’ come find me.” He ‘requested’, then turned around and walked to the hallway to find his next target.

The Lieutenant slammed the door to Kisuke’s room open to see that it was empty. This made him far madder, considering that he knew that he saw the man come this way. He was quick to figure out once he saw Kitsune’s face, that the ‘call’ he had was a ruse to get him away from the two women.

The ‘humble shop owner’ was ‘clearly’ a part of this whole thing. And if he thought that he was going to get away with Nel’s torture, even though the man was only an accomplice, he had another thing coming to him.

“Where are you, Urahara?!” he yelled out.

“Excuse me…” a voice said from his side. Timothy glanced over to see Tessai. “…I’m sorry, but the boss is not here either. He said he had a few errands to run and left just a few minutes ago.” He informed.

Timothy narrowed his gaze at the man. “Oh, I’m ‘sure’ he did. What are the chances of that? Awfully convenient that he ‘suddenly’ had ‘errands’ to run. So…any idea on when ‘he’ will be back?” he asked in a mocking tone.

“I’m afraid he will not return until tomorrow, Tim. Would you like me to…”

“Tessai…” Timothy interrupted in a dangerous tone. “…I’m warning you, if you had ‘anything’ to do with Nel’s torture, I’m gonna be mad at you. I don’t mean to quote the ‘Hulk’ here, but you ‘really’ don’t want to deal with me when I’m mad.” He warned.

The larger man swallowed the lump in his throat and nodded. “Understood. I assure you, I am not associated with Lady Yoruichi’s, or the boss’s actions regarding miss Nel.” He insisted.

Timothy nodded firmly, then walked past the man and up to Nel’s door. Taking a deep breath to try and calm down, he knocked gently on her door. After a moment with no answer, he knocked once more.

“Nel?” he called, but still received no answer. “Nel, it’s Tim. You alright?” he asked. Waiting a few more seconds, he gripped the handle to the door and tried to slide it open a bit; but the woman had locked the sliding door shut.

“Nel, please let me in; or at least show me you’re alright.” He pleaded softly.

“I’m fine, Tim.” her muffled, broken voice sounded through the door.

He closed his eyes and took another deep, calming breath. “You sure?” he pressed.

“I’m sure. Thank you.” She responded lowly.

Knowing that she wasn’t going to open the door, he had no choice but to let her be. “Alright. Let me know if you need anything, Nel.”

He waited for a reply, but when he didn’t receive one, he sighed heavily and walked away from her door towards the dining room. He sat down at the table with a heavy plump, resting his elbows on the table and cradling his head in his hands.

“Damn that Yoruichi!” he moaned into his hands.

_“And you’re no better, Kit!”_ he mentally berated her.

**_“I’m…I’m sorry Tim…I didn’t mean to hurt her. I was only trying to…”_ **

_“To what? Torture her? Well, congrats to you; you succeeded! You and Yoruichi both berated the hell out of me…shit! Yoruichi tried to fucking ‘kill’ me for me blaming myself for Junya’s death. Yet, here you two go, pestering and torturing the poor woman and putting ‘her’ in the same damn mood you two beat the shit outta me for being in! Talk about double fucking standards!”_ he yelled at her.

He then leaned back against the wall and crossed his arms with his head hung low. _“The ‘only’ reasons I haven’t stuffed you under the damn bed is because; one: you’re stuck in my damn head, so it wouldn’t make a difference. And two: because ‘Johnny’s’ innocent in this and you ‘both’ share the same sword! What the hell did you say to her anyway?! And don’t you ‘dare’ tell me ‘nothing’!”_ he demanded.

**_“I…I can’t tell you Tim…It’s not my place to say…”_** she stated hesitantly.

He flashed his teeth with a growl. _“Don’t give me that shit! You and Yoruichi both have been pestering her about something personal; and knowing the two of you, it was something suggestive! Now, either you tell me, or it’s going to be a ‘long’ fucking night!”_ he threatened.

**_“Fine! We were teasing her about feelings for you!”_** she shot back.

Timothy’s eyes shot open. _“…What?!”_

**_“Me and Yoruichi were ‘pestering’ her about having feelings for you…we kept making suggestive comments to her that she ‘liked’ you.”_** She admitted.

_“…You…have got…to be kidding me…”_ he said in shock.

**_“No Tim, I’m not. Yoruichi started making comments to her the other day about her having feelings towards you, then tonight I did then same thing. But…”_** She then choked up, causing Timothy to raise a brow.

_“But what?!”_ he pressed.

**_“Then she made me mad! She laughed at me after you…you proved I was worse than you when we were younger!”_ **

_“So? What’s that got to do with this?”_ he demanded.

**_“I…I wanted to get back at her for it. So, I…I told her that…you had feelings for her too.”_ **

Timothy froze, trying to make sure he heard right. _“You said…what?”_ he asked in disbelief.

**_“I told her that…you had feelings for her too.”_ **

_“Why…the fuck…would you tell her ‘that’?!”_

**_“Because I wanted her to feel uncomfortable, to just mess with her. It’s not uncommon, Tim. You know this.”_** She pointed out.

_“Ok…regardless if that statement was true or not, I don’t see how that would make her mad. If she ‘really’ did have feelings for me, don’t you think that she would be ‘happy’ that the feeling is mutual? What are you not telling me, Kit?!”_

**_“…Do you remember…what Kisuke said about when a soul becomes a hollow?”_ **

_“Yeah…”_

**_“Remember that he said…hollows lose their emotions and humanity?”_ **

_“I do…”_

**_“Well…When Nel became what Kisuke called an ‘Adjuchas’, she apparently regained some of her humanity and emotions…but not all.”_ **

Timothy rose a brow, beginning to see what she was getting at. _“…I’m listening.”_ He said in a calmer voice.

**_“Well, it seems that…Nel doesn’t know what love is…or rather, she doesn’t know what it feels like.”_ **

The man sighed with a moan and rubbed his temples. _“Are you telling me, that you and Yoruichi have been pestering Nel about having feelings for me, yet she doesn’t even know what these so-called feelings are? That makes no sense. The other day when her and Yoruichi got into it, she was obviously blushing and wouldn’t even look at me. If she doesn’t know what it feels like to love someone, how the hell do you explain that?”_

Kitsune had to think that one over, but only managed to come up with one possibility. **_“Tim…I think…she might have been feeling one of the emotions that she ‘does’ have.”_**

****

He rose I a brow in question. _“What do you mean?”_

**_“I mean embarrassment, Tim. Yoruichi told me the kind of things she said to Nel about you being her ‘boyfriend’…”_ **

He flinched, and his eyes went wide. _“…She didn’t…!”_

**_“Yes Tim, she did. Anyway, she said that every time she mentioned about you being her boyfriend, she was always embarrassed, constantly denying it.”_ **

_“Ever think that it’s because it ‘true’? That I’m ‘not’ her boyfriend?”_ he pointed out.

**_“I never…thought about it until just now, but I think what happened is that, while she does not know about the emotion ‘love’, she does know ‘embarrassment’. I think that, the whole time, she’s actually been telling the truth; that she really ‘didn’t’ know what Yoruichi and I were saying. But, because of ‘what’ we were saying, her mind caused her to ‘naturally’ feel embarrassed. Now that I think about it, remember that night her and Yoruichi fought each other? You asked her if she was alright? She wouldn’t look at you and kept turning away. Did you notice that she not only looked embarrassed, but she also looked…lost…confused.”_ **

Timothy turned around to look at Nel’s door. _“So…she was embarrassed…but didn’t know ‘why’?”_

**_“Considering what Kisuke said about Arrancar’s not having ‘all’ of their emotions, I really think that might be the case. Tim…I really had no idea…it didn’t even occur to me what Kisuke said about hollows and emotions. Believe me, I honestly didn’t mean to hurt her, Tim. You know I like Nel.”_** She pleaded.

The man turned back and lowered his head. _“Regardless, you saw what happened the other night between her and Yoruichi. You should have known that she can’t stand being harassed like that. She may be an Arrancar Kit, but even they have feelings; and frankly, you and Yoruichi just destroyed hers. That’s always been your biggest fault, Kit; you have a tendency to mess with others without taking their feelings into account. Now leave me be, you’ve done enough for one night.”_

**_“I’m sorry.”_** She said for a last time before fading into silence.

Timothy cradled his head in his arms and sighed heavily. Kitsune and Yoruichi obviously didn’t mean any harm towards the female Arrancar, they even considered her their friend. But the fact was that they had gone too far with their teasing.

And now that he had calmed down a little, it began to dawn on him that even though Kitsune had badly hurt the woman’s feelings, there really was no way she could have known exactly how the woman was really feeling, considering her unique situation.

_“Hey ‘Johnny’…”_ he called out to his other zanpakutō spirit.

**_“What…is it.”_** He replied in his slow and low tone.

_“If Kit is materialized, can she hear things I say or think?”_ he inquired.

**_“No…When a…zanpakutō spirit…enters the real world…they are no longer…in their…inner world.”_** He answered.

He gave a gentle nod into his arms. _“Thanks.”_

**_“Hm.”_** The spirit replied, then retreated into silence as well.

Timothy stood up from the table and entered the hallway. Stopping briefly at his door to glance behind him at Nel’s own door, he then entered his room and walked over to his bed. Lying down and pulling the covers over his body, he rolled onto his side and stared out the window at the cloudless sky.

Using what ‘Johnny’ had said, he mentally decided that he would go talk to Nel in the morning after he had Kitsune materialize herself and remain in the room; which would allow him to talk with the poor woman in private.

Taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly to relax, he closed his eyes and let sleep take him away.

** The Next Morning **

Timothy had woken up before everyone else did, just like he normally did, and was back downstairs in the training area underneath the shop. The only thing was, he really wasn’t training as hard as he normally did.

While he had released Kitsune’s abilities, spawned a few clones, and was transitioning between flames, launching into a series of sword attacks and kidō chants, his mind wasn’t completely focused on the training itself.

His mind kept going back to the event from the night before, and to Nel. He was still quite upset at Kitsune, Yoruichi, and Kisuke for making her feel the way she did, but he couldn’t quite blame them entirely when they didn’t know how she truly felt about their constant teasing.

A sudden electronic beeping noise caused Timothy to stop his training and turn back to his gigai that he had set to the side and out of the way. Nel always came down to get him for breakfast at around the same time, so he had set an alarm on his faux body’s digital watch to let him know that he had about five minutes before she came down.

He did this for one reason; to try and catch Nel off guard and surprise her. Sometimes it worked, giving her a good morning scare; but then, sometimes it didn’t, and Nel would get the better of him and give ‘him’ a morning scare.

After the first few days, it sort of became a friendly competition between the two of them to see who could sneak up on the other more. Currently, and although Nel refused to admit it, Timothy had the upper hand on her; having gotten the jump on her seven times to her two in the last ten days, with one day ending in a draw.

Although he felt really bad for Nel after what happened, he was still looking to make his eighth ‘kill’ that morning. This time, he planned to cheat a little by using his mod soul, that was ‘playing dead’ in his faux body, to get the jump on her.

Five minutes passed…then six…seven…his watch now signaling that it was now eight minutes since the alarm had gone off. While keeping up with his ‘training’, he was constantly eyeing the field and looking for any signs of his prey trying to sneak around.

But it was now ten minutes after his ‘warning’, and he still didn’t see any sign of her. _‘Either she’s trying to be ‘really’ sneaky, or she’s running late today.’_ He concluded.

He then heard the sound of footsteps behind him, causing him to grin. _‘There you are.’_

The footsteps kept getting louder and louder as Nel got closer and closer, obviously trying the direct approach from behind. By the sound, he could tell she was hiding behind the boulder that was just behind him.

Another footstep, and he knew she was now right behind him. _‘Nice try, Nel.’_

He quickly swung around with his blade and stopped a mere inch from the woman’s neck…or at least, what ‘should’ have been her neck. Instead, his blade was less than an inch from the left flank of a rather large man.

Timothy slowly looked up at the large man and rose a brow. “Tessai? What are you doing here? Where’s Nel? She’s the one who normally comes and gets me.” He stated, then pulled his blade back to hold it at his side.

“I’m sorry, but miss Nel has not woken up yet.” The taller man informed.

The Lieutenant tilted his head. “Not woken up yet? You mean she’s still asleep? That’s not like her.”

Tessai gently shook his head. “Miss Nel has not come out of her room yet, so I assumed that she was still sleeping. I will go wake her now.”

Timothy held up a hand to stop him. “No, it’s fine. I’ll get her. Thanks for coming to get me. I’ll be up in just a sec.” he said as he sheathed his zanpakutō.

The large man nodded and left. Timothy walked over to his gigai and got back in it, coughing up the soul pill and wiping it on his shirt before putting it in his pocket to wash it later. He then walked over to the ladder and began climbing back up to the shop.

When he returned to the shop, he walked through the dining room and noticed that Kisuke was not there like he normally was.

_‘I guess the coward is still hiding.’_ He inwardly mocked, and continued through the room and stopping at Nel’s door.

He gave the door a gentle tap. “Hey Nel, breakfast is ready. You up?” he called through the door. A few seconds passed, but she didn’t answer. He knocked on the door again, but a bit firmer. “Hey, Nel. You awake?” he called again, but still got no answer.

He tried to slide the door open, but it was still locked. He gave a heavy sigh and thumped on the door to make sure he got her attention. “Nel…come on and open the door. Please?” After waiting a few minutes, he turned to Tessai, who was putting the food on the table.

“Hey Tessai, you got a key to this room?” he inquired.

The man looked to him. “Of course. One moment.” He said, then walked back into the kitchen.

Timothy turned back to the door and knocked again. “Nel, please open the door, or I’ll have to have Tessai open it for me.” He threatened. He still got no answer, and Tessai then walked up with the key to the room.

“Here you go.” he said as he handed the key to Timothy.

The shorter man took it, then gave one last attempt at calling Nel. “Nel, I have the key to the room. So please open the door, or I’ll have to open it myself.” He said again in a clam voice. Not getting a response, he gave a heavy sigh and put the key in the lock. “I’m coming in Nel.” He warned, then twisted the key and slid the door open.

He walked inside and started looking around. When he did, his eyes widened. _‘Oh shit…’_

** Karakura Town Park, Present **

Sitting on one of the many park benches surrounding the edge of the main park of Karakura Town, Nel watched the many passing humans as they went about to start their day.

She was unable to sleep for most of the night, but finally succumbed to it sometime around midnight. When she had woken up, she found that, for some reason she couldn’t figure out, the barrier around the shop had been dropped.

Not wanting to be around anyone that morning, she used the opportunity to leave the shop and go for a long walk to clear her mind. It didn’t take her long to come across the same park where she had taken the attack from the Adjuchas that was meant for Timothy.

That was well over an hour ago, and the streets were still a bit vacant then, except for a few early risers like her. But now the streets were packed with humans of a wide variety of ages; from school aged teens, to the elderly; it being Sunday and all.

Even when she was an Adjuchas, which was the last time she had been to the world of the living, she had found the humans to be interesting. For such a weak, and powerless race, they could be quite intelligent and strong, in their own way.

Every now and then, she would see two humans, a male and female, walking by and holding hands, or clinging to each other; she even saw two couples embracing each other briefly. She had seen it before, but the actions still confused her a little. She honestly saw no point in it.

For hollows, the closest thing that could be considered ‘romance’ was when the hollows mated. There really wasn’t any ‘romance’ behind it, it was simply for copulation and breeding for those that ‘could’ reproduce.

But humans, this was something else entirely. Where hollows would take a mate and really pay no attention to them, except to protect them and to engage in sexual actions, these humans were actually showing excessive actions of attraction to each other.

There were a couple of books on humans and their unique behaviors in Las Noches that she had read, and both of them had mentioned briefly about humans ‘loving’ each other. But she always found that strange and thought nothing of it.

But now that she was seeing it with her own eyes, it baffled her. Why show such needless acts of affection? What purpose did it serve? What did kissing, holding hands, embracing, all of it, have to do with being a mated?

Humans were very weird creatures she concluded. She pulled her knees up to her chest with her feet posted on the edge of the seat. Wrapping her arms around her legs, she rested her head on her knees and let out a heavy sigh.

_‘What ‘is’ this feeling that Kit called ‘love’? Is that what those humans keep doing…showing ‘love’ by holding onto each other like that? If that’s the case, why show it? What does it have to do with being together? It’s stupid. Humans really are weird.’_ She thought, then tucked her head into her legs.

She remained in that position, ignoring the occasional looks she got from people walking by, until a voice spoke up.

“Hey, are you ok?” a young and feminine voice asked.

Nel lifted her head towards the voice and was surprised to see the young girl that was a friend of Ichigo’s.

“You’re…Orihime…right?” Nel inquired.

The girl widened her eyes a bit in surprise. “Y…Yes, but…how do you know my name?” she fretted.

Nel smiled at her warmly. “It’s me, Nel. I’m in my gigai, so that must be why you don’t recognize me.” She informed.

“Oh! I’m sorry, you just look a bit different. I guess it’s the hair, seeing that the last time I saw you, you had greenish hair and that mark on your face. So, this is your gigai?” the teen asked with interest. The Arrancar nodded in acknowledgment. “I see. So…if you don’t mind me asking, what are you doing out here? I though mister Urahara wanted you to stay inside his shop.”

The Arrancar dropped her head a bit. “I just…needed some time away is all. I had a lot on my mind.” She admitted, then turned her head away from the girl.

Orihime tilted her head a bit. “Are you…ok, Nel?” she asked in worry.

The woman tightened her hold on her legs. “I’m fine.” She answered in a low tone.

The teen walked up to the woman and maneuvered her head around to see the woman’s face. She became more worried when she saw sadness in her eyes.

“Are you sure? You seem upset. Do you…want to talk about it?” Orihime offered.

Nel turned her eyes to her. “Why? So, you can make fun of me too?” she hissed.

Orihime’s eyes widened. “W…Why would I do that?! Why would someone make fun of you?!”

The former Espada continued to stare at the teen for a moment, but finally sighed and dropped her head in her legs. “I’m…sorry about that. It’s just…I’m just tired of people making fun of me.” She admitted.

The teen walked around and sat down next to Nel. “Who would make fun of you? Did you…do something?”

Nel shook her head. “Just being what I am.” She said, then faced the teen. “I’m sorry for snapping at you, Orihime. But…after several days of Yoruichi teasing me, and with Kit making fun of me…I couldn’t take anymore.”

Orihime’s brows rose in shock. “Yoruichi was teasing you? Why?”

The woman turned away again. “Don’t worry about it, Orihime. I’ll deal with it on my own. Thank you though.”

The teen observed the older woman for a moment, then with a heavy sigh, she stood up and grabbed Nel’s wrist. The action surprised Nel, so she quickly turned her head and rose a brow at the teen.

“What are…” she started, but stopped when Orihime gave her a wide smile.

“Come on, Nel. Let’s go get some ice cream and talk. You’ll feel much better if you talk to someone about your troubles.”

Nel tried to speak in protest, but a sharp tug on the woman’s arm silenced her, pulling her off the park bench and forcing her to follow her teen captor. Nel’s face was plastered with a shocked look, while Orihime’s was full of cheer.

“I know the best place to get ice cream! It’s actually close by!” the teen said happily.

Nel managed to get her footing and started walking next to the teen reluctantly. The former Quinto Espada could easily overpower the young girl and pull her arm away, but the teen was only trying to help; even if Nel didn’t really want it.

With a defeated sigh, the Arrancar didn’t resist as Orihime led her away from the park.

Ten minutes later, the two women were sitting in a booth at a decent sized ice cream and desert parlor. Nel wasn’t quite sure what ice cream was, so she went with a simple bowl of a few scoops of vanilla and chocolate.

But Orihime, given her rather…unique taste buds, went with a raspberry, wasabi, and red bean paste sundae. The teen was happy as a clam, but Nel just stared in ridicule at the young woman’s choice. Nel may not have known what ice cream was, but she was pretty sure that those things were not meant to be eaten with it.

Shrugging her shoulders, Nel grabbed her spoon and scooped up some of the vanilla ice cream, putting it in her mouth. Her eyes widened at the cold, yet very delicious taste of this human desert.

She quickly grabbed another spoonful and lightly moaned with closed eyes in pleasure at the taste. She then took some of the chocolate, and quickly found she liked that flavor even more than the first.

“Soooo gooood.” She said in a long whisper, then grabbed another bite.

Orihime stopped her eating and stared at the older woman in amazement. “You’ve never had ice cream before?!” she inquired.

Nel quickly shook her head and took another bite, leaning side to side as she reveled in bliss. Orihime started laughing at the woman’s actions, then smiled proudly.

“I’m glad you like it! Ice cream is my favorite! Although…” she paused and held a finger to her lips. “…their pastries are very good too. Maybe we should try those next…” she wondered aloud.

“If they’re as good as this, I’m all for it!” Nel stated happily and took another bite.

Within five minutes of the first bite, Nel’s bowl was completely empty, so Orihime ordered her another one. Nel quickly held up her hands.

“No, I can’t make you keep paying for me!” she stated.

Orihime waved her off. “It’s fine, Nel. I can see you really like it, I don’t mind.” The teen said cheerfully.

“I couldn’t! It’s not fair to you!”

“I said it’s fine, Nel. Really. I’m glad you found something you like here.” The teen insisted.

Nel moaned in defeat, seeing that the young woman was not going to let it go. “If…if you’re sure…”

Orihime nodded firmly. “I am.” She stated, then took a bite of her…‘desert’.

A few minutes later, the waitress returned with Nel’s second bowl, but this time with strawberry and chocolate chip. Nel raised a brow at the new flavors, then glanced at the teen.

“Uh, how many flavors are there, Orihime?” she inquired.

Orihime raised her head and hummed in thought. “A lot, actually. There’s vanilla, chocolate, strawberry, Neapolitan…there’s so many that, I really don’t know. You can even mix and match if you wanted.” She informed.

“That’s unbelievable.” Nel replied in shock.

The younger woman nodded, then turned a bit stern. “So…can I ask what happened exactly that made you so upset?”

Nel froze with her spoon hovering in front of her open mouth to glance at the teen. Closing her mouth and setting the spoon down in the bowl, she took a deep breath.

“It’s…nothing.” She stated.

Orihime shook her head. “No Nel, it’s not ‘nothing’. It’s only ‘us’ here Nel, so you can tell me. I promise I won’t say anything. I swear.” She pressed.

Sparing the teen a last glance, Nel then dropped her head and rest her hands in her lap. Taking another deep breath, she began telling the teen about everything that happened; Yoruichi’s teasing about Timothy being her boyfriend, Kitsune’s comments about Timothy having feelings for her, and what Nel had told the spirit not knowing what love was.

Orihime listened carefully and intently, every now and then gasping in shock at what the woman told her. By the time that Nel had finished telling her friend everything, Orihime also had her head down in sorrow; now feeling horrible for the woman.

Neither of them now cared that their deserts were melting and no longer looked desirable to eat. They both sat in silence, one feeling depressed, the other sorry for the other. Orihime used the back of her hand to wipe tears out of her eyes with a sniff.

“I’m sorry you had to go through that, Nel. That wasn’t nice of Yoruichi and Tim’s zanpakutō to make fun of you like that. It’s…it’s horrible that you don’t know what love is. I feel so bad for you, Nel.” The teen said in a sorrowful tone.

Nel shook her head slowly. “It’s…not your fault, Orihime. I know Yoruichi is just being her herself, the same with Kit. But…it still hurt. Not really the teasing, but…” She paused as her voice locked up.

Orihime lifted her head to look at the Arrancar in front of her. “It hurts knowing you feel something, but don’t know what it is?” she finished.

The woman nodded lightly. “With my aspect being Loyalty…”

The teen tilted her head in confusion. “Aspect?” she wondered.

Nel looked at her with sadness. “My aspect of death. Every Espada has one. It basically governs our personalities. Mine, is Loyalty. I always have the desire to be faithful to the one I serve, doing so makes me happy and content. When I served Aizen, even though I disagreed with his methods, I always felt a deep connection to him; that serving him would always make me happy. But, after he told us what he did to Tim, and what he…” she paused and dropped her head.

Orihime took a deep breath when she saw Nel crying. “…what he did to my friends…I couldn’t…take it anymore…I couldn’t serve him anymore.” She said through a chocked voice. She sat there for a moment, then looked back at the teen. “But then I met Tim…he said he would look out for me…protect me. I suddenly felt that feeling again…the desire to serve. I wanted to…be loyal to him, I guess.” She then took a deep breath before continuing.

“But after the first couple of days, before Yoruichi started teasing me, I noticed that that feeling felt…different. It didn’t…It didn’t feel like I wanted to serve him, but rather…I really can’t explain it clearly, but…like I wanted to be ‘with’ him. I didn’t think anything of it at first…” She paused again, and Orihime nodded.

“Yoruichi started teasing you about him being your ‘boyfriend’.” Orihime filled in.

Nel looked down and nodded. “All I know about the term ‘boyfriend’, is that you humans use it to describe a possible future mate. That’s why I got so embarrassed about her statement, thinking that she was suggesting I wanted Tim as a mate. But then she kept pressing me about ‘feelings’ for Tim. I really didn’t know what she was talking about at first; but over the past week, I started thinking about what she said, and how my feeling of loyalty to Tim felt off. I started to wonder to myself if this…odd feeling towards him was what she meant.”

She then returned her gaze to Orihime with tears in her eyes. “It wasn’t Yoruichi’s and Kit’s teasing that bothered me, Orihime; it was the fact that they kept pressing that I had feelings towards Tim like it’s a good thing, and I can’t experience this ‘good thing’ because I don’t know what these ‘feelings’ are. It hurts, Orihime. It hurts and scares me that I’m feeling something, and that I have no idea what it is. What if it ‘is’ true; do I really have feelings for Tim like that? Can ‘you’ tell if I do or don’t have feelings for him? And if I do, what do I do about it?” she pleaded, then rested her elbows on the table and buried her face in her hands.

Orihime swiftly got up and sat back down next to Nel, rubbing her back with her hand. “I am the former Quinto Espada…the fifth strongest Arrancar in Hueco Mundo…and here I am…scared of my own feelings.” Nel said mockingly to herself.

The woman next to her sighed heavily. “You may have been the fifth strongest, Nel; but even that means little against something you know nothing about. I can’t say I know anything about Arrancars, Nel, but I can say that, from everything you’ve said, that…I think you ‘do’ have some feelings for Tim. I can’t say how deep those feelings are, but they are there.” She informed.

Nel lifted her head a little and side glanced the teen. “And what am I supposed to do about these ‘feelings’? I know nothing about what humans call ‘romance’.” She admitted reluctantly.

Orihime started scratching the back of her head. “I…can’t really say, Nel. Because the truth is…I…uh…” Nel rose a tearful brow when the young woman started blushing.

The Arrancar quickly figured out why she paused. “You have these feelings for someone?” she inquired.

The teen twitched and froze, but timidly nodded. “Y…Yes.”

The truth was, Orihime had had a crush on Ichigo for years; but only she, and her best friend Tatsuki knew about it. She had been trying for years to gather the courage to ask Ichigo out, but would quickly choke up whenever she tried.

Nel dropped her hands to her lap and sighed. “I won’t ask who…just…tell me what…it feels like to you.” She gave the teen a serious look. “What does it ‘feel’ like with him?”

Orihime scratched her cheek as she tried to think of the best words to describe what Nel was asking of her. The two women sat in silence for nearly a minute, then the younger woman took a deep breath.

“It feels like…I want him.” She finally said.

The former Espada rose a brow. “Want him?”

The teen turned to her and nodded. “It feels like I always want to be around him, that I want to stay with him. Every time I’m near him, I feel…warm inside. And when he leaves, I suddenly feel…empty inside; like something’s missing. Being near him makes me the happiest.” She explained, then Nel turned her head away to look out the window. “Is that…what you feel…with Tim, Nel?”

The woman didn’t answer her, she was so suddenly flooded with thoughts and realization that she honestly didn’t even comprehend the question. Everything Orihime described to her, also described how ‘she’ felt around Timothy.

She couldn’t believe that what Yoruichi said to her was true; she apparently ‘did’ feel something towards Timothy, even if the woman didn’t know it for sure. But now she was left with a big problem; what to do about these ‘feelings’.

She did like Tim, a lot. But he was a soul reaper, and her an Arrancar; two completely opposing forces of the spiritual world. Should she look deeper into these feelings, possibly establish a relationship with him?

Honestly, she wasn’t completely against the idea; but is such a relationship even remotely possible? The last thing she wanted to do was hurt Tim; especially after seeing how badly he responds to negative emotions.

But if she decided to ignore these feelings and just…let them fade away, then would she feel bad about it? Would she regret it? Could she even ‘do’ it?

“Nel?” Orihime pressed, getting her attention.

“Sorry Orihime, I didn’t hear you.” Nel responded.

Orihime leaned back and sighed. “You do feel that way about Tim…don’t you?” she inquired.

Nel turned back to the window, then nodded slowly. “I do…and it scares me. So now…what do I do about it? Tim’s a soul reaper…and I’m a hollow.” She pointed out, then returned to the teen. “I don’t think it’s possible between us, Orihime. I owe Tim…I don’t want to see him hurt anymore.”

The teen’s eyes widened a bit. “But…didn’t he have feelings for you too?” she asked.

The older woman looked out the window again. “I don’t know. Kit said he did…but I think she was lying just to tease me. If he does, it’s only going to make things worse.”

“How so?” Orihime asked.

Nel swiftly turned to her. “Tell me the truth, Orihime; do you honestly think that an Arrancar and a soul reaper can be together?”

The young woman nodded sternly. “If you two really do care for each other, I don’t really think it matters what you two are.”

“That’s not what I meant, Orihime. I am an enemy of the soul society; ‘something’ to be destroyed. Tim is a soul reaper, who is a ‘part’ of that soul society. So, let me ask it another way; do you honestly think that the soul society would ever allow an Arrancar and a soul reaper to be together?” Nel corrected.

Orihime dropped her head. “I see your point, Nel…you’re right. I feel so horrible that you’re being judged ‘only’ because of ‘what’ you are…and not ‘who’ you are. It’s wrong.”

“It’s life…and how things work, Orihime.” Nel jumped. She gave a last, heavy sigh and shook her head. “I should be heading back; Tim is likely going crazy now that he’s, or at least I’m sure by now he has found out that I’m not at the shop anymore.”

Orihime looked at her friend closely. “And what do you plan to do about…your feelings for him?” she inquired as she stood up and out of the way to let Nel out.

Nel then dropped her head. “Nothing…As much as I like Tim, we can never be together…so it’s best to just…let these feelings die.” She answered, then stood up as well.

The teen looked at her with concern. “Are you not…even willing to…try? Just…dropping these feelings…it’s only going to hurt you, Nel.” She cautioned.

The Arrancar nodded. “Better me…than him. The last thing I want, is to see Tim in pain again. You weren’t there, Orihime; the last time he felt bad. I do not want to be the cause of him being in that state again.” She stated, then held her hand out to the teen. “Thank you…for everything, Orihime.”

Nel was surprised when the teen suddenly wrapped her arms around the woman in an embrace. “It’s no problem, Nel. I’m sorry I couldn’t be more help to you.”

With a small smile coming to Nel’s face, the woman returned the hug. “It’s fine. I’ll figure this out on my own.”

The two women separated were Orihime smiled brightly. “Please let me know if there’s anything I can help with. And don’t worry about Yoruichi. She likes to tease, but she really doesn’t mean any harm. I’m sure if you talk to her, and let her know what your problem ‘really is’, she’ll let up. She may even be able to help you, Nel.” The teen advised.

Nel smiled more. “I’ll think about it. Thanks again, Orihime.”

The two friends left the booth and walked to the front of the shop, waving before going their separate ways. Nel took a deep breath and started going back on what she and Orihime talked about.

Now that she knew what exactly she was feeling, and what Yoruichi and Kit were talking about, she felt a little bit better in that regards. But it now left her with a whole new problem; dealing with those feelings that she now had for the Lieutenant.

He was nice, always caring about others before he would himself. No, it was more than that; he would put himself at risk in order to help others. Even someone who was blind could see the fierce loyalty that Timothy possessed towards those he cared about; and that was why Nel admired him so much.

The more she thought about it, the more she wanted to get to know him more…and that worried her. The harsh reality of the matter was that it just wasn’t possible between the two of them. The only way to prevent more pain, was to simply stop it before it got worse.

And it was at this point that Nel had made up her mind. She was going to put a stop to these feelings towards Timothy and make sure that the two of them wouldn’t end up being together.

She lowered her head as she held back tears that welled up in her eyes. “He’s doing so much to try and protect me…so I should do the same for him.” She whispered to herself, and continued on back towards the shop.

** Urahara Shop, Present **

Timothy was now in a suppressed form of panic mode; mainly because Toshiro and the rest of the group were now downstairs in the training area starting their morning routines. It’s been close to an hour now since he discovered Nel being gone, and there was no telling ‘how long’ she had been gone before he noticed.

He wanted to go out looking for her, but Tessai had made a very valid argument; stating that she couldn’t be detected in her gigai, and it would be ridiculous if he thought he could find a single ‘human’ in a large city, amongst thousands of other humans.

Not only that, but the Captain expected him to train with the group, and would likely suspect something if Timothy avoided training to go out ‘somewhere’. That was the only reason he was currently training with the others, to avoid that suspicion.

He was currently facing off against Rukia, who was already in her released state. She was proving to be a challenge to fight against because of her zanpakutō, Sode no Shirayuki’s freezing abilities.

If he was allowed to release himself, those abilities would be no problem. While powerful, her ‘dances’ took a moment to complete; giving him plenty of openings for his own abilities. But Captain Hitsugaya had still denied him from using those abilities.

“Tsugi no mai, Hakuren!” Rukia said after stabbing the ground four times with the tip of her zanpakutō.

A large beam of ice shot forward in front of her, right towards the Lieutenant. He quickly learned on the first try that nothing he had would stop that beam; after trying to use a Raikōhō to counter and the kidō being blasted apart by the beam, completely unfazed. The only option he was left with was to use shunpo to dodge it.

He flashed into place over to Rukia’s left, where she quickly swung her sword out at him.

“Some no mai, Tsukishiro!”

The ground under his feet began freezing up, and he knew what that meant. “Shit!” he said, then quickly flashed away again just as a beam of ice shot up to the ceiling from the ground where he was just at.

Rukia was quick to turn back around in time to block against Timothy’s counter attack. She held him back and gave him a serious glare.

“You’re distracted, Lieutenant.” She observed.

He flinched at her calling him out. “I am not!” he yelled at her, then forced his blade harder against hers to push himself back away from her; landing a few yards away. “Come on, even you know it’s hard to fight against a damned Shikai while still sealed! You clearly have the advantage, and I need to take my time fighting you! So, cut me some slack!” he yelled.

She scoffed and stood straight while resting her pure white blade on her shoulder. “Forgive me for saying this, Lieutenant…”

He growled at her. “For the last time, stop with this ‘Lieutenant’ shit. I asked you to just call me Tim. In case you didn’t notice, I’m a relaxed type of person, so you don’t have to be so uptight with me. If the Captain wants to be a hardass, that’s his problem. Now, what were you going to say?”

Rukia smiled and shook her head. “You know, you’re a good man when you’re not sulking around.” She pointed out.

“Shut up! I thought we were over that!” he retorted.

Letting her zanpakutō return to its sealed state, she sheathed the blade and started walking towards him. Timothy returned his blade as well and sighed as he placed his hands on his hips. Rukia stopped when she was less than a foot from him.

“What’s wrong, Tim? I may not be a seated officer, but I’m not blind. I know something’s bothering you.” She pressed as she crossed her arms.

He looked at her to see that her face was calm with a bit of worry buried underneath. He crossed his arms as well and sighed.

“It’s nothing important, just something that had me bothered earlier. I’m fine, Rukia.” He insisted.

She rose a disbelieving brow at him. “Really? And why do I not believe that? I’m going to take a shot in the dark here and say that you’re worried about Nel?” she inquired.

Timothy froze, and his eyes widened. “I…don’t know what you mean. Why would I be worried about Kisuke’s assistant?” he attempted.

Rukia rolled her eyes with a scoff. “You don’t need to hide it, Tim. I know about Nel and her little ‘secret’.” She informed.

The Lieutenant reached out and grabbed her by the collar. “How the fuck do you know about her?!” he demanded.

She smiled at him, clearly unfazed by his action. “Ichigo told me.” She answered in amusement.

He flinched and began growling with his head down. “I…am going…to ‘kill’ him!” he hissed.

Rukia placed a hand over his own that was holding her collar. “Relax, Tim. Ichigo trusts me, and so should you.” She advised.

Timothy glared at her. “And ‘why’ should I trust you? As far as you are concerned, I’ve committed treason by keeping her a secret. So why should I believe that you won’t just go turn me in?” he questioned.

“Because’ Ichigo trusts me, and ‘I’ trust ‘him’. Now, can you please let me go and I’ll explain?” she pleaded.

With a heavy scoff, he released her and returned his arms across his chest while she straightened her kosode.

“Now…Ichigo told me about Nel because he trusts me to know. After everything that’s happened lately, I’ve learned not to be too quick to judge others. I’ve known about Nel ever since we first arrived, and have been keeping an eye on her. Although I’ve never spoken to her, nor seen her speak to anyone else except Kisuke, I can tell she’s not a bad person. In fact, I actually agree with you about her being a valuable ally against Aizen. And let’s face it Tim, you’re going to need all the help you can get to defend her case when she gets discovered by the soul society; and you know they will.” She stated.

Giving her a heavy sigh, he finally nodded. “Alright, I’ll trust you, Rukia. And you do have a point; I will need all the help I can get. Does the Captain or anyone else know?”

Rukia shook her head. “No, and to be honest, I really can’t say if they would help Nel or not if they did know. Captain Hitsugaya is a bit stern, but he is very understanding. Renji would more than likely fight for Nel as he trusts both me and Ichigo; although he can be an idiot sometimes. Lieutenant Matsumoto would likely help her; but Yumichika and Ikkaku, there’s no telling. I didn’t say anything to Renji yet, but I would advise you include him in this.”

Timothy placed a hand to his forehead and ran his fingers through his dirty blonde hair. “Rukia…you know damn well that, just by ‘knowing’ about Nel and not reporting it, they could get you for treason, right? I’m willing to take that risk simply because it’s who I am, and I refuse to abandon my friends.” he inquired.

She simply shrugged her shoulders with a grin. “Wouldn’t be the first time I’ve been tried as a traitor; what’s a second time gonna do? Besides, I think you’re right about Nel and that she’s really changed sides. If we can make the soul society see that she’s not as bad a person that they think she is, they might allow her to go. You never know, Tim.” she assured.

He opened his mouth to reply, but the sound of approaching footsteps got his attention. He turned to his right to see Tessai walking up calmly.

“Sorry to interrupt, but I was hoping that Tim here could give me a hand with a delivery that miss Nel brought back.” He lied.

Timothy knew what the man was saying, and he was relieved. It meant that Nel was back at the shop now. Rukia turned to the man as well.

“It’s alright Tessai, I know about her.” She informed him.

Tessai looked at Timothy with a bit of worry, but relaxed when the Lieutenant waved him off. “Long story, I’ll explain later. I’ll be up in just a sec. She didn’t have any ‘problems’ with the delivery, did she?”

“I don’t believe so, she seemed to be fine to me. She’s upstairs having a late breakfast and tea. Would you like me to make you some?” Tessai offered.

“Yes, please.” Timothy answered.

“Make that two, Tessai.” Rukia followed, holding up two fingers, then turned to Timothy. “I have a few things I’d like to ask her real quick. I’ll let the Captain know we’ll be upstairs ‘helping Tessai’.” She stated.

Timothy nodded, then followed the large man back to the ladder and up to the shop. He walked into the dining room to see Nel sitting down on the seat she normally did. He sighed heavily, getting her attention.

“Where were you? You really had me worried, Nel.” He said in a calm voice as he sat down across from her.

She lowered her head a bit and nodded. “I needed some time to think about things, so I stepped out. Sorry to worry you, Tim.” she answered.

That’s when it dawned on him. “Wait, ‘how’ did you leave? I thought Kisuke had a barrier around the place that prevented you from leaving.” He inquired.

She looked at him and shrugged. “No idea. I woke up this morning and the barrier wasn’t there. It was there when I came back, but it seems it only keeps me ‘in’, not ‘out’. I walked right through it and came back inside.”

Timothy shook his head. “Whatever. Just hold on a second.” He said, then closed his eyes.

_“Get your ass out here, Kit.”_ He demanded before reopening them.

The two of them watched as Kitsune materialized herself to stand next to Timothy. Kitsune dropped her head at seeing Nel, while Timothy glared at the spirit.

“Got something to say?” he inquired/demanded.

The spirit took a deep breath and looked at her. “I really am sorry Nel…I really didn’t mean to hurt you like that.”

Nel nodded at her. “It’s fine Kit, I know you didn’t mean it. You didn’t know everything about me, so I can’t blame you. I just ask that you please don’t do it anymore.” She pleaded.

Kitsune nodded firmly. “I won’t.” she stated, then lightly chuckled. “But Ichigo’s still fair game, right?” she asked to Timothy.

He simply waved her off. “Do whatever you want to the fool, as long as you leave me and Nel out of it. Now, if you don’t mind Kit, me and Nel have something personal to discuss. So, could you please step out of the room for a moment?” he asked.

“I’m here.” A voice said from behind him.

He gave a defeated sigh and shook his head. “Never mind, Kit. I guess go ahead and head back inside.” He said.

Rukia turned to glance at the spirit with a raised brow. “Actually…it ‘might’ not be a bad idea to have her in on this, if she’s able to stay out long enough.”

Timothy turned around to her for a second, then looked back at Nel, who seemed a bit worried. “It’s alright Nel, Rukia knows about you.” He informed.

Her eyes widened at the short woman, who nodded. “Pleased to meet you, I’m Rukia Kuchiki.” She greeted.

Nel looked at Timothy to see him nod at her encouragingly, then back to Rukia. “Um…Nel, nice to meet you too.” She returned, then looked at Timothy again. “You sure about this?” she asked.

Timothy nodded again. “Ichigo’s the one who told her. We both trust Ichigo, and if he trusts Rukia enough with knowing about you, then I guess we can trust her. Though, I really wish he would have said something first. Anyway, Kit can stay I guess; so, both of you have a seat. And none of your damn games, Kit, I mean it.” He added, now giving the spirit a very serious look.

She held up her hands in surrender. “I won’t say anything, promise.” She stated and sat down next to him while Rukia sat down next to Nel.

“Alright Rukia, what did you want to talk about; and are you sure the Captain won’t come looking for us?” Timothy asked.

She nodded firmly. “I’m sure. I told him it would be about a half hour, so that should be long enough for what I wanted to ask.” Timothy nodded and gestured for her to begin. The woman turned to face Nel. “First off, I have to ask, but why did you turn against Aizen?”

Nel’s head dropped and Timothy turned to her. “That’s not a very comfortable story for her to tell, Rukia.” He informed.

Nel held a hand up to stop him. “It’s…It’s fine, Tim. If she’s going to trust me fully, she needs to know.”

He rose a brow at her. “You sure? I know it’s a…very sore subject.” He said in worry.

She nodded at him and took a deep breath before looking at the small woman. “Aizen used his illusions to…to trick me into killing my friends.” She said sadly.

Rukia’s eyes widened a bit. “How?”

Nel turned her head away from her. “He made me think that ‘he’ killed them. I was so filled with rage, I ended up attacking him and Nnoitra, the Espada who was helping him. I ran my blade through Aizen, and fired a cero at Nnoitra…but it…was all an illusion.”

The short woman’s eyes were now saucers. “It…It was your friends instead?!” she asked in shock.

The Arrancar flinched, then nodded meekly. “Yes. I…I killed them with my own hands…thinking it was Aizen and Nnoitra.”

Timothy tilted his head. “I never asked this, but why would he do that to one of his Espada?” he inquired.

“He must have realized I was having second thoughts about fighting for him after…after he told us about you, Tim. You and Su…I mean Kit.” She quickly corrected.

Rukia turned to the Lieutenant. “What does she mean ‘about you’?”

Timothy dropped his head now as Kitsune looked at her with sad eyes. “You have to promise not to say anything, Rukia. If this got out…it could be very bad for Tim.” she pleaded.

The woman nodded at her. “I won’t, promise.” She swore.

Kitsune sighed and turned to look at Timothy. “I wasn’t always his zanpakutō spirit, Rukia. Before Tim came to the soul society, I…” she paused for a second, then looked at Rukia again. “I used to be Tim’s wife, Susan.” She finished.

Rukia quickly turned to look at the saddened Lieutenant. “What do you mean?! How is that possible?!” she demanded.

“It was Aizen…he did this to her.” Timothy answered, then faced her. “Aizen used the Hōgyoku to change her into a zanpakutō spirit. Ever since then, she’s been with me as such. But at first, she didn’t have an inner world. We were bound to each other somehow because of the Hōgyoku, but not as partners. It wasn’t until when I first came here to Kisuke’s shop that he showed me a way to bring her into my inner world and make her my zanpakutō spirit.” He said sadly.

The woman shook her head quickly and gave then a concerned look. “But…she’s your wife…isn’t she?”

“No…not since I was turned into this. And before you ask Rukia; no, there isn’t a way to change me back. This is who I am now. But as long as I can be with Tim, I really don’t care about it. He and I are partners now, nothing more. So, you don’t need to worry about us, Rukia. We’ve both accepted it now.” Kitsune stated firmly.

Rukia spared Timothy a last, concerning glance, before returning to the spirit and nodding. “I understand. I’m sorry that something so terrible had to happen to you.”

Kitsune waved her off politely. “Thank you, but it’s fine, Rukia. Besides, I kinda enjoy being in his head now. That way I can torture him all I want.” She stated with a grin.

“Torture him?” Rukia inquired, but Nel quickly slapped a hand over her mouth with a panicked face.

“Please’ don’t encourage her!” she pleaded.

“Yes, please don’t.” Timothy enforced, then turned to Kitsune. “And you promised to behave.” He berated.

She turned to him in a pout. “I didn’t ‘do’ anything! All I said was I like to torture you!” she defended.

“And one thing leads to another with you! Be quiet, or you can go back inside! I can handle you, they can’t!” he hissed back.

She crossed her arms with a huff. “I didn’t do anything.” She mumbled, then Nel removed her hand with a sigh of relief.

Rukia turned to the Arrancar. “Is she…” she started, but Nel placed her hand back over her mouth and held a finger to her own lips.

“Not. A. Word. Rukia.” Timothy warned.

The woman nodded; still very confused on the matter, but decided it wasn’t worth the trouble. Nel again removed her hand and kept a close eye on her ‘new friend’. Timothy then cleared his throat to get them back on track.

“Anyway, after what happened with her friends, Nel was attacked by this Nnoitra guy and was forced to run. When my…my team and I came here to take care of the Adjuchas, one of them was about to kill me. But Nel jumped in the way and took the hit for me. So, that’s the story of how she ended up here.” He finished.

Rukia nodded, then went back to Nel. “Sorry about what happened, Nel.”

The woman nodded. “Thank you…Rukia.” She responded.

“Another thing I wanted to ask, once Aizen has been dealt with, what do you intend to do?” Rukia asked further.

Timothy answered for her. “I’ve told her that I intended to help hide her from the soul society with Kisuke’s assistance. As you can see, she can already remain undetected with several Lieutenants and a Captain in the same building as her. So, hiding her shouldn’t be that hard, as long as the soul society remains unaware that she even exists. Me and Kisuke had talked a couple times about setting her up with a normal life here in the world of the living. If she can help us get Aizen, she deserves ‘at least’ that much.”

Rukia hummed. “I agree. Now here’s a question for you, Tim; say the soul society ‘does’ find out about her, what do you intend to do? Like you said, they’ll likely know you were hiding her, and will try you for treason.” She inquired.

Nel quickly turned to him with wide eyes. “You…You never told me that! I can’t let you go through that for me, Tim! That’s not right!” she yelled.

Timothy glanced at her warmly. “I’m not concerned about it, Nel. You know how I am. I’d rather burn at the stake than abandon a friend in need.” He stated with Kitsune nodding in agreeance.

“But…I wasn’t your friend when you made that promise, Tim! I was your enemy!” Nel pointed.

The man held up a finger at her. “Was’…‘Was’ an enemy. You saved my ass from the hollow, so I owed you that much. Understand this, Nel; I have absolutely no problem, or regrets, saying that I’d gladly leave the soul society in order to protect my friends.”

Rukia eyed him with caution. “That’s a bold statement, Tim. You know that, right?”

Timothy nodded at her. “I know, but here are the facts; if Nel is discovered, I’ll be tried for treason and either executed, or imprisoned. In either case, Nel’s dead. But if I end up leaving the soul society, of course I’ll be hunted by the soul society, but at least I’d be able to protect Nel. Either way, it’s a lose-lose situation, Rukia; so, it all comes down to the lesser of two evils.”

Nel then suddenly stood up with her head held low. “I’m sorry…but I can’t listen to anymore of this. I think the less I know, the better. Please excuse me.” She said, then walked out of the room, and by the sound of it, into her room.

Rukia retuned her gaze to the man after following Nel’s movements. “Seriously Tim, ‘why’ are you fighting so hard to protect her? Would you honestly go through with all this for anyone…or is there something special about her?”

Timothy narrowed his gaze, then glanced at Kit, then back to her. He leaned over the table and gestured with his finger for her to come closer, which she did.

“If you are implying that I have deep feelings for her, drop it. Kit has already played that stupid game with her, and I’m not going to let it go any further. Whether or not I have feelings for Nel is irrelevant; I’d do the same thing for ‘any’ of my friends. Unless you really want to end up on my bad side Rukia, I strongly suggest you don’t doubt that again. You can say anything you want about me, but don’t ‘ever’ question my loyalty to my friends. I have already lost enough friends, and I’ll be damned if I lose another without already having utilized ‘every’ possible measure to try and prevent it. We clear?” he asked in a deathly voice.

Her eyes went wide, and she quickly nodded. “Good. Now…” he started, then leaned back. “…I think we should head back downstairs. We’ll talk again later about whether or not we should talk to Renji. I agree that he’s a bit of an idiot, but I can tell that he’s a man that can be trusted.”

Rukia nodded in agreeance. “Alright. Let’s go.”

Timothy nodded, then pointed at the spirit. “And I’m still not done with you, Kit. We’ll have our own talk later as well.” He informed.

She threw her arms in the air. “What did I do now?!” she whined.

He held his hand in front of him and clamped the fingers and thumb shut like a claw, signaling for her to stop talking. She growled at him, then huffed in defeat before dematerializing back to his inner world.

“She really ‘is’ a handful, isn’t she?” Rukia stated as she stood up.

Timothy side glanced her. “Unless you want a taste of it, keep quiet.” He instructed.

She held her hands up in surrender as she chuckled. “No, thank you. I’m fine. So, let’s get back downstairs.” She concluded, then walked past him to the ladder and began her descent.

Timothy moaned and began rubbing his temples, feeling a headache quickly approaching. “What have I gotten myself into?” he moaned.


	20. Powers Acquired

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 20

**(Powers Reacquired)**

** Underground Training Area, Present **

Toshiro watched carefully as Rangiku, Yumichika, and Ikkaku faced off against Renji’s Bankai. He wanted the three teammates to work on fighting against a Bankai, as well as their teamwork; while Renji worked on improving his handling of his Bankai and practiced against multiple opponents.

The battle had been going on for roughly ten minutes, and due to the nature of Renji’s Bankai, the Captain needed to keep some distance from the fight and couldn’t tell who had the upper hand at the moment.

The sound on footsteps drew his attention to behind him to see Timothy and Rukia walking up.

“Are you finished upstairs?” he inquired.

Rukia nodded while Timothy observed the fight. “Yes sir, sorry it took so long.” She answered.

The Captain faced her fully. “It’s fine. I decided to have everyone else conduct a three-on-one match.”

“Who’s the ‘lucky’ bastard?” Timothy inquired.

Toshiro smirked a little. “It’s Renji in his Bankai.”

Timothy glanced at the superior officer with surprise. “He has a Bankai? I’m impressed.”

A large explosion drew their attention back to the fight in the distance. They looked to see Ikkaku get tossed into the air, and Rangiku rolling across the ground.

“He’s ‘really’ going at it.” Rukia stated calmly.

“I hope he doesn’t cause ‘too’ much damage though.” A voice said from behind. The three of them turned back around to see Kisuke walking up with his cane in hand. “It’s actually not that easy to fix this place up after extensive damage has been done.” He informed, then stopped a short distance from them…keeping a distance from Timothy.

The Lieutenant glared at him. “There you are, you coward! I’ve got a bone to pick with you!” he hissed.

Kisuke waved him off. “Now now Tim, I assure you that what happened was ‘not’ my intention.” He defended.

Toshiro glanced at Timothy. “What is he talking about, Durn?” he inquired.

Timothy managed to stop himself from flinching, but he did freeze up. “…It’s nothing sir. Just some trouble that he and Yoruichi started.” He deflected.

The shop owned suddenly had his fan in his hand, blowing air at his face. “Now that’s not very nice, Tim. You make it sound like it’s all my fault.” He moaned a bit.

The Lieutenant face palmed and growled. “What the hell you want, Kisuke?” he demanded.

“Actually…” Urahara began, then looked at Toshiro. “…if you don’t mind Captain, I had some training planned for Tim here. I’m afraid the training will need to be done alone, so I’ll have to request you take the rest of the day off.” He said.

The three soul reapers rose their brows. “I see. Very well, we’ll take our leave. Rukia, please go let Renji and the others know.” Toshiro instructed. Rukia nodded, then flashed away.

“What kind of training you plan to use to kill me with now, Kisuke?” Timothy asked in a depressed tone.

“Do you really have so little faith in me, Tim?” Kisuke teased.

“I have faith in you, as long as you aren’t trying to send me to my grave.” The younger man clarified.

Kisuke sighed heavily. “And here I am, training to improve your skills, and you’re worrying about something so trivial. And I even included a little surprise for you, too.”

Timothy sweat dropped. “…Why does that somehow only make me feel worse?” he moaned.

Rukia and the others then came back where Toshiro turned to them. “We’re done with training for today. Take the rest of the day off, but keep on your guard.” He instructed.

They all nodded, but Rangiku smiled cheerfully. “Ooh, that means I can go shopping! Wanna come, Rukia?”

The shorter woman glanced at her with a deadpanned expression. “Not really.” She replied in a low and monotone voice.

“Oh, cheer up, Rukia! It’ll be fun!” the busty Lieutenant returned.

Rukia let out a defeated sigh. “Fine.”

“Great! Let’s go!” Rangiku finished, then the two women vanished.

Yumichika turned to his friend with a small smile. “Well, I don’t know about you, Ikkaku, but I feel like exploring a bit.”

Ikkaku shrugged his shoulders. “Sounds good to me.” He answered, then they, too, vanished.

Toshiro looked at the shop owner. “I’ll be nearby if you something happens.” He informed, then left as well.

Now alone with the vexing man, Timothy turned to face Urahara fully. “Well, what’s this training you wanted to do?” he inquired.

Kisuke glanced at Timothy’s zanpakutō. “Care to join us, Kit?” he called to her.

The spirit materialized herself next to Timothy with a worried look on her face. “You’re still sure about this, Kisuke?” she asked.

Seeing her worried now made Timothy worry more as well. “You ‘are’ going to kill me, aren’t you?” he whined.

Kisuke then gave him a serious look. “I’m sure you recall what I said about how to increase your spiritual pressure, right?” he inquired.

Timothy nodded. “Yeah, you do so by putting stress on my soul, right?”

The man nodded. “Correct. As I’ve said before, you’ve basically already acquired your Bankai; however, because your spiritual pressure was too low, you couldn’t access it. Today, we’re going to work on getting that access back.”

The Lieutenant widened his eyes a bit. “So…we’re working on my Bankai?”

Kisuke grinned. “That’s right. Kit here is going to help you release, and maintain your Bankai. She’ll be the one training you, so I strongly recommend you listen to everything she says.” He advised.

The younger man held up a hand. “Wait a minute, why do I sense a ‘this is very dangerous’ in there?” he fretted.

“Because it is, Tim.” Kitsune answered. “Last time, you got lucky that I dropped the Bankai in time. Any longer, and it would’ve likely killed you. It’s going to be a similar situation here. You pressure should be high enough to handle it now, but we won’t really know until we try. That’s why, while we are working on it, you can’t interfere with me in any way. If I see that your body can’t handle it, I’ll have to forcibly drop it again.” She warned.

Timothy looked at Kisuke in question. “So, wait, if Kit is the one who is going to be working with me, what are you going to do?” he inquired.

Kisuke smiled at him. “I have another project that I need to work on. But don’t worry Tim, Kit won’t be the only one here.” He informed.

A hand then landed on Timothy’s shoulder, and he growled. “Yoruichi!” he hissed, then turned to her. “I’m going to kill you for what you did!”

The woman rose a brow in confusion, wondering what he was talking about. She glanced over at Kitsune, who turned away with a sorrowful face.

“What happened?” she inquired.

Timothy quickly reached out and grabbed the woman by her shirt, pulling her to him. “We’re going to have a little chat later, so you better not fucking take off; miss ‘Let’s pick on Nel’!”

Yoruichi’s eyes widened, then she looked back at Kitsune. “What happened?!”

The man gripped her tighter. “You and Kit tortured the fuck out of Nel, and put her in the same damn mood you tried to kill me over!” he answered.

The golden-eyed woman closed her eyes with a sad sigh. “Alright, I’ll admit I might have gone a little too…”

“A ‘little’?! She obviously didn’t like you pestering her like that, but no, you wanted to keep at it cause it amused you! If anything, I expect you to go apologize to her for your stupid games once we’re done here!” he demanded.

She held up her hands in surrender. “Alright alright! It got outta hand, and I’ll apologize to her., happy?” she asked in a calm tone.

He released her and crossed his arms. “You damn well better, Yoruichi. Now, what are you doing here?” he asked.

“While Kit will be helping you access your Bankai…” Kisuke started, causing Timothy to look back at him. “…Yoruichi will be here to make sure nothing happens. In the event that Kit thinks you can handle it, you’ll be testing you Bankai against Yoruichi.” The man informed.

Timothy glanced back at the woman. “For your sake, you better hope that doesn’t happen.” He warned.

He wasn’t as mad as he was showing, knowing that neither she, nor Kitsune, knew about Nel’s lack of certain emotions; but he also knew that there was no way he could pay here back the conventional way. This way, he could at least make the woman feel bad about what she did.

Kisuke then turned to Kitsune. “I’ll leave it to you, Kit.” He said, then started walking away.

Timothy sighed heavily, then looked at the spirit. “So, what do I need to do, Kit?”

She nodded. “Alright, first you need to get your stance. Every release, both Shikai and Bankai, have a specific stance the user enters; and each one is unique. Before we get into actually ‘using’ the Bankai, I want you to get the basic stuff done first. So, spread your feet out to where they’re right under each shoulder.” She instructed.

He kicked his right leg out as he leaned over to where his feet stood shoulder width apart.

“Alright, now, hold the blade out in front of you with both hands; point up, and arms fully extended.” She added, then watched as he did so.

“This feels a little…awkward.” He stated in confusion.

“Only because it’s not a natural stance. They always feel odd at first, but you should get used to it.” She assured.

He thought about it, but simply shrugged a shoulder. “If you say so.” He said in acceptance.

She nodded, then continued. “Ok, now bend at the knees and lower yourself in to a squat.” She said, and he did as such. “Lower, your legs should be level with the ground.” She clarified, then walked over and pushed down on his shoulder; forcing him lower.

“Ok, now this is uncomfortable.” He stated in stress.

“Well, that’s the form. Now, you need to say the name. So now, I want you to say…cheese.”

He looked at her in confusion. “Huh?!”

He suddenly saw a very brief, and bright flash of light, and turned back forward to see Kisuke with a camera. Yoruichi and Kit were now rolling on the ground laughing their asses off.

Timothy blinked once…then twice…trice…“Y…You were fucking with me?!” he yelled out as he got out of his ‘stance’.

“Y…You…You get it?” Kitsune asked between laughs.

Kisuke grinned and nodded. “It was perfect! Nice acting, Kit. And ‘veeerrry’ interesting pose, Tim. You looked really powerful standing like that.” He teased.

Yoruichi, who was clutching her sides, weakly gave the spirit a thumbs up. “Yeah…nice one, Kit; you too, Tim.” She furthered.

Yesterday, after showing Kitsune the video of Yoruichi and Nel’s struggle, and once the spirit calmed down from excessive laughing, an evil idea had come to her mind; and Kisuke, being the man that he was, was all too eager to help with it.

Timothy quickly turned to her, his face as red as a tomato. “You’re fucking dead!” he yelled.

Kitsune gasped, and quickly ran off, followed closely by a raging Lieutenant. “What the hell?! It was a joke! Calm the hell down, Tim!” she yelled in panic as the man slowly began catching up with her.

“Stop fucking running, and I’ll calm down by ripping those ears off of you! You god damned vixen! Get back here!” he returned.

Kisuke and Yoruichi both watched in full amusement as Timothy steadily gained ground on the spirit. “Thousand yen says she lasts two minutes.” Kisuke offered with a side glance, fanning himself again.

Yoruichi scratched her cheek with a wide grin. “I think you’re giving her too much credit; minute and a half at best.” She counter offered.

“Deal.” He said, then returned to watching chase.

“Get back here, you fucking fox!

“Noooo! Mercy!”

** 5 Minutes Later **

Unfortunately for Kisuke and Yoruichi, Kitsune had a little more energy than they thought; having managed to keep out of Timothy’s grasp for almost four minutes. Meaning…they both lost the bet.

The spirit was sitting down on the ground next to Yoruichi with a large lump on her head and giving her partner an evil glare, while the other woman rubbed her back. Timothy was sitting several feet away in front of her; arms crossed, and an equally evil glare of his own stabbing the spirit’s eyes.

“It was only a joke.” She mumbled.

“Shut. Up!” he hissed back, then glared at Kisuke, who was looking at the photo he took. “And you’ll get yours, Kisuke. I don’t know how, I don’t know when, but I ‘will’ get you for this. The same goes for you, you damn demon!” he finished while looking at Yoruichi.

She held her hands up in surrender. “Woah, hold on there, Tim! I had ‘nothing’ to do with this!” she defended.

His glare tightened around her neck. “Ever heard the term ‘guilty by association’? You may not have been part of the planning, but you ‘know’ how Kisuke is, and should have known that he was up to something. You chose not to warn me and let them play their stupid prank, so that makes you ‘just as guilty’!” he pointed out.

Kisuke side glanced his long-time friend. “He does have a point.” He stated.

She turned, and karate chopped him on the head. He cowered in pain as she death glared him.

“Shut up, Kisuke!” she demanded.

Timothy then stood up and planted his hands on his hips. “Was there ‘really’ any training…or did you just want to fuck with me?” he inquired seriously.

Kitsune stood up as well and rubbed her head. “No, we really do have training to do. We just wanted to mess with you is all. But, now that that’s out of the way, we can get started.” She informed.

He then pointed at her. “You better not be screwing with me again, or I’ll give your tail a nice haircut!” he threatened.

The spirit’s eyes widened and she quickly held her hands behind her to protect her ‘precious’ tail. “You wouldn’t dare!” she said, calling him out.

Timothy swiftly drew his zanpakutō and started walking towards her. “Wanna bet?” he called back.

She quickly shook her head violently. “No! I’m good! No more pranks, I swear!” she said as she stepped back.

He stopped, stared at her intently for a moment, then returned his sword to its sheath. “You better!” He replied.

Kisuke then stood up. “Well, I guess I should get started with my own project.” He said, then looked at Timothy sternly. “Good luck, Tim.” he offered, then walked away.

Yoruichi stood up as well and gestured to a boulder behind her with her thumb. “I’ll be over there if you need me, Kit.” She informed.

Kitsune looked at her and nodded. “Just keep a close eye on him, Yoruichi. If something does happen, you need to be quick.” She warned.

The woman nodded, then flashed over to sit down on top of the said boulder. Kitsune and Timothy looked at each other.

“Tim…I’m not gonna lie…this is ‘very’ risky, but Kisuke insisted that we do this. I wasn’t kidding about what I said, Tim; you need to listen to everything I say. If your body can’t handle it yet, and I don’t drop the Bankai in time, it will most likely kill you. Kisuke may want me to do this, but this is ‘your’ Bankai, and ‘your’ life on the line; are you sure you’re up for this?” she asked in hesitance.

Timothy gave her a heavy sigh, but nodded. “As much as I hate his pranks and shit, I trust his judgement. If he says I’m ready, then I’ll accept it. So, let’s get started.” He confirmed.

Kitsune lowered her head for a moment, then nodded. “Alright.” She said, then looked back at him. “Good luck, Tim.” she concluded, then returned to his inner world.

He drew his zanpakutō and held it to his side. _“And what about you, ‘Johnny’? You’re a part of this too. If I die, you die.”_

**_“I too…trust Urahara’s…judgement…And I believe…you are ready.”_** The male spirit stated.

Taking a deep breath, Timothy nodded firmly. “Ready to go.” he said in a whisper.

**_“Alright…hold the zanpakutō in front of you, near your chest, and pointing to you left. Then grab the blade next to the guard, with the blade running along your arm.”_** She instructed.

Hesitating a moment, he did as she said and held the blade across his chest; grabbing the blade with his off hand at the guard with the blade running underneath his forearm.

**_“Are you ready?”_** she asked a final time.

He closed his eyes and sighed deeply. _“Ready.”_ He confirmed.

**_“Alright…Now state ‘Bankai’, then call out my Bankai name. Immediately afterwards, snap the blade off at the guard. My released name…is ‘Furasshu hi Kitsune Hime’.”_** She said in reluctance.

He opened his eyes and looked at the blade with resolve. “Bankai…Furasshu hi…Kitsune Hime.” He called out, the twisted his hands apart; snapping the blade off at the guard.

** With Kisuke, 5 Minutes Earlier **

****

Kisuke came around a large boulder, and lifted his head to see Nel sitting on a large rock in her Arrancar form; her hands in her lap and eyes closed. He stopped and observed her for a moment, thinking hard on if he should go on with what he had planned for her.

Taking a mild breath, he continued walking towards her. Hearing the man’s footsteps, Nel opened her eyes and looked at him and tilted her head a bit. Once the shop owner was a few yards away, Nel stood up and gave him a questioning look.

“Why did you have me come down here, Kisuke? And why is there a barrier around me?” she inquired.

The man stopped a few feet in front of her. “My apologies Nel, but the barrier is necessary for what we’re about to do. As I’m sure you know, Tim is currently down here with us, but he’s working on his own special training as we speak. I want him to fully concentrate on that training, and not what ‘we’ are going to be working on.” He informed.

Nel crossed her arms loosely. “Ok, but this is a pretty strong barrier for just hiding what we’re going to be doing…whatever that is.” She observed.

Kisuke pulled out his fan and blew air at himself. “Very astute, miss Nel. As you are aware, there is currently a barrier surrounding the shop. From the outside, it’s actually pretty weak; but from the inside, it’s very strong. Regretfully, the purpose of that barrier is to prevent you from leaving. Now, I’m sure you’ve noticed there’s a similar, yet far more powerful barrier surrounding this underground facility, right?” he inquired, earning a nod from the woman.

“That barrier allows people to come and go as they please, but prevents spiritual pressure and all form of attacks past it. This is to prevent any damage that those attacks would cause to the surface, and prevent anyone from detecting the people inside. That way, anyone inside the training area can use any and all forms of attacks that they wish to use. The barrier we currently have around us, is the exact same thing; but only covering the area we’ll be working with.”

Nel tilted her head again. “But what is it that we’ll be doing that requires the extra barrier, Kisuke?”

Kisuke snapped his fan shut. “Simple…” he said, then reached behind the boulder next to him, and pulled out a green-hilted zanpakutō in a green scabbard.

The Arrancar woman’s eyes widened. “Gamuza?!” she gasped.

The man held it out to her, and she took it; running her hand over the hilt with care. “Go ahead…draw her.” He instructed.

She looked at him with shock, then back at the weapon in her hand. Hesitantly, she grabbed the zanpakutō by the hilt, pausing for a moment, then quickly drew the blade. Her eyes became saucers as she gasped when she saw, not a broken blade, but a fully restored one.

“Y…You fixed Gamuza?!” she asked in shock; closely observing the blade to see that it perfectly restored without so much as a scratch.

“Only the blade, miss Nel.” He informed, causing her to look at him with worry. “I could only restore the blade, but ‘not’ your hollow powers. ‘That’…is why we are here.” He added.

She looked at the blade again, then back to him in sorrow. “So…Gamuza is still gone?” she asked with a sad voice.

Kisuke held up a finger. “I’d like you to try and release your Resurrección, miss Nel.” He stated.

Nel widened her eyes back, but firmly nodded. She turned to face him fully, then spread her feet shoulder width apart. Slipping the scabbard into her sash, she then held the blade horizontally in front of her with the sharp edge pointing at him.

She held the palm of her offhand to the back of the blade, and took a deep breath. “Praise…Gamuza.” She called out.

Both of them waited for a moment, but much to Nel’s discouragement and sadness, nothing happened. She lowered her arms to her sides and dropped her head. Kisuke watched as her shoulder’s began trembling.

“So…she really is gone.” She said in a low voice.

Kisuke flipped his fan back open and slowly waved it at himself. “I’d like you to try again, miss Nel.’ He suggested.

She looked at him with tears in her eyes. “Gamuza is gone, Kisuke. She wouldn’t respond to me, so she’s gone.” She stated in a sad voice.

The man stopped fanning himself and gave her a serious stare. “I’d like you to try again…miss Nel.” He repeated.

She let out an annoyed and depressed sigh, but finally returned to her stance and prepared to call out the command again.

Kisuke then pointed his fan at her. “But this time, I’d like you to reach deep inside yourself. Try to picture Gamuza in your inner world, and reach out to her; try to pull her to you. As you do that, call upon her.” He instructed.

She slowly nodded, then closed her eyes and took a deep breath to calm herself. She began reaching inside herself, into her inner world. As she did, Kisuke could feel her spiritual pressure begin to rise just a bit.

After a moment of reaching inside herself, Nel opened her eyes and tried again. “Praise…Gamuza.” She called.

Kisuke felt her pressure flash for just an instant, then vanish again; back to her relaxed level as, again, nothing happened.

Nel dropped her arms to her sides again and sighed heavily. “It’s pointless, Kisuke. Gamuza is gone, so why bother?” she asked.

“Did you feel it?” he asked in a calm and collected voice.

She rose a brow at him. “It?”

Kisuke kept his serious glare. “Your spiritual pressure…did you feel it?” he clarified.

Nel lifted her head and thought about the question, but looked back at him a moment later and nodded. “I did…I felt it rise for a moment when I tried to release Gamuza, but then it dropped again when she didn’t answer.” She confirmed.

The shop owner snapped his fan shut and pointed it at her. “That means your soul is actually trying to reach out to Gamuza. If Gamuza was truly no longer a part of your inner world, in effect no longer a part of you, then your soul wouldn’t even bother trying to reach out. Your spiritual pressure wouldn’t have spiked the way it did. That can only mean one thing.” He paused, and her eyes widened.

“Gamuza is…still there?!” she asked in disbelief.

Kisuke nodded. “In a sense…” he said, then pointed at her zanpakutō with his fan. “Gamuza is still housed within your zanpakutō, along with your hollow powers. When Aizen somehow sealed your powers away and broke your zanpakutō, he effectively severed the connection between you and Gamuza, cutting you off from your stronger hollow powers. As it is at this moment, Gamuza is still a part of your soul, but the two of you have no direct connection to each other. Technically, you are in a similar situation that Tim was in with Kit before he infused her into his inner world. We need to reestablish that connection, just like with him.” He stated, then began fanning himself again.

“Tell me Nel, do you know how a soul reaper acquires his or her Bankai?” he inquired.

She shook her head. “Besides training for it, no.”

Kisuke nodded back. “Essentially, yes. Because Bankais are so powerful, a soul reaper’s zanpakutō spirit will not teach the Bankai to its partner, unless that spirit deems that the partner is ready for it. Once the spirit decides that the soul reaper is ready, the spirit will challenge its partner in combat. In order for the soul reaper to learn the Bankai, he or she must force the spirit into submission. The methods that zanpakutō spirits use for this trail can vary between the individual spirits, but if the soul reaper fails to submit their zanpakutō spirit, they cannot learn Bankai.” He educated.

“This is normally the only method that Bankai can be achieved, and can take decades of training after the soul reaper acquired his or her Shikai. However, there is another way that only a few know about.” He said, then walked behind the boulder where Nel’s zanpakutō was kept.

He came back out a few seconds later, carrying a human shaped, flat, white object. He stood the object next to him and pointed at it with his fan.

“This is an invention of mine, and the only other way that a soul reaper can acquire Bankai. I call it, Tenshintai. When a soul reaper combats their zanpakutō spirit, they do so here in the real world. It takes years of training and trust for a soul reaper to materialize their zanpakutō spirit; which is required for the spirit to challenge it’s partner. This device allows a soul reaper to ‘force’ the zanpakutō spirit into the real world, and then battle with it to force it into submission. This is the technique Ichigo used to acquire his Bankai.” He said.

Nel looked at the figure, then at Kisuke. “I’ll admit, it is impressive…but what does it have to do with me and Gamuza?” she inquired.

Kisuke ‘fan pointed’ at her. “As I said, Gamuza is still contained within your zanpakutō, Nel. We need to force her out in order to reestablish the connection between you two.” He said, then pointed back at the figure. “We will use the Tenshintai to help us with that. You will stab your zanpakutō into the device; and if my theory is correct, the device with force Gamuza out of the blade and into the real world.” He instructed, then held his fan up next to his face.

“However, I cannot say what will happen exactly. This could have the same effect as it did with Ichigo; the zanpakutō spirit appearing in the real world. But then, it could force Gamuza out in your hollow form as well. As to ‘how’ to reestablish the connection between you two, that is something we will both have to figure out along the way. I am not even sure how Gamuza will respond to this. She could be in a right state of mind, or she could be a mindless hollow. But, these are ‘your’ hollow powers we’re working with, Nel. So, I leave the decision up to you on whether you proceed or not. Afterall…”

He paused and resumed fanning himself. “…I cannot guarantee that this will work at all. Think hard on this, Nel. Nothing like this has ever happened before; nor has this device ever been used in this manner. So I honestly cannot tell you ‘what’ will happen.” He advised.

Nel raised her zanpakutō a bit and stared hard at it. She was relieved that Gamuza was still there inside her zanpakutō, but also worried about everything Kisuke said about the situation. She wanted Gamuza back, but she unsure if she was willing to take the risk.

“Tell me Kisuke…” she started, then looked at the man. “…what exactly is Tim training for?” she asked seriously.

Kisuke’s face didn’t change as he continued fanning himself. “He’s training to reacquire his Bankai. And to be honest…he’s taking a great risk at doing so with his current power.”

Nel tilted her head as her glare tightened. “What do you mean ‘great risk’? What happens if he fails?” she asked firmly.

The shop owner stopped his fan and gave her a very firm stare. “He could die.”

Her eyes widened, and she snapped her head over to where she had felt Timothy earlier. He was taking a life-threatening risk in order for him to become strong. And she knew that, without a doubt, he was doing it so he could protect her and the rest of his friends.

She lowered her head, then looked back at her zanpakutō. It then became clear to her that, if Timothy was willing to take such a great risk with his own life, then she needed to follow his example if she was going to be able to help him.

“I’ll do it.” She answered finally, then looked at Kisuke in determination. “I’ll use your device, and see if I can reconnect with Gamuza. If Tim is willing to risk his life to help others, then I should too.” She stated with confidence.

Kisuke snapped his fan shut and nodded. “Then run your blade through the device…and we’ll see what happens.” He said.

Nel walked forward towards the object, holding her zanpakutō tightly. She stopped a few feet from the device, sparing a last glance at her zanpakutō, then looking at Kisuke to see him nod firmly.

Raising, and holding the tip of the blade to the device, Nel took a last, deep breath to push the slowly rising second thoughts back. Letting the air out of her lungs slowly, she hardened herself, and thrusted the blade into the device.

****

** With Timothy, Present **

His entire body was immediately pummeled with an intense amount of power. So much power, that he felt like his entire body was being crushed by extremely heavy weights all over; on every inch of skin, from every angle.

The power steadily increased, and he was starting to find it difficult to remain standing. The feeling he was experiencing now, was just like after Zaraki’s fight when the Head Captain had forced him down to the ground, just from the man’s spiritual pressure alone.

This rising power was threatening to do the same thing to him here. Flames suddenly spread out from the two halves of his zanpakutō, and began covering his entire body; the same flames that usually covered Kitsune.

He watched through half closed eyes as the blade in his left hand, and the hilt in his right, began to glow orange as steam rose from them.

Although they appeared to be very hot, close to the melting point, they didn’t burn him; nor did he even feel any heat from them. They grew hotter and hotter very rapidly, until they turned to a bright cherry-red.

The two halves then melted, and began spreading around his hands, wrists, and halfway up his forearm; before forming into gauntlets. On the top of each gauntlet, some of the material formed to extend over the top of the hand fixture’s knuckles, and out past them by six inches.

Once the reforming had stopped, the ‘weapons’ began cooling down until they were now a solid, steel color; while the blades that extended out remained a very hot, bright orange color. On the top of each bracer, between the edge and the wrist, was an etching of a pouncing fox heading towards the blade on the respective arm.

The power was at full force now, and it was taking every bit of energy and strength Timothy had to remain on his feet.

**_“Hold firm, Tim. Take the pressure, and push against it. Don’t give in to it.”_** Kitsune coached.

Timothy clenched his teeth as he tried to speak. “I’m…trying…It hurts…It feels…like I’m being…crushed.” He choked through his tightly ground teeth.

**_“It’s going to…your spiritual pressure is too low, Tim. Your pressure is right at the tipping point between holding the Bankai state, and the Bankai crushing you to death! Whatever you do, do ‘not’ give in. Feel the pressure, and hold it at bay.”_ **

Holding his ‘protected’ hands to his sides with clenched fists, Timothy dropped to a knee as the pressure began forcing him to the ground. At this, Yoruichi stood up from her sitting position on her boulder, but remained in place as she watched him with concern.

**_“Get up, Tim! Now! You’re letting the power of the Bankai force ‘you’ down! You need to force ‘it’ down! Get your ass back up, and push back!”_** she demanded.

**_“Harden…yourself Tim…Do not…succumb…to weakness…‘Prove’…you have…what it takes…‘Prove’…you are worthy…of being…Kitsune’s partner.”_** ‘Johnny’ added.

Timothy flinched at his words. “I…will not…drop…I will always…be her partner.” He hissed.

**_“Then ‘prove’ it! Get your ass up, and show me, Tim!”_** she yelled.

Gritting his teeth tighter, Timothy threw a leg out in front of him, then leaned forward and pushed himself with everything he could bring to bear. Fighting against the breathtaking force, he slowly got his other foot under him, and struggled to stand back up straight.

**_“Fight, Tim!”_** she encouraged.

He finally managed to make it back to a straightened position, then slowly, and painfully, placed one foot in front of the other. His face turned stern as he pushed with his leg to try and move forward on his shaky legs.

“I…will not…” he started, then when he was forward enough, moved the other foot forward for another step. “…give up…” he furthered, and pushed himself forward again.

With each step, every movement, the pressure forced itself down on him more. Yoruichi watched in shock and amazement as the young Lieutenant fought against his own power with everything he had, and yet still had the strength to walk; even at a slow rate.

Even from so far away, she could feel the immense spiritual pressure that was forced on the man. Now she could see firsthand that Kisuke was not exaggerating when he told her that the spiritual pressure the man’s Bankai emitted was impressive.

Now she knew what Kisuke said about his Bankai almost killing him before was true. At the level he was the first time, his Bankai would definitely have killed him if Kitsune hadn’t forcibly dropped it when she did.

Timothy then stumbled and fell to his hands and knees, and Yoruichi got ready to flash over to help him; but a hand on her shoulder stopped her. She turned her head to see Kisuke holding her back.

“Leave him, Yoruichi. He needs to do this on his own.” He said firmly.

Yoruichi relaxed a bit, but turned her head back to the downed man. “Are you sure about this, Kisuke?” she asked.

The man firmly nodded. “I am. This is something for him alone, and we cannot interfere.” He answered.

The woman nodded and crossed her arms. “I hope you’re right, Kisuke.” She said, and they both continued to watch the man fight against his own Bankai.

** With Nelliel, 3 Minutes Earlier **

Nel watched as her blade began to glow pink, then flinched and took an involuntary step backwards as the device and her blade both erupted in a large burst of pinkish energy. But just as quickly the burst of energy appeared, it just as quickly vanished.

She looked to see that the device, along with her zanpakutō, were now gone; nothing but air remained. She took a single step forward, but froze when an all too familiar voice spoke out from behind her.

“You’ve forgotten me.” An echoing, feminine voice said.

The woman quickly turned around, and her eyes widened when she saw a figure standing behind her. “G…Gamuza?!” she choked out.

The figure before her stood on four, equine styled legs with an upper body similar to a human’s. The lower half, the equine part, of the figure was covered in thick, tannish fur, and bore a long, thick, black tail trailing behind.

Its upper body was completely covered in a thick white skin. It’s chest, starting at its medium sized breasts, shoulders, elbows, and hands were covered in thick, bone-like armor. The same bone armor completely covered its entire head, with its ram-skull-like mask covering its face with piercing, yellowish eyes gazing at her through the eye holes.

It looked almost exactly like her Resurrección form, and stood there with hateful eyes that pierced her very soul.

“W…What?” Nel replied in shock.

The being’s yellow orbs narrowed their gaze at her through the mask on its face. “You abandoned me.” Gamuza stated in a hiss.

Nel’s eyes widened even further. “W…what are you talking about, Gamuza?! I would ‘never’ abandon you!” she said in a hurt tone.

Gamuza swung her arm through the air, cutting Nel off. “Don’t lie to ‘me’, Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck! I called out to you for days! Not ‘once’ did you ever respond to me! Over…and ‘over’…I cried out to you!”

The Arrancar clenched her fists at her side and glared back. “That was Aizen’s fault, Gamuza! I tried to reach out to you as well, but you weren’t there! It wasn’t my fault!” she defended.

The spirit suddenly charged forward, and with a backhanded fist to her cheek, threw Nel into the boulder next to them. “You abandoned me! You may have tried at first to reach me, but you quickly gave up!” she yelled, then picked the woman up by her shirt and threw her into another large boulder.

Nel landed with a crash and fell down onto the ground with a grunt of pain. “For over ten days, you never ‘once’ tried to reach me! You never even thought about me! I may not have been able to talk to you, but I could still hear your thoughts! You gave me up for dead!” she furthered, then used sonído to appear next to Nel as she got back up to her feet.

Gamuza used her hind legs to deliver a powerful kick to the woman’s side, sending her right back at the previous boulder. “You gave up on me! Your own power! Your own being! Your own ‘soul’!” she said, and again buzzed to Nel to punch her back into the boulder.

“I was alone!” she said, and punched her again. “You left me!” She delivered another punch. “Abandoned me!” She punched again, then grabbed her by the shirt again to see her, now bloody, face. “Forsaken me!” she hissed as she threw Nel out to the side and on the ground.

“You are the aspect of Loyalty! The very being of the word! You and I were supposed to be the epitome of Loyalty! But like Aizen, you tossed that ‘loyalty’ between us aside!” she mocked harshly.

Nel hissed in pain and clutched her side as she slowly came back to her knees. “Aizen…‘betrayed’ us. I…I refuse…to serve someone…like him.” Nel hissed back.

Gamuza buzzed in front of her and used her front legs to stomp the Arrancar back onto the ground. “You questioned your loyalty to him, because of that pitiful soul reaper! You cared about ‘him’ more than ‘us’!” She swiftly turned around and rear kicked Nel’s body to roll across the ground before turning back. “What is ‘he’ to you?! What could you ‘possibly’ see in that ‘thing’ to make you ignore your instincts?! You are a hollow! You kill beings like him! Yet, you go, and risk ‘your life’ to save ‘his’!”

She buzzed back in front of where Nel landed and held her hands out wide. “You threw your loyalty aside to save a soul reaper! You threw ‘us’ away for a damn soul reaper! Was our loyalty to each other so meaningless to you?! Did you honestly care more about what happens to that pathetic brat than your loyalty to Aizen?! Aizen brought us together! ‘He’ gave ‘you’ your humanity back! He gave ‘me’ an existence! And you so willingly turned away from him! Abandoned him! Does loyalty really mean so little to you?! Answer me, Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck! Does it?!” she demanded, then kicked the woman again; sending her back into another boulder.

Nel dropped to a sitting position, leaning back against the rockface with her head dropped. Gamuza turned to face her and shook her head.

“You’re pathetic, Nel. It puzzles me how the hell you ‘ever’ made it to Vasto Lorde with how weak and broken your resolve is. If I had known that you were this weak, I would have killed you when Aizen turned you into an Arrancar. I should go kill that stupid soul reaper that you seem to have grown so attached to. Maybe then you’ll come back to your senses.” She stated.

“Leave…him…alone.” Nel hissed in a whisper.

Gamuza rose a hidden brow at her. “Excuse me?! I seriously doubt that I just heard you right! Are you defending that weak thing?!” the spirit demanded.

Nel pushed herself up from the boulder painfully to a standing position. Her entire body was bruised, and blood ran down her face. She clenched her fists tightly, cutting into her palm and drawing blood as she glared at her spirit.

“He is ‘not’ a ‘thing’! He is my ‘friend’, and you will leave ‘Tim’ alone! I will ‘never’ let you touch him! Aizen is pure evil! But Tim…” she paused and turned to look in his direction. “…Tim is honest…caring…” She then turned to the spirit with a hateful stare. “…and loyal! More loyal than you, and I, combined! If I have to fight you, and kill you to protect him, I will!” Nel firmly yelled.

Gamuza narrowed her gaze at the woman. “So be it. If you are so adamant to stay with that ‘thing’…” she said, then held up her hand next to her face. A pinkish mass of energy collected in the palm of her hand, and solidified into a long, silver, metal lance; ready to be thrown over the spirit’s shoulder. “…then I will kill you, then him, before my own demise. You two can join each other in nothingness.”

Nel got into an unarmed combat stance as Gamuza prepared to throw the lance in her hand; both warriors staring into each other’s eyes as they stood ready for the fight that neither wanted to happen.

** With Timothy, Present **

Timothy fought on his hands and knees as his body began to fail and succumb to the constant pressure of his Bankai. He was beginning to feel the high heat of the flames surrounding his body; threatening to sear his skin.

A small trail of blood ran down his chin from his mouth as his throat became scratched from the inside. He clenched his fists and slowly pulled a knee up to his chest to plant a foot underneath him to stand back up.

**_“Don’t give up, Tim…please fight it!”_** Kitsune begged.

**_“Stand tall…Tim.”_** ‘Johnny’ followed.

With a hiss of pain, Timothy managed to get a foot under him, and began pushing with his hands so he could get the other under him as well. Removing a hand from the ground, he planted it on his knee, and pushed down on it to slowly pick himself back up.

**_“That’s it! Push harder, Tim! Don’t give in! You can do this…I believe in you!”_** she encouraged.

**_“We both do.”_** ‘Johnny’ furthered.

Getting his other foot planted, he placed his other hand on the other knee, and now used both hands to push himself back to a slouched, but still standing position. He then removed his hands and returned them to his sides.

**_“Good…now step forward!”_** she demanded.

Growling, Timothy raised a foot and moved it forward, planting it a foot ahead of him.

**_“Another!”_** she pressed.

Propelling himself slowly, he lifted the other foot and landed it a few feet in front of the other.

**_“Another…step.”_** ‘Johnny’ instructed.

He painfully moved forward and took another step; again, with the pressure increasing with each one.

**_“Again!/Again.”_** Both spirit’s commanded in unison.

Timothy took another step, but it didn’t go as far as he wanted, so he slid it across the ground to the distance he wanted to move. His leg that was supporting his weight threatened to give out, but he pressed as hard as he could to not fall.

Moving forward again with a deep, throaty growl, he took another, and slightly faster step as he began to feel his body fighting the pressure on its own.

**_“Move it, Tim! Walk faster!”_** she hissed dangerously.

He took another step, again, slightly faster than the last. Then another; the pressure suddenly becoming more bearable each time as his own body and soul fought harder and harder against the pressure subconsciously.

“I will…not give up.” He said through his teeth as he took another step. “I…will not…fall.” He added with another step. “I will…succeed!” he said with a loud growl; taking a very firm step as the pressure on him dropped even more.

**_“You can do this, Tim! Keep moving forward, and don’t stop!”_** she encouraged firmly.

**_“This…is ‘your’ power…‘your’ will…‘your’ soul…Stand proud…Show…your resolve…Prove to us…that you…are strong.”_** ‘Johnny’ furthered.

He took a step and stumbled, but remained standing. He raised his head back up and growled before taking another large step. His feet thumped on the ground with each step as he slowly moved faster and faster; now at a ‘leisurely’ walking pace.

Although the pressure was still causing him pain, it no longer threatened to crush him into the ground. He found that he could now stand up straighter, and firmer as his walking speed now evolved to that of a standard paced walk.

**_“Now…spawn…your flames.”_** ‘Johnny’ instructed.

Keeping his pace, Timothy did as he was told and began creating several flames around him; each flame steadily putting more and more pressure on him that forced him back down to a slouched position.

**_“More, Tim!”_** she demanded.

He filched and growled in more pain while his walking speed dropped as he spawned even more flames; now almost twenty flames in total. The pressure quickly returned and again threatened to force him onto the ground even harder.

**_“More.”_** He ordered.

Timothy’s walk turned into a crawl as his flame total crept into the thirties. He fought to keep his eyes open as he slowly became light headed and began to feel his spirit energy plummeting. His mind was now threatening to shut down from the pressure on his weakened body.

“I…can’t…” he began, but then lost his voice.

**_“Stay strong, Tim! Fight the tiredness! I can sense it inside you, Tim…the energy you need to keep moving forward! Find it, and use it!”_ **

He took as deep a breath that his body would allow, and pushed against his tiring body. His head began to clear a little, so he continued to slowly move forward.

**_“Now…create more flames, Tim! Feel the pressure, and tell yourself that you will ‘not’ let it put you down!”_** she pressed.

He again did as asked, spawning more flames and feeling the pressure beat down on him harder.

But he had finally reached his limit. His mind finally shut down and his, now limp body, fell to the ground.

He fell face first, and laid there unconscious as Kitsune withdrew her Bankai and resealed herself. The gauntlets on his hands started to emit steam, then slowly faded away and reform into Kitsune’s sealed blade in his right hand.

She materialized herself to stand next to him, panting hard with a hand to her chest, as Yoruichi and Kisuke flashed into place across from her. The woman looked at Timothy’s body, then at the spirit with concern.

“Is he alright?” she asked.

Kitsune, still trying to recover her breath, simply nodded. After a few more breaths, she finally found her voice.

“He’s…gonna be…fine…He…He went…farther than…I e…expected.” She panted, then dropped to her knees.

Yoruichi grinned at her. “You seem a little tired.” She teased.

The spirit glared at her. “His…spirit energy…is so weak…I’m surprised…I can…even…materialize…right now.” She informed.

The woman glanced at the Lieutenant. “So, he went out because he used all his spirit energy?” she inquired.

Kitsune nodded. “He was…using it…to fight the…the pressure…He pushed…as hard as…he could…but could only…do so…so much…He’ll be…be out for…a while.” She informed, then dropped to her hands and knees; steadily getting weaker.

“Go ahead and rest up, Kit. Thank you for your help.” Kisuke said with a smile.

The spirit simply nodded, then collapsed on the ground next to Timothy. She twisted her head around to face him with a small smile.

“Good job…Tim.” she said, then faded back into his inner world.

Yoruichi stepped up and kneeled next to Timothy’s body; rolling him over onto his back. Grabbing his zanpakutō from his tight grip, she returned it to its sheath and slowly picked him up bridal style; standing straight and readjusting her grip on him.

She then turned to Kisuke. “I’ll take him up and to his room, Kisuke. You should go keep an eye on your other ‘project’.” She informed.

The man nodded and spared a last glance at the unconscious Lieutenant. “He’ll likely be out for the rest of the day, likely until tomorrow with how strained his body is. I’m a little impressed with how much he was able to handle. Not only was he able to maintain his Bankai, but he was also able to create, and maintain some of his flames as well.” He observed.

Yoruichi grinned and nodded. “He’s a tough one, almost as tough as Ichigo.” She commented.

“Almost, but definitely as determined.” Kisuke remarked.

“I agree. Anyway, I’ll keep an eye on him while you’re down here.” She said, then flashed away.

Kisuke fanned himself as he stared at the spot where the woman was just at. He honestly expected Timothy to only manage being in his Bankai, not use its abilities; even though it was only creating flames.

He then turned his head in the direction that Nel was currently at. He had watched the first couple of minutes of her zanpakutō spirit beating her around, then left when he sensed Timothy’s spiritual pressure falling.

The man was a bit shocked to see that his device had actually worked in drawing out her hollow powers. And not only that, but also the spirit of her powers that seemed to have the same sense of humanity that she did.

Kisuke closed his fan and tapped it on his chin with a thoughtful face. “Now that Tim has done what he needs to, can you do the same, miss Nel?” he mumbled to himself, then started walking in her direction.

** With Nelliel, Present **

Nel’s body collided harshly into one of the few remaining boulders in the general vicinity with a low grunt. It then fell down the side of it until she landed, face first, onto the ground. Gamuza was not holding back in the slightest as the spirit released her fury on her ‘former’ partner.

The Arrancar got back up to a kneeling position, then held out her hand to the spirit and quickly charged a cero.

“Cero!” she yelled.

The mass of energy shot out from the woman’s hand and sailed straight towards the aggressive spirit. But Gamuza simply held out her own hand and caught the cero in her palm. The mouth of the mask the opened and began to absorb the cero into her mouth.

Nel watched with wide eyes as the spirit used her own technique, then gasped as Gamuza sent the cero, along with her own, right back at Nel. But because it was far too powerful, and in her current state, she couldn’t use the same technique back.

She dove out of the way just as the cero flew past her, crashing into the boulder behind her and exploding. The force of the explosion threw Nel several yards away and onto the ground hard; her body rolling along the surface until it finally came to a stop…right at Gamuza’s hooves.

The spirit delivered a hefty kick to Nel’s exposed chest, sending the woman flying back the way she came and into the boulder the spirit’s cero had just struck only seconds ago. The boulder exploded from the force of her body impacting it and sending her straight through.

“Are you surprised, Nelliel, that I can use your own abilities?” Gamuza inquired, then buzzed away to end up next to Nel’s body.

She dropped the front of her lower body as she leaned her upper body forward to pick the woman up off the ground by her hair. The Arrancar whined in pain as the large clumps of hair threatened to pull from her scalp.

Gamuza held her up to where they were face-to-face. “I ‘am’ your powers, miss Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck. You get ‘your’ powers from ‘me’. Any abilities ‘you’ possess, ‘I’ possess. Right now, you are nothing more than a stripped-down version of ‘me’.” She informed, then flung the woman around and over her shoulder onto the ground a dozen yards away.

Nel grunted loudly when her body landed and rolled on the ground. Her body didn’t have a chance to stop as Gamuza was already there waiting for her with her back leg poised for a kick. The spirit thrusted it’s leg out, catching her in the head, and sending her body rolling back to the opposite way.

The spirit set her leg back down and turned to face the woman. “Look what following that stupid brat has gotten you, Nelliel. Bruised. Battered. Broken. You would stay by something like that? You would go through all this because of these pathetic feelings of ‘false’ loyalty?” she asked, then sonídoed in front of the downed woman.

Raising her front right leg, she then stomped down on the woman’s side. “You think he will stay by you?” she questioned and stomped again. “Protect you?” she furthered with another stomp, then kicked her away. “You think that ‘thing’ is your ‘friend’?” she finished as she crossed her arms.

Nel slowly rolled onto her side, bracing herself up with her left arm. Pulling her legs in, she pushed herself up and into a sitting position. She flinched with the movement and quickly held her right arm, only to discover that the arm was broken about three quarters of a foot above her elbow.

Her teal colored hair now had numerous splotches of red from her blood staining it. Her, once white, uniform also had many red stains of blood saturating it. Blood dripped out of her mouth and the large cut on her left cheek bone.

“He…is my friend. And he ‘would’ protect me…just like I would him.” She informed, causing the spirit to raise her concealed brow.

“Would he? I doubt that, Nel. He’s a soul reaper. Those things kill hollows like us, just ‘because’ we’re hollows. That brat’s only using you, Nelliel, just so he, and the rest of his comrades can get to Aizen. Once they’re done…once they have killed Aizen, they’ll do the same thing to you. And the sad thing, is that you ‘know’ this.” Gamuza stated, then buzzed over to her.

The spirit grabbed her by the wrist of her broken arm and raised her up to her face again as Nel yelled in pain. “All that bullshit the brat told you, about ‘hiding you’, and ‘protecting you’, it’s nothing but a bold-faced lie. He only told you that ‘to’ get to Aizen. How in the hell could you possibly think you could be loyal to someone who would just turn on you?”

Nel gripped her arm to try and reduce the pain, to no avail, as she glared at the spirit. “You think…Aizen was any different?! He ‘did’ turn on us! He was the one who separated us! How could ‘you’ follow such evil so blindly?! You call ‘that’ loyalty?! It’s not…it’s stupidity!” Nel yelled at the spirit.

Gamuza scoffed, then swung Nel’s body around and back down onto the ground in front of her. “You have some nerve to try and judge ‘me’, Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck! ‘Me’! Loyalty; rolled into a single being!” she yelled, then kicked Nel away again and held a hand to her chest. “It doesn’t matter what the person is, or what that person’s goals are! Loyalty means you follow that person you swore yourself to! No matter how good, or how bad that person is, you ‘always’ follow those who you have sworn loyalty to!”

The spirit pointed at Nel’s body with a deathly glare. “You broke your word, Nelliel! You swore to be loyal to Aizen, and you, on your ‘own free will’, turned against him! If ‘anyone’ is a traitor, it’s ‘you’, Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck!” she declared, then crossed her arms tightly.

Nel laid there, weak and beaten, as she tried to find the strength to move. The only thing she could manage, was to tilt her head up high enough to look the spirit in the eyes. She could feel her world closing in as her mind began to drift out of consciousness.

“I…don’t…care.” She retorted in a weak, and low voice; barely even considered a whisper.

Gamuza dropped and shook her head. “What happened to you, Nel?” she asked, then looked back at her. “You and I…we were so close…closer than Pesche and Dondochakka. We ‘never’ fought…‘never’ argued. We always saw things in the same light. And now?” She scoffed at the woman and threw a hand in her direction. “Look at you. Humiliated…broken…can’t even lift your head up to me. What has helping your ‘friend’ done for you? Huh? I’ll tell you…it’s brought you nothing but pain and misery. So why follow him, knowing that’s all you’re going to get in return? Answer me that, Nel.”

Nel let out a small whine of pain as she brought her left arm around in front of her and began to push herself up. Her chest barely made a few inches off the ground before the strength gave out and she plopped back down.

“Tsk…pitiful. Can’t believe I had ‘you’ as a master. I’m done playing games with you. Stay there while I go deal with that pathetic excuse of an existence you call a friend. Once I’m done with him, I’ll come back for you.” Gamuza stated, then began walking towards the ladder to the shop.

The Arrancar closed her eyes tightly as tears began to form.

_‘No…I can’t…lose him…I won’t…let her take him.’_

She clenched her left fist and pushed herself up slowly, using her arm as a support.

_“I will not…let her kill him.’_

Embracing the pain the best she could, she pulled her broken arm around and used it to help support her as she pulled her legs to her chest and pushed down with her left arm to slowly enter a sitting position.

“Stop…” she weakly called out.

Gamuza stopped her walk, then sighed. “You just won’t quit…will you?” she asked in a saddened voice.

Nel pulled a leg under her and planted a foot on the ground. Leaning back, then forward, she used momentum to push herself high enough to get her other foot under her; now in a kneeling position.

“S…Stay…away…from him.” She hissed.

The spirit glanced over her shoulder at her with sorrowful eyes. “Don’t do this, Nel.” She half pleaded.

Using a burst of energy, Nel shakily shot herself up, stumbling and nearly falling over, until she was in a widened standing position. Taking a couple shallow breaths, she gently thrusted her body to the side and dragged her right foot over so that she was now standing straighter, but still a bit slouched.

“You will not…touch him!” she growled as she held her right arm tight to her side.

Gamuza turned her body around to face her fully. “I will ‘not’ warn you again, Nel. Stay down, and let me end this…foolishness. Go back to the Espada. Fulfill the promise that ‘you’ made.”

Nel released her arm and brought her hand up to her mouth. The spirit narrowed its gaze in wonder as Nel placed her finger in her mouth and bit down hard, breaking the skin and causing it to bleed.

“What are you doing?” Gamuza asked cautiously.

Pulling her now bleeding hand away from her mouth, she held it, palm out, towards the spirit.

Gamuza’s eyes slightly widened. “You wouldn’t dare…” she paused.

A dark, pinkish mass of energy, surrounded by a solid black hue, grew in the palm of her hand; steadily getting larger and more powerful with each passing second. Before either of them knew it, the mass of energy was easily three times the size of a normal cero.

“I would…” Nel confirmed.

The spirit didn’t seem fazed. “Nice try at a bluff, Nel…but you and I both know, if you use a Gran Rey Cero in your current condition, you will definitely die.” She pointed out.

Nel scoffed weakly at her. “For Tim…I’d rather die…than see you harm him.”

Gamuza started walking slowly towards her. “Tell me…Nel…what has that ‘thing’ done for you? What could have it possibly done for you, that would make you turn your back on a promise, and side with him? Tell me…what is that soul reaper to you?” she demanded.

Tears began rolling down Nel’s cheeks, taking blood away with them. “Tim’ is my friend…just like you. He has done more for me than Aizen ‘ever’ has. He ‘protected’ me, while Aizen turned his back on me. And ‘he’ has done more for me than ‘you’ ever have!” she hissed at last.

The spirit stopped in her tracks at her claim. “What?!” she hissed back.

Nel clenched her teeth tighter. “You heard me…Tim has done more for me than you. You are a part of me, Gamuza…a part of my soul…my friend. I never want to lose you. But the truth is…I’d rather lose you…than lose Tim.” she declared.

Gamuza’s eyes widened. “You’re lying…You would abandon ‘me’…to save ‘him’?!” she asked in shock.

The former Quinto Espada dropped her head, then several moments later, picked it back up to the spirit with a fierce glare. “I would. If I must choose between you…or Tim…I choose Tim!” she confirmed with deathly seriousness.

The spirit watched Nel closely, looking for any possible sign that the woman was lying, or bluffing. After what seemed like eternity of observation, Gamuza could finally see that the woman had firmly meant every word she said.

“Why Nel…After all the years that we have known each other…the bonds that we share…why…why would you choose him…over me? What could he possibly offer…that ‘I’ couldn’t? What is so ‘special’ about him, that you would abandon me?” the spirit asked in a low, but calm voice.

Nel lowered her head a little and smiled. “Because…unlike Aizen…or anyone else we have ever met…I know that Tim…would never abandon me…Even if it would kill him…he would still fight for me.” She said, then looked at Gamuza. “I don’t want to abandon you, Gamuza…I really don’t…It would tear me apart to do so…But it’s like you said…I am the epitome of ‘Loyalty’…and my loyalty…is with Tim…not you.”

She then narrowed her eyes at the spirit. “Gran Rey…”

“Stop.” Gamuza interjected.

The Arrancar paused her attack, and the two warriors stared each other off for nearly a minute, before Gamuza sighed and crossed her arms. “Drop your cero, Nel…I will not fight you any longer.” She stated.

The woman thought the request over for a second, but finally let the cero dissipate and dropped her hand to her broken arm again.

“I cannot see why you hold so much faith in that brat…this ‘Tim’…but I ‘can’ see the vast amount of loyalty you have toward him. You broke your promise to Aizen…but as much as I don’t want to admit it, ‘he’ broke your trust. I also don’t want to admit it…but this ‘Tim’ has yet to do anything to break your trust. I will trust you for now, Nel…but make no mistake…the one time that the brat ‘does’ break that trust you have for him…I will kill him.” Gamuza warned.

Nel firmly nodded. “He won’t, Gamuza. He is not perfect…no one is…but he is honest, and loyal. He won’t let you down.” She assured.

Gamuza slowly walked up and stopped in front of Nel. She held her hand out to her side a bit, and Nel’s zanpakutō appeared in her hand. With the flick of her wrist, the spirit flung the sword around to catch it by the blade facing down.

“I will allow our connection to be reestablished Nel, but on one condition.” The spirit said sternly, getting a nod from Nel. “Until you can ‘prove’ to me that this ‘Tim’ can be trusted, I will not allow you to release your Resurrección. If he does prove to me that I can trust him, I will grant you access to your hollow powers again. But…if he proves that I ‘can’t’ trust him, I will take over your mind, release myself, and kill him with ‘your’ hands. That is the deal. Do you agree?” the spirit offered, then held the hilt out to Nel.

Nel narrowed her gaze at the spirit. “Normally, I would turn you down and walk away from you…but I ‘know’ that Tim will prove you wrong, and I have faith in him that he will.” She stated. With a hiss of pain, she slowly brought her right arm up and grabbed the offered hilt with her right hand. “I accept.”

Gamuza grinned, then released her hold on the blade; crossing her arms again. “For your sake, I honestly hope you’re right.” She concluded, then slowly faded away into nothing.

Nel lowered her arm, zanpakutō in her hand, down to her side and stood there. After a few seconds, she closed her eyes and sighed.

“I know you’re there…Kisuke.” She stated. The man in question walked out from behind a boulder to her left, where she turned her head to look at him. “I know you want to say something Kisuke…” she said with annoyance.

The shop owner held his fan over his mouth. “Now, why would you think that, miss Nel? I simply wanted to offer my congratulations.” He assured.

She slightly narrowed her gaze at him. “I do not regret the deal I made with Gamuza, Kisuke…and I expect you to remain silent, and not to tell Tim…or anyone else for that matter, about everything you saw.” She demanded.

Kisuke snapped his fan shut and held his right hand up. “I assure you, I will not speak a word on this. You have my word.” He stated in full seriousness. Nel nodded at him, then sheathed her zanpakutō. “Perhaps we should return upstairs and give a call to miss Inoue to ask her to come fix you up.” He advised further.

She smiled, then nodded again. “That would be nice.” She responded, then took a step forward. Her legs finally gave out and she dropped to her knees with a hiss of pain. “Maybe…I should wait here and rest for a moment.” She observed.

The man chuckled lightly. “That would be a good idea. Once miss Inoue fixes you up, you should head to your room and rest up for a while. Tim is already finished with his training and is currently sleeping in his room.” He informed.

Nel glanced at him. “Did he…”

Kisuke nodded. “He did. He managed to reacquire his Bankai, but he still needs a lot of training and practice to master it. He put himself through a lot of stress today, so it may be a while before he wakes up. I’ll head upstairs to call miss Inoue.”

She nodded gently. “I’m gonna wait here for a little bit, then I’ll come up as well.”

The man looked at the arm she was nursing. “Are you going to be able to manage with that arm?” he asked in concern.

“I’ll manage, thank you.” She answered.

He nodded and began walking away, but stopped after a few steps. “By the way…” he started, then glanced over his shoulder. “…not to make fun of you or anything…but I hope you’ve come to a decision about what you plan to do with your feelings towards him.” he stated.

Nel turned pink and looked away. “What are talking about?” she asked.

Kisuke gave her a serious face. “As I said, I’m not asking to make fun of you, miss Nel. But the fact of the matter, is that if you decide to pursue those feelings you have, you had better be sure you’re committed.”

She looked back at him in confusion. “Why do you say that?”

He turned slightly to look at her better. “It’s simple, Tim may not have outwardly shown that he has any feelings for you yet; but if he does, you can tell he’s the kind of person who would fight heaven and hell for those feelings. If he fights as hard as he does for a friend, what do you think he’ll do for a ‘loved one’?”

Her eyes widened at the realization of the man’s words. “You don’t think…” she started, but froze from loss of words.

Kisuke nodded. “If the two of you hit it off, and the soul society found out, he would easily turn against them for you. Remember Nel, Tim is loyal to his friends, not an organization. If it came between you, or the soul society, he would easily choose you. So, it goes back to what I said; if you wish to show feelings for Tim, you had better be ready for what could, and would most likely come.” He stated.

She gave a defeated sigh. “I guess I really can’t hide it…can I?” she inquired, getting a grin and slight head shake from the man.

She sighed again and pulled her knees to her chest with her right arm cradled in her lap. “I do…feel something for Tim, and I’m still a little confused about these feelings. Orihime explained some things to me yesterday, but there are still some holes.” She tightened her grip on her legs. “I’ve already made a decision…about what to do. I like Tim…He’s shown me nothing but kindness…he didn’t judge me by what I am, and accepted me for who I am. He fights…so hard, for those he cares about.”

The woman rested her head on her knees. “I admire him so much…but I could never ‘love’ him.” She stated, then glanced at the man. “Tim has already risked so much for me, and I couldn’t possibly demand anymore from him by loving him. It would selfish of me to do so. Tim and I could never be together, simply because of what I am. That’s why…” she paused and returned her head to her knees. “…I won’t let these feelings go on. I’ve decided to just…let them go…let him go.”

Kisuke started fanning himself again. “I’m afraid it’s not that easy, miss Nel.” He stated, getting her attention. “The thing is, is that Tim is sensitive. You’ve seen firsthand how he responds when something happens to his friends. He will likely never admit it, but as tough as he tries to appear on the outside, inside is nothing but a bleeding heart of kindness.”

Nel chuckled lightly. “Yeah…he is.” She confirmed.

“Whether you want to admit it or not, Yoruichi, Kit, and I have all seen the feelings you have towards Tim. He may be dense Nel, but that denseness will only last so long. I’m sure it won’t be long that he sees how you feel towards him, and by that time, he may have feelings for you as well. Don’t forget who his zanpakutō spirit is. In fact, it would genuinely surprise me if Kit hasn’t already started trying to break Tim of that denseness.” He pointed, then snapped his fan shut.

“Also, whether or not ‘you’ have feelings for him would be irrelevant. If Tim develops feelings for ‘you’…” he said as he pointed his fan at her. “…then he would still fight anyone who tried to bring you harm. Even if you had ‘no’ feelings for him, he would still fight if he had some for you. So, my advice…” he paused and returned to fanning as Nel looked at him. “…don’t take the soul society into account in your decision. Because the fact of the matter, is that it’s already too late, miss Nel. Tim has already dug the hole by deciding to help you. Having a relationship with an Arrancar, is going to do no better or worse.” He finished, then left her to her thoughts.

She tilted her head and rested her cheek on her knee as a tear left her eye. Timothy had essentially signed his death warrant the moment he decided to help her after she saved him from that Adjuchas.

The woman had made the decision, just the day before, that she wasn’t going to pursue her feelings, so she could prevent Tim from getting in trouble with the soul society. But after hearing from Kisuke that it didn’t matter anyway, that decision was already starting to come into question.

If it was really true, and Timothy had really sealed his fate by simply helping her, did that make it okay for her to look more into these feelings for the Lieutenant? Should she pursue the feelings she had for him, or should she stay with her decision to abandon them?

“Gamuza…are you there?” she called out.

**_“I’m here. Although, I’m not really in the mood to talk with you.”_** The spirit answered.

She nodded slightly. “I understand…but, can I ask you something?”

**_“What’s that?”_ **

Her grip tightened more on her legs. “What do you…think I should do…about my feelings?”

**_“…Are you seriously asking me that? You can’t possibly be serious about asking ‘me’, who still hates this ‘Tim’, what I think about your feelings towards him. I believe I made it abundantly clear just how much I despise the brat.”_** Gamuza stated mockingly.

“I am, Gamuza. You’re a part of me…so I’m asking you what I should do.”

**_“You have got to be kidding me. You honestly want the opinion from someone, who hates the guy, on how they feel about your feelings towards him? For starters, how can you even ‘have’ feelings for him? You’re a hollow, remember? How can you be sure that these ‘feelings’ aren’t just part of your misguided sense of loyalty towards him?”_** she inquired.

Nel closed her eyes and sighed. “I…just know, Gamuza. I feel like…I don’t want to be without him.” She admitted.

**_“…You’re an idiot, Nel. And personally, I could care less about these feelings of yours towards him. I don’t like him. I only said I would give him the chance to prove himself, not that I would care for him. I am your instincts Nel, but I know nothing about these so-called feelings you have for the brat. If you feel that you should seek these feelings out, then do so; even though I still think you’re a blind fool for doing so. But I am the last being you should be asking when it comes to questions on ‘romantic feelings’.”_** Gamuza stated, then went quiet.

The Arrancar woman lifted her head to the ceiling with open eyes and took a deep breath. “What do I do?” she whispered and continued to sit there in thought.

** Timothy’s Inner World, Present **

His head was throbbing, his entire body ached, and he was feeling excessively weak. But these were only a few of the things Timothy was feeling as he opened his eyes with a low moan, the little bit of sunlight peeking through the clouds agitating his eyes.

He held a hand over his face to shield his eyes and noticed that he was once again in his inner world. The first thing that he noticed, was the clouds. The last time, they were a dull grey in color, and had only a couple small holes for sunlight to peek through.

Now, they were a bit lighter in color, and the patches of empty space between them were much larger. Where it had been a gentle rain the last time, now it was more of a drizzle with an occasional medium sized drop every now and then.

He tried to lift his head, so he could get into a sitting position, but he very quickly tossed that idea out the window when, what felt like a mental hammer, pounded his head like an anvil. He dropped his shielding hand down to clutch his head and try to sooth the ache away, but to no avail.

**_“I can see…you are…awake.”_** A familiar voice stated.

Timothy sighed silently and gave a small smile. “Hey ‘Johnny’.” He replied without looking towards the spirit.

**_“I graciously…await the day…that you…learn my name…and stop…calling me…by that…accursed one.”_** ‘Johnny’ stated in a depressed tone.

The Lieutenant snorted lightly. “Blame Kit, she’s the one who started that.” He stated, the rose a brow and rolled his head on the ground to face the spirit. “Where is she, by the way?” he inquired.

**_“She…is resting…It will…be a while…before she…awakens…For now…rest…You have…done well…and deserve it. Lie there…and we…shall talk....awhile.”_** he informed.

The man gave him a thumbs up. “I approve of that idea.” He joked, then let his hand drop to the ground.

‘Johnny’ nodded. **_“You have…done well…Tim…And now…you can maintain…your Bankai…But you…are not done.”_** He informed.

Timothy rose a brow. “You mean I need more training with it? I’m already aware of that.” He stated.

**_“You resolve…has greatly…improved…so far…It will not…be long…until you…are ready…to learn…my name.”_ **

The man’s eyes widened a bit. “You mean…”

The spirit nodded again. **_“You are…nearly ready…to learn…my Shikai.”_**

Timothy turned his head back to the sky with a sigh. “I’m curious.” He said, then returned to the spirit. “You both reside in a single zanpakutō, so how will using your abilities work if I use the same zanpakutō for Kit’s?” he inquired.

**_“You cannot…use both of…our abilities…at once…If you release…Moeru Kitsune…then you cannot…use me…The same…is so…if you…release me…You cannot…use hers…In order…to use…the other’s…abilities…you must first…reseal one…to use…the other.”_ **

He turned back to the sky with a hum. “So, if I want to use one ability, I can’t use the other. So, I’d have to switch between you two, right?”

‘Johnny’ nodded. **_“Correct…However…with practice…and skill…and trust…you will…one day…find yourself…able to call…upon us…without…calling our names.”_**

“What do you mean?” Timothy asked without turning.

**_“You can…call upon…our abilities…without…calling our names…This…can only…be done once…deep trust…has been…established…You have…this trust…with…Moeru Kitsune…You can call…upon her…abilities…without calling…her name.”_ **

Timothy swung his head to the spirit. “I can?!” he asked in shock.

The spirit nodded firmly. **_“It is…something that…takes practice.”_**

He rose a brow. “I’ll definitely ‘have’ to look into that.” He answered, then looked back up.

A long moment of silence fell upon the two of them as the light rain fell on them. “Hey…can I ask you something?” he inquired in a low tone.

**_“You may.”_ **

Another moment of silence passed before Timothy looked at the spirit. “You know how…hard headed I can be…right?” he asked and the spirit nodded. “Be honest with me ‘Johnny’…from what you’ve seen…does it look to you like…Nel ‘really’ has feelings for me?” he asked. The spirit didn’t answer, then he turned his head back to the sky. “I hate to admit it most of the time…but Kit ‘is’ right when she says that I can be…thick skulled on ‘certain’ matters. So…is it true…what she says, that…Nel has feelings for me?”

The spirit stared at him with narrowed eyes. **_“I told you…I will not…be involved…in these…games.”_**

Timothy looked at him. “I’m not asking you to get involved…Actually…I hope you keep out of them, unless you side with me.” He half joked, and returned to the sky. “No…I actually want to know…if Kit’s telling the truth…that Nel ‘does’ have feelings for me. It has always been hard to tell whether that vixen is telling the truth, or if she was just screwing with me.”

He returned to the spirit. “I’m concerned ‘Johnny’…Nel’s a good person. And to be honest, I actually do…” He began to turn a bit pink in the face. “…like her…a little. But…” He closed his eyes with a sigh. “The truth is, I seriously doubt it would ever work.” He admitted.

‘Johnny’ narrowed his gaze. **_“And why…is that?”_** he asked.

Timothy opened his eyes and gave the spirit a serious stare. “She’s a hollow, ‘Johnny…and I’m a soul reaper. Aren’t we supposed to be enemies? Nel’s not a bad person. I’ve seen it. She’s kind and caring, something no one would ever expect from the monsters that everyone say hollows are. She’s…different. She seems to be more human than hollow if anything.”

He turned back to the sky again with a heavy sigh. “Do you think…it’s even possible…between Nel and I? I don’t want to hurt her feelings by giving her something, then take it away cause it can’t happen. I’m afraid I’ve already hurt her enough by giving her false hope of the soul society possibly giving her amnesty after helping us with Aizen.”

**_“And what…would you do…if they don’t?...If they…discover her…what will…you do?”_** the spirit asked.

“What I promised her.” He quickly answered. “I told her I would protect her, and I will. If it means fighting the soul society, then so be it. Nel’s my friend, and I refuse to abandon my friends.” He firmly stated.

**_“If that…is the case…then you…have nothing…to worry about.”_** ‘Johnny’ informed, getting Timothy’s attention. **_“Regardless…of what…you say…you helped…an ‘enemy’…of the…soul society…You are…in effect…already…a traitor…if they…discover her…So it should…not matter…if you…and Nelliel form…a relationship…If you…have feelings…for Nelliel…then follow…your heart…and do what…you think…to be best.”_** He advised.

Timothy turned his head back. “So…I should look into these feelings?”

**_“That…is not…for me…to say…If you care…for her…and truly wish…to be…with her…then do…what your heart…tells you…Now…I will…speak of this…no longer.”_** He stated.

The man looked at the spirit with a raised brow. “By the way…how ‘is’ life with Kit being in the same inner world with you?” he inquired.

‘Johnny’ gave him an evil glare. **_“I regret…allowing you…to bring…her here.”_** He growled.

Timothy snickered at the spirit. “Now you feel the pain I had to live with for years, ‘Johnny’.” He teased.

The spirit dropped his head. **_“I…hate…you.”_**

The young man started laughing, then clutched his side in pain from the sore muscles. “At least…at least she’s…not se…seducing you.” He said between laughs.

Silence followed, then he stopped and looked at the spirit to see his head turned away. “Wait…she didn’t…” he started, but got no response from ‘Johnny’. “She…she did?!” he asked with wide eyes.

‘Johnny’ glared at him. **_“You…will not…speak…of this…again!”_** he hissed in a demonic voice.

Timothy quickly shook his head. “Not a word! I swear!” he responded.

**_“Now…you know…why…she can…materialize…so easily…It is because…I ‘allow’…her to…To give me…some reprieve…from her…antics.”_** He informed.

The Lieutenant rolled to his side and propped himself up on an elbow. “Wait…so the reason she can come out whenever she wants…is because you ‘let her’?! Just to give you time away from her?!” Timothy demanded.

‘Johnny’ growled at him in an echoing, hollow voice. **_“That…‘woman’…is evil!”_** the spirit hissed in declaration.

Timothy gave him a remorseful look. “For once…‘Johnny’…we have ‘something’ we agree on.

** Las Noches Throne Room, Hueco Mundo, 4 Hours Later **

The Sexta Espada, Grimmjow, entered the room through one of the side entrances; along with his five fracción: Shawlong Koufang, Yylfordt Granz, Nakeen Grindina, Di Roy Rinker, and Edrad Liones.

The six Arrancar walked around and up the stairs to the large chair where Aizen was relaxing contently. While the five fracción stopped their movement at the last step, Grimmjow walked further until he came to a stop only a few feet from Aizen.

“You wanted to see me and my fracción, Lord Aizen?” he inquired as his subordinates took a knee and bowed their heads.

Aizen half opened his eyes while keeps his content grin. “Yes, Grimmjow. I have…a unique mission for you and your subordinates in the world of the living. One that requires…extensive precision. You will be assigned with Ulquiorra for the task; however, how you complete the prerequisites for the mission, I leave to you.”

Grimmjow raised his brow a bit. “I assume that orange-haired soul reaper kid is off limits?” he inquired.

Sōsuke smiled. “You have no need to worry about Ichigo Kurosaki at the moment. He is currently unavailable, so he should not pose a problem. However, if he ‘does’ appear, you are welcome to engage him; provided that you do not bring him to any permanent harm. Ulquiorra has all of the details for what is required of you, so go and speak with him. You are all to leave in five days to begin. I have nothing further for you, or your subordinates. You may all leave.” He concluded.

Grimmjow bowed at the waist while the fracción dropped their heads lower before they all rose and began walking down the stairs.

“Oh yes, I almost forgot; I do have one more thing to discuss with you alone, Grimmjow.” Aizen informed, causing the Espada to stop and turn around.

The two men waited until the five fracción left the room, then Aizen grinned. “I am sure you will come across the soul reaper, Timothy Durn, and the former Quinto Espada, Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck, while you are performing your task.” The man held out his hand and presented the Sexta Espada with a small, cylindrical device. “If you do come across this soul reaper, you are required to use this against him. I would like to test its effectiveness against a soul reaper.”

Grimmjow walked back up and took the device from the man, looking it over briefly before sticking it inside his pocket.

“Am I free to kill him?” he asked with a small, but toothy grin.

Aizen closed his eyes as he thought the question over. After a few moments, his eyes returned to the Espada.

“No…I believe that he may be useful to our cause. However, Nelliel is another matter. If she appears, and you are given the chance, kill her. If possible, capture her, but you are free to kill her as you please.” He informed.

The Espada grinned widely. “Of course, Lord Aizen.” He answered, then walked back down the stairs to look for Ulquiorra.

Aizen turned his head and rested it on his fist as he looked out the balcony, now repaired, and into the fake sky on the dome of Las Noches.


	21. Learning One's Feelings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 21

**(Learning One’s Feelings)**

** Urahara Shop, 1 Hour Later **

“Sounds like your hollow spirit had it in for ya, Nel.” Yoruichi commented.

After a slow climb back up to the shop, and a twenty-minute healing session from Orihime, the three women sat down at the dining room table enjoying some tea while Nel told the former Captain about her encounter with the spirit of her hollow powers.

Orihime was a bit saddened to hear what the spirit had put the Arrancar through, while Yoruichi was quite impressed. Not only because of the beating she had to endure, but also the fact that she was willing to throw her powers aside in order to fight with Timothy.

“Yeah, that sounds a bit…harsh to me.” Orihime added, looking at the woman with concern.

Nel was leaning her back against the wall with her head lowered a bit, still quite a bit exhausted. “Yes, but I do understand how she feels. I really…thought she was gone forever. But I’m happy to have her back, even if she doesn’t quite like Tim.” she stated.

Yoruichi folded her arms over her chest with closed eyes. “Still, I’m a bit intrigued that you were willing to toss aside your own powers to stay with him.” She opened an eye at the former Espada and grinned a bit. “You must really ‘like’ him.” She hinted.

The Arrancar turned a bit pink. “Please don’t start that again.” She pleaded in a depressed voice.

Orihime looked at the golden-eyed woman with disappointment. “You really should stop being so mean to her, Yoruichi. That’s not like you to do something…” She paused, then tilted her head. “…Well, maybe it is…but must you be so harsh about it?”

Yoruichi rubbed the back on her head sheepishly. “Yeah, I guess you got a point.” She admitted, then looked at Nel. “And…I guess I do owe you an apology for that, Nel. Perhaps I have been a bit…excessive with my antics.” She said reluctantly.

Nel nodded. “It’s fine, Yoruichi. I know you didn’t mean anything by it, and neither did Kit for that matter.” She then looked at the woman pleadingly. “Just please don’t do it anymore?”

The woman sighed, but nodded. “I’ll do what I can, but I can’t make any promises. You just make it too damn easy to mess with you, Nel. But…” She paused and gave the former Espada a serious stare. “…on a serious note, you actually ‘do’ have feelings for the kid, don’t you?” she inquired.

Orihime huffed and stared angrily at Yoruichi. “Leave her alone, Yoruichi!” she demanded in a sheepish and embarrassed tone.

Yoruichi looked at her with a raised brow. “What?! I’m not teasing her or anything, I’m asking a serious question here.” Her eyes returned to Nel. “Come on, Nel, it’s pointless to try and hide it. Tim’s asleep in his room, so you don’t have to worry about him hearing anything. It’s just us girls here.” She pointed out.

Nel turned her eyes to the woman. “With you, that doesn’t make me feel better.”

The woman scoffed lightly. “I’m not talking to you like the seductive ‘demon’ that you know me as, I’m talking to you as a woman, to another woman.” She affirmed. Nel continued to stare at her disbelievingly for a moment, then the woman sighed again and held up her right hand. “Alright, I swear on my honor I won’t say, or do anything.” She said, then dropped her hand. “Now come on, Nel.” She pressed.

Orihime’s eyes turned to Nel as well, waiting to see what she would do. After a few moments, Nel finally sighed and nodded her head.

“Fine, I guess…I do feel something towards Tim. I talked with Orihime this morning about it, and she explained what these feelings are. I guess that…I’m still a bit confused about the whole thing.” Nel admitted hesitantly.

Yoruichi nodded and rested her hands in her lap. “And?” she pressed.

Nel looked at her with question. “And what?”

The woman rolled her eyes with a scoff. “And…you plan on trying to get closer with Tim?”

The Arrancar’s faced reddened a bit more as she turned away. “I…I wouldn’t…mind, I guess.” She said, then looked back at the woman with concern. “But…I’m worried about…what it’ll do for Tim. He would be in very serious trouble if the soul society found out.” She pointed.

Yoruichi snorted at the Arrancar’s words. “Girl, that kid’s already in deep shit just by helping you out and hiding you. What else could they do? Execute him? Yeah, good luck with that one.”

Nel nodded. “Kisuke said the same thing…that being in a relationship wouldn’t matter anyway because he’s already helping me.”

“And he’s right.” Yoruichi firmly stated and drank some of her tea. With a relaxed sigh, she set the cup back down and laid back on the floor with her head supported by her hands. “I’ll admit Nel, I’m amazed someone like you, no offense, can show feelings, like love and such. It’s a whole lot different than what the soul society has always believed about hollows; thinking them to be nothing more than mindless beasts that know nothing more than hunger and anger. But you proved that wrong; that not ‘all’ hollows are as evil as they say.”

The woman lifted her head to look at her friend. “You’re quite the interesting person, Nel. And I really hope that you and Tim can find a way to make the soul society see you for who you are and not what you are. But in the meantime, if you do decide to get closer to Tim, my advice is to keep yourself prepared for the hell that’s sure to come when they find out.”

Nel nodded and gave her a small smile. “Thanks, Yoruichi.”

Orihime clapped her hands together with a wide smile. “I think you two should go on a date.” She advised.

The Arrancar turned to her with a raised brow. “Date?” she asked in confusion.

Yoruichi and Orihime glanced at each other with wide eyes, then back at Nel. “You don’t know what a date is?” Yoruichi asked in surprise.

Nel simply shrugged her shoulders. “I’ve read a few books on human behavior before, but I don’t recall anything called ‘dates’. Is it something important?” she inquired.

The two other women again glanced at each other, then shook their heads. “Girl…” Yoruichi started, then looked at the former Espada with pity. “You’re gonna need a ‘hell’ of a lot more help than we thought.” She pointed out, followed by a swift nod from Orihime.

** 20 Minutes Later **

“So…you go on these ‘dates’ to go and have fun with the person you really ‘like’?” Nel ask for clarification, getting nods from her two friends. “And…you do this…why?” she inquired in skepticism.

Yoruichi slapped a hand to her face while Orihime sighed in defeat. “Let me ask you something Nel…” Yoruichi mumbled through her hand, then dropped it to look at the woman. “How exactly ‘does’ romance work for hollows? I mean…I’m sure it’s different, but you ‘do’ do something there, right?”

Nel rubbed the top of her head. “Well…there really isn’t any romance or stuff like that.” She answered, getting confused looks from her friends.

“What do you mean?” Orihime asked.

The Arrancar turned to her. “Well, if a hollow sees another hollow that he or she fancies, that hollow takes the other as its mate.”

The teens eyes widened. “You…you mean you just…take someone as a…mate?” she asked in a blush, getting a nod from Nel. “Um…isn’t that a little…barbaric?”

Nel gave her a hurtful look. “Hey!”

Orihime quickly held her hands up in surrender. “I. I didn’t mean anything by it! It’s just…different is all.”

The former Espada tilted her head in thought. “From everything you’ve told me, I guess humans ‘would’ find that a little strange. So, how exactly ‘do’ humans get together, if not by mating?” she inquired.

The teen turned red while Yoruichi snickered at her face. “Well…um…the two that really like each other…um…eventually g…get…” she then lost her voice as she now turned beat red. She lowered her head and started twiddling her thumbs in circles. “…married.” She finally choked out.

Nel rose a brow. “So…I’m guessing that makes them…mates?”

Orihime dropped her head lower and couldn’t find the courage to answer. Thankfully, in a way, Yoruichi was there to rescue her.

“In a sense, yes. It basically bonds them together. Think of it as…a promise between the two of them that they’ll only love each other and no one else.” She answered.

Nel turned around to the woman. “But…humans don’t…” she stopped herself, then sighed heavily as she rubbed her temples. “Humans are so confusing.” She stated, shaking her head.

Yoruichi laughed at her. “Girl, if you plan to start a new life here after this is over, you better get used to it.” She advised.

The Arrancar dropped her hand. “But why do humans have to make things so complicated?”

“Some of the best things are complicated, Nel. Sure, finding a ‘mate’ may be easy for a hollow, but other than to have certain actions and to breed, there’s nothing else involved. But when it come to humans, loving another is something…far deeper. You enjoy being around each other and looking out for each other. Instead of just sharing their bodies, humans also share their souls with each other. It sounds confusing as hell, and it is, but it’s something that is highly enjoyable.” Yoruichi educated.

Nel leaned her back and head against the wall in thought. “So…these dates help to establish this ‘sharing of the soul’?” she inquired.

Yoruichi nodded. “In a way, you could say that. They help further the feelings that the two have for each other. It’s basically to get to know each other better to determine if that person is the one you want to spend life with.”

The Arrancar looked at the golden-eyed woman. “So, you’re saying that if I want to increase my feelings for Tim, I should take him to one of these ‘dates’?”

Yoruichi nodded. “If you think you wanna chase after the feelings you have for him, then yes. The only problem I think you might have, is how dense the kid is. But…I’m sure if we get Kit in on this, she should be able to help us with that.”

Nel rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly. “I…don’t think that’s a good idea. And, now that I think about it, wouldn’t she be upset if me and Tim did get together? I mean…she used to be his wife, didn’t she?” she stated.

The older woman waved her off. “I don’t think that’ll be a problem. Besides, she used to date him herself at one point, so she’d be able to give you some tips on the kind of things the kid does and doesn’t like. Just take him out to the main part of the city and spend some time together.”

The teal-haired Arrancar gave her a questioning look. “But…how can I do that if I can’t leave here?”

“As long as Tim, Kisuke, or myself are with you, it shouldn’t be a problem.” Yoruichi answered calmly.

Orihime gave the woman the same wondering stare. “But…how would we get him to take Nel out? I’m not exactly sure, but from what it sounds like, he’s not going to go along with this willingly.” She pointed out.

Yoruichi grinned. “Simple, have him take Nel out under the guise that she needs to get used to being around humans and needs to learn how humans live.” She said, then looked at the said woman. “All you have to do Nel, is point out things that interest you; meaning things you would like to do with him on your date.” She plotted out.

Nel lowered her head a bit in shame. “I still don’t think this is a good idea, Yoruichi. I’m still worried about what will happen if the soul society finds out.”

The former Captain groaned loudly with annoyance, then reached over and slapped the back of the Arrancar’s head. Nel quickly lifted her head and turned to the woman in shock as she placed a hand on the spot where the woman had struck her.

“W…What was that for?!” she demanded.

Yoruichi glared at her sternly. “For being an idiot.” She answered plainly. “Just how many times do people have to tell you, Nel? Regardless of what you two do, even if you two were to get married…” she said as she threw a hand through the air, causing Nel and Orihime to blush a bit. “…it wouldn’t matter. If the soul society finds out about you ‘at all’ the kid will be in trouble, because they’ll know that he helped you.”

She then reached over and tapped a knuckle on the Arrancar’s forehead with a light thump. “You couldn’t possibly be as dense as he can, right? Come on, Nel…both of your lives are basically screwed at this point. So, it doesn’t matter what the hell you two do, so why not at least make your lives more enjoyable while you can. And stop thinking that by avoiding him you can help his case; because, for the hundredth time, nothing you do can help his case.” She finished as she crossed her arms firmly.

“…Unless I decide to just leave…” Nel started, causing Yoruichi and Orihime to raise their brows in surprise.

“What do you mean?” Orihime asked in worry.

Nel turned to her. “I mean…what if I just…disappeared?” she inquired and turned back to Yoruichi. “What if I just leave here and vanish…that way the soul society can’t find out about me.”

Orihime’s eyes widened while Yoruichi simply watched the Arrancar. “So…you would do that? Just…leave?” she asked with a shrug, getting a nod from the woman. “Why? Don’t you think that it would hurt Tim? You know he cares for you…even if he’s unaware of any feelings towards you.”

The former Espada sighed, but gently shook her head. “I know…and it would hurt me as well…but it would hurt even more if he was to be punished just for trying to help me.”

Yoruichi maintained her serious face as she stared the woman down. “I see. But you seem to be forgetting one key fact in all this, Nel.”

Nel looked at the woman questionably. “What’s that?”

“The fact that the kid ‘knowingly’ stuck his neck out for you, to protect you; ‘knowing’ that what he was doing was highly illegal. ‘Knowing’ that he would be severely punished for doing it. Yet, he ‘still’ did it. He was willing to throw everything away to help you. With that in mind, think about what he would do if you just suddenly disappeared, Nel. You think he would just…let it go? Hell no. He’d be out that door before anyone could attempt to stop him and go out looking for you.”

The woman lowered her head and sighed heavily. “That kid is so dense that ‘I’ can’t even get a good read on whether he has feelings for you or not. But even if he doesn’t, you are still his friend, and he would do anything for his friends…just like me and Kisuke.”

“And me.” Orihime stated firmly as she rested her hand on top of Nel’s.

Nel looked at her to see a tearful smile plastered on the teens face. She then looked back to Yoruichi, where the woman gave her a smirk and a firm nod. Returning to the front and lowering her head, she gave a hint of a smile as a single tear welled up, then ran down her cheek. With the back of her free hand, she rubbed the tear away and dried her face with a sniff.

“My fracción…Pesche…and Dondochakka…the were close to me…very close. I thought of them like…my adopted brothers, even though they were under me. They were the closest thing I had to a family. When they…” She stopped and dropped her head as she clenched her fists tightly. “…When they were…killed…I lost my family. I lost everything.”

Her shoulders trembled as she thought about her two fallen comrades. After a moment, she sniffed again, then looked back at Yoruichi with tear filled eyes.

“But then Tim helped me…him, Kisuke, you, Ichigo…” she paused and looked at Orihime. “…and you, Orihime. You all have helped me…and asked nothing back from me.” She turned back to Yoruichi. “All of you have given me something I thought I could never have again…friendship…a sense of belonging. You’ve made me feel just like I did with Pesche and Dondochakka…as part of a family again.” She admitted, then dropped her head again.

Orihime started to tear up as well while Yoruichi rubbed the back of her head. “Well…we got three outcasts, a group of humans, and a bunch of souls reapers in this twisted gathering that, I guess you could call a family; so why not just say ‘hell with it’ and add an Arrancar to the mix?” she stated, then patted the woman on the shoulder.

The teen across from her nodded in agreeance and scooted over, rubbing the teal-haired woman’s back. “Yeah, you are basically a part of the group now, Nel. I’m sorry your two adoptive brothers are no longer here, but at least you have us now.” She comforted.

A moment passed, then Nel nodded slightly and began rubbing her eyes with the back of her hands. She sniffed, then raised her head; still rubbing her eyes. The woman then lightly chuckled with a small smile.

“Look at me…an Arrancar and former Espada…and I’m sitting here crying like a child. Pathetic, huh?” she said in a low voice.

Yoruichi smiled back. “Girl, you may be an Arrancar, but you’re still a woman with feelings. Hell, I’ve seen the strongest, and most battle hardened ‘men’ break out in tears a few times from something small. But now that we have that out of the way…” she started, then reached down next to her and produced a flask and two saucers. “…let’s have ourselves a few drinks, shall we?” she proposed, then turned to Orihime. “Sorry girl, but you’ll have to stick with tea.”

Orihime held up a hand and smiled. “No, I should be getting back home. Tatsuki’s coming over later and we were going to go to the movies.” She replied, then looked at Nel. “But please be sure to tell me how your date goes, Nel.”

Nel again turned pink, causing Yoruichi to laugh. “You might as well stop trying to hide it, Nel. If your feelings for the kid weren’t obvious before, they are now. I mean, with how adamant you were to try and protect him from getting in trouble, even going so far as to wanting to leave, you obviously care a great deal about him.” She pointed out and poured two drinks, sliding one over to Nel.

“That still doesn’t mean I’m comfortable about it.” The Arrancar stated and grabbed her saucer, taking a sip.

Yoruichi grabbed hers and down its contents before pouring another. “What’s there to not be comfortable about? You like him and care for him, so why not admit it? Besides…” she paused and held her saucer up. “…I think I found a way to mess with him.” She said with a grin.

Orihime glared at her. “Leave them alone, Yoruichi!” she demanded.

The woman took a sip, then moaned. “Damn…you two are no fun, I swear. But fine then…I’ll just poke my fun at you and Ichigo.” She stated, then took another sip.

Orihime turned red and Nel looked at her with shock. “Ichigo’s the one you have feelings for?!”

The teen turned away and Yoruichi laughed. “What’s wrong, Orihime? Haven’t you admitted your feelings for the guy?” she asked as she flashed her brows.

Nel’s eyes widened as Orihime turned away. “I I It’s not like that…I uh…just haven’t…found the right time…to tell him…is all.”

Yoruichi laughed, then finished her drink. “Better hurry up girl, or Nel here just might take him away.” She teased.

Nel swiftly turned to her in agitation. “I…I would not! Don’t spread your stupid lies, Yoruichi!” she hissed, then turned back to the distraught teen. “Don’t worry, Orihime, I would never do that.” She stated with a smile.

Orihime didn’t look at her, but did nod. “T Thanks, Nel. I should…probably leave now. Thank you for your hospitality.” She said with a shy bow, then stood up.

“Any time, Orihime. And don’t worry, I’ll give ya all the juicy details about Nel’s fun night afterwards.” She said with a wink at the Arrancar, causing her to turn red herself.

“Yoruichi!” she hissed through her teeth, causing the woman to laugh again.

Nel turned back front and finished her drink, holding the saucer close to her face as she took a deep breath.

“What’s wrong, Nel? Thinking of doing some ‘late-night exercises’ already?” she said with a flash of her brows.

The former Espada’s hand immediately closed into a fist, shattering the clay saucer she was holding. “That’s it!” she yelled and dived at the demon woman with fury in her eyes.

Orihime gasped and watched with saucer wide eyes as Nel began tackling the other woman, being held back with the woman’s knee. Yoruichi was calmly drinking her sake as she effortlessly held back he attacker with a grin.

“I’m going to kill you, Yoruichi!” Nel growled as she, with no success, tried to murder the woman in front of her.

The teen was frozen in shock as the two women rolled on the floor, red in the faces; Nel from her anger, and Yoruichi from her hard laughter. None of them noticing the shadowy figure tucked up around the corner with a wide grin; holding a small device just slightly exposed past the corner and recording everything.

** The Next Morning **

As Timothy began to come back to the living world, he was immediately assaulted by an intense pain in his head and a heavy and dull ache throughout his entire body. He slowly opened a single eye, but immediately closed it when the sun’s rays through the window blinded him.

Raising his arm to shield his eyes from the intense light, he cracked his eye open again to see that he was in a plain looking room; his room, he supposed. Slowly rolling his head to the side, he looked out the window to see that it was early, to mid-morning.

_‘…Morning? How long was I out?’_ he wondered.

Rolling his head back, he then raised it and tried to lift himself up to a sitting position. He barely managed to lift his back of the ground before he moaned in pain and dropped back down from his very sore abdominal muscles.

He placed a hand over his stomach, then tried again; but again, only making a few inches before letting out a small gasp and dropping back down. His stomach felt like he had been punched by one of those ridiculously large, and broad-shouldered Russian Army guys that you see in one of those cheesy mafia movies.

Taking a few quick breaths, he then tried a different approach. Gently rolling onto his side, he then slid an arm underneath him and pushed himself up onto his elbow; discovering that his arms were no better than his stomach.

“Oh…fuck.” He breathed out in a whisper to the ceiling.

Another few breaths later, he slowly pulled his knees out from under his covers and up to his chest. Using his other hand to support him, he then pushed up with his right arm to raise himself to a side-sitting position.

“Good lord…why does my body hurt so damn much?” he whispered to himself.

**_“It’s from the Bankai, Tim.”_** Kitsune answered, then a few seconds later, materialized into a folded sitting position next to him. “It was still a bit early to even try to do that, and it put a lot a physical pressure on your body. You’re going to be a bit sore for a couple days, so I’d recommend you take it easy for that time. But on the bright side, you did do a great job with what you did manage. You should lay back down and rest for a while longer, Tim.”

He smiled a bit and glanced at her. “Thanks, but I’ll be fine. I’ll rest up more later, but for now I want to move around at least a little bit. How are ‘you’ feeling? ‘Johnny’ said that the training tuckered you out as well.” He inquired.

She smiled back and shrugged a shoulder. “About the same, though not as bad. More tired than anything. Want a hand getting up?” she offered.

“Yeah, that would be nice.” He said with a nod.

She then got up and walked up behind him; slipping her arms underneath his shoulders. Giving her a nod, and with her help, he slowly, and painfully, pulled himself to where he was now standing with her supporting him while he regained his balance.

“Thanks.” He said, getting a nod back.

“Just take it slow, alright? The only reason I’m helping you is because I know it’s pointless to argue with you on certain things.” She stated.

He let out a light chuckle. “At least you’re willing to admit that you can’t ‘always’ win against me.” He mocked.

Her gaze narrowed at him. “You do realize that all it takes is a gentle push with my finger to put you back down on the floor for good, right?” she cautioned.

Timothy scoffed. “Noted. I think I got it now. I’m just going to go sit in the dining room for a bit and ‘mingle’.”

Kitsune nodded. “Want some help?”

“Please?” he accepted.

Moving to his side and slinging an arm over her shoulder, she slowly helped him walk to his door; stopping to allow him to open it, then escorting him into the main room. They both looked to see Kisuke and Tessai sitting at the table, while Toshiro and his group were standing and talking to the shop owner. He figured Nel must have been helping Jinta and Ururu in the shop.

The Captain turned his head to the pair and rose a brow at Timothy’s condition. “Urahara had told me that your training was a harsh one, but I didn’t expect it to be that serious.” He commented as Kitsune helped Timothy to sit down across from Kisuke.

“I’m just sore as hell, Captain. I should be back up tomorrow to at least get ‘some’ training in. I feel like…”

“You got run over by a freight train full of liquor?” Kisuke filled in with a grin hidden by his fan.

“…Yeah…that.” Timothy deadpanned and earning a snicker from Kitsune who sat down next to him.

Toshiro then looked at the spirit with the still raised brow. “And how did it go?” he inquired.

She gave the short Captain a serious face. “Much better that I expected, that’s for sure. And he’s exaggerating when he says ‘tomorrow’; he’ll be out of it at least until the day after.” She stated, then looked at her partner. “I’m not kidding, Tim; you really did put your body under a ‘lot’ of stress.” She firmly emphasized.

Kisuke nodded in agreeance. “She’s right, Tim. You need to take it easy and rest.” He affirmed.

Timothy sighed heavily in defeat and nodded. “Alright. But did it at least do the job you wanted it to do? Increase my spiritual pressure?”

Kitsune, Toshiro, and Kisuke all nodded. “That it did. In fact, by quick estimation, it seems that your spiritual pressure has nearly doubled from what it was before. But, considering how low it was to begin with, I’d say that was just a bit higher than the expected result.”

Toshiro nodded again. “I agree. Although, you could still use more training in that regard.” He said, then turned to the shop owner. “If you don’t mind, I’d like to ask that you continue with this training; most especially with working on his Bankai.”

Timothy looked at the short man with a raised brow. “You knew?”

The Captain glanced at him with a small smirk. “I’ve known since your fight with Captain Zaraki. However…” He paused and gave him a serious stare. “…I’m hoping you would explain to me how you could fight perfectly in your Bankai state against Captain Zaraki, but nearly be crushed by it yesterday by simply ‘being’ in that state.” He questioned.

Timothy and Kitsune both inwardly tensed. _‘Shit! I didn’t think of that!’_ he mentally swore.

Luckily, Kisuke was quick to the rescue. “His Bankai somehow became disrupted after the Espada used that sealing device on him. Over the past week, I’ve been looking into it to see what exactly the device did to him, but haven’t come up with any results yet.” He lied.

The Lieutenant and partner both let out a mental sigh of relief and made a note to thank the insane shop owner for his quick thinking.

Toshiro glanced at the man. “I see, that makes sense. Please keep me informed on any information, regardless of ‘what’ it is, so that I may report this to the Head Captain.” He instructed, then turned back to Timothy. “And as for you, Durn, take the day of and rest. If you feel you can handle some light training tomorrow, I’ll have Kuchiki work with you until Urahara feels you are ready for more Bankai training.” He added.

Timothy nodded. “Yes sir. Are you about to head downstairs right now?” he asked, getting a nod. “Would you mind if I borrow Rukia and Renji for a few minutes, twenty tops?”

The Captain nodded again. “That’s fine.” He answered, then turned to the two mentioned soul reapers. “Come downstairs when you are finished.” He instructed.

Rangiku then gave Timothy a pouty face as she pointed at herself. “Aw…don’t you wanna talk to me, Timothy?” she whined.

Timothy rose a brow. “Why would I want to talk to a bimbo?” he teased.

Renji, Ikkaku, and Kitsune all snorted from trying to hold back their laughs while Rukia’s jaw and Toshiro’s head dropped. Rangiku…was furious.

“Hey! Why do you have to be like that?!” she yelled as she planted her fists on her hips firmly.

Kitsune simply waved her off. “He’s just playing with you, Rangiku. He doesn’t actually ‘mean’ it. Promise.” She affirmed, then turned to her partner. “And you ‘know’ that wasn’t very nice, Tim.” she stated.

Timothy nodded. “Yeah, sorry. Went a little too far, Rangiku. My bad.” He said as he rubbed his head in guilt.

Ikkaku snorted. “Although he ‘did’ call you out on that one.” He mumbled.

But unfortunately for him…Rangiku heard it. She swiftly turned and slammed a fist straight down on top of the 3rd seat’s shiny dome of a head, sending him straight down, and unconscious onto the floor with a thud.

“Shut up, Ikkaku!” she hissed. Renji snickered at his friend’s sudden position, getting the, much unwanted, attention of Rangiku. “You want the next one, Renji?” she asked.

He simply held a hand up. “Nah, I’m good.” He answered.

Toshiro groaned as he rubbed his temples. “I’m surrounded by idiots.” He said in a low voice. He then glared at his Lieutenant. “Since ‘you’ were the one to knock him out, ‘you’ can carry Madarame’s body downstairs.” He stated firmly.

Rangiku then whined. “But why should ‘I’ be the one who suffers? You heard what he said.”

The Captain growled at her with clenched teeth. “I don’t care! Just pick him up and get your butts downstairs!” he yelled.

“Yes sir.” Yumichika and Rangiku said in unison.

The short Captain watched as his busty Lieutenant grabbed Ikkaku by the ankle and drug him over to the entrance to the underground training area. She lifted the hatch and swiftly pulled Ikkaku’s body over…but just a ‘bit’ too far.

She had ‘accidentally’ dropped him, sending his unconscious body falling down into the large room below. She then ‘fake’ gasped and held a hand over her mouth.

“Oops! My bad! Sorry Ikkaku!” she yelled down into the hatch with an unassured tone.

Toshiro slapped a hand onto his face and dragged it down with an agonizing moan. “Why me?” he whined in a whisper.

Timothy was frozen in shock with wide eyes at the suddenness of the evil the woman was showing, but Kitsune turned to the Captain with a similar look of surprise.

“Is…she always like this?” she asked.

Toshiro glared at the spirit with anger. “Is that a rhetorical question…or are you seriously asking such a stupid one?” he inquired.

She quickly held up a finger. “The first one!” the spirit swiftly answered.

“I thought so.” He said, then followed the others to the training ground.

Once he left, Tessai stood up and began clearing the table, pausing for a moment to glance at Timothy.

“Would you care for some breakfast, Tim?” he inquired.

Timothy waved him off. “No thanks, but if you could grab Nel and have her come to my room, I’d appreciate it.” The man nodded and walked into the kitchen as Timothy looked at Rukia and Renji. “Let’s head into my room, guys. There’s a few things we need to discuss.” He stated further.

The two of them nodded, and Timothy began to painfully get back up to his feet with Kitsune’s assistance. Renji walked over and also gave the weakened man a hand, before finally getting him to his feet with a grunt of slight pain.

Kisuke then waved his fan at the young Lieutenant. “If you wouldn’t mind Tim, could I borrow Kit for a moment to discuss a few things about your training?” he asked politely.

Timothy nodded at him. “I guess that’s fine, as long as it doesn’t involve plotting against Nel.” He said in a firm voice.

The shop owner grinned widely and waved his fan faster at him. “Now, why would you think I would do something like that?!” he asked in his best…unconvincing tone.

The Lieutenant’s face dropped. “I hate you.” He stated simply, then with Renji’s help, limped back to his room while Kitsune sat back down and looked at the man.

“So, what did you need to talk about?” she inquired.

The man didn’t answer at first, only keeping his wide and knowing grin on his face. This caused the spirit to raise a brow in wonder of what the man had in store. Her curiosity was answered a moment later when the man held up a small device that she immediately recognized as his cell phone.

Her eyes widened at the realization of what he was implying. “No!” she hissed in disbelief. “Again?!” she asked in the same voice.

The man’s grin, if possible, grew even wider as he nodded gently. “Last night.” He simply answered.

Kitsune didn’t even bother to stand up to walk over to him, she simply dove over the table and twisted around to where she was now sitting closely next to him as he opened the phone and began playing last night’s video.

** In Timothy’s Room **

Renji was careful to set to very sore man down into a sitting position on his bed spread. Letting him go, he then sat down next to Rukia, next to Timothy’s bed. Letting out a low and relaxing sigh, Renji then crossed his arms into his sleeves and gave Timothy his full attention.

“So, what’s this about, Tim?” he asked.

Timothy spared a quick glance at Rukia for reassurance, who gave him a nod; telling him that she knew why he wanted to talk with them. Taking a deep breath, he then returned to the red-headed Lieutenant.

“You know Nel, Kisuke’s new shop assistant?” he inquired.

Renji nodded. “Yeah, what about her?”

Timothy turned his eyes back to Rukia again, who again nodded for him to go on. Sighing heavily, Timothy began scratching his scalp with a moan.

“There’s really no easy way to say this, Renji. But, I need you to promise you’re not going to say anything. The only reason I even going to tell you, is because Rukia swears I can trust you with this.” He stated.

Renji glanced over at his smaller friend, who then looked back with a firm face. He turned back to Timothy with questioning eyes.

“I’m listening.” He affirmed.

Before Timothy could go further, the door to his room opened. The three of them turned to see Nel walk in and stop when she noticed Renji. She then looked at Timothy with worry, who gestured for her to come in and sit down on the other side of him.

Taking a moment to think the situation over, Nel nodded and closed the door behind her before walking around him and sitting down across from Renji and Rukia. Renji looked at her with a raised brow, surprised that she could obviously see him when he was told she couldn’t, and shouldn’t.

“As I was saying, there’s no easy way to put this, Renji, but remember when the Espada came here a couple weeks ago?” Timothy asked.

Staring at Nel for a few seconds longer to study her, he finally looked back at his friend. “Yeah, what about it?” he questioned in a slightly firm voice.

Timothy began rubbing the back of his head as he ran over the best choice of words for the next sentence.

“Well…the truth is…they were ‘actually’ here for Nel.” He said finally.

Renji rose a brow again. “For her? What the hell for? What could they want with Urahara’s assistant?” he asked in disbelief.

Rukia decided to give Timothy a hand with the next part, turning to her red-headed friend. “She’s not ‘really’ Kisuke’s assistant, Renji. She’s ‘actually’ here for protection.”

The Lieutenant looked at her in confusion. “Protection? Protection from what? Why would the Espada be after her?”

Timothy sighed and glanced at the short woman. “Rukia, would you happen to have one of those…glove things of Kisuke’s? The ones that push a soul out of a body?” he inquired.

Knowing what he was getting at, the woman nodded and stood up as she reached into her top. Pulling the said glove out, with a flaming skull emblem on the back of the hand, she walked around him and came to a stop to kneel down next to Nel.

Nel was now clearly worried as Rukia got ready to force her out of her gigai and reveal her secret to yet another soul reaper she didn’t know. Rukia gave Timothy a last glance and received a nod, before turning back to Nel and pressing her gloved hand to the woman’s forehead; forcing her out of the faux body.

Renji watched with slightly widened eyes as a mirrored, but teal haired image of the woman in front of him was forced out of the body, and into a kneeling position behind it. He took a moment to look her over, but his eyes became saucers when he noticed the bone-like, ram’s skull shaped mask on the top of her head.

“W…Wait a minute?! Y…You mean she’s…?!” he choked out.

Timothy gave him a serious, but solemn nod. “Yeah…she’s one of them…Or, she used to be.” He affirmed.

Acting on instinct, Renji quickly stood and prepared to draw his zanpakutō; but Rukia quickly hopped over Timothy and placed her palm over the hilt, keeping him from drawing it out fully.

Renji glared at his short friend. “Rukia! What are you doing?!” he yelled as Timothy scooted over to position himself in front of Nel.

“Hold on, Renji! Just take a moment and hear him out!” Rukia demanded.

Timothy nodded firmly. “Yeah, just wait a minute and let us explain the whole thing before you go all crazy on us!” he added.

Renji stopped fighting his friend over trying to draw his zanpakutō and stared at the woman behind his younger friend. He could see that, while keeping her composure, she was still clearly a bit terrified about the current situation.

It took him a moment to recover from the sudden rush of adrenalin from the Arrancar in front of him before he could begin to think the matter over. All he knew about the woman at the moment, was that she was supposed to be exceedingly dangerous and had to be killed. Afterall, that was the entire reason the team was there in the first place.

But now that he could think clearly again, he saw that she obviously didn’t mean any harm. And if his closest friend for over fifty years was vouching for the her, then he should at least give the woman a chance to explain herself. If there was one lesson he learned after Rukia’s execution attempt, it was not to judge others to quickly.

Letting out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding, Renji closed his eyes and nodded slightly before releasing the tension on his zanpakutō and letting it return fully into its sheath.

“Alright. I’ll hear you guys out.” He said in a low, but still unconvinced voice.

Timothy and Rukia both breathed sighs of relief while Nel slowly untensed her muscles to relax a bit. Rukia let her friend go and sat down with him where they were before as Timothy scooted back on top of his bed with a grunt.

Renji folded his arms again and glared at the teal haired woman as she scooted forward to sit next to her gigai. Timothy leaned over and laid her faux body down to rest it on its back before turning back to Renji.

“I guess I should tell you who she really is, huh?” he inquired.

The red-haired Lieutenant kept his stare. “That would be a good place to start.” He mocked. “So, who are you?” he asked her.

Nel took a deep and calming breath. “My name is Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck, and I am the ‘former’ Quinto Espada.”

Renji rose a brow at her. “So…compared to those guys from before, where does that put you?” he asked.

“Out of those three, only Ulquiorra is stronger than me. But overall, I am…or was, the fifth strongest Espada.” She answered firmly.

The Lieutenant growled and rested his forehead in his hand, feeling a headache coming. “So why the hell are you here? Why would you need protection from your own comrades?”

Timothy turned to him and began recalling the events that led her to the world of the living, and how she had saved his life when his team was dealing with the spirit energy absorbing hollows. Renji listened intently at everything that he said, but Nel was worried when he kept a look of disbelief on his face.

After close to five minutes of recollection, Renji glanced at the former Espada in front of him and watched her closely with observing eyes. He wanted to call the man an idiot for sticking his neck out for someone who was supposed to be an enemy, but after witnessing the man’s antics firsthand, he couldn’t blame him.

It surely wasn’t her fault as to what happened. She had been tricked by a cunning man into doing ‘exactly’ what he wanted her to do. Simply because she had doubts about what he was doing, she was discarded and nearly executed.

Renji finally took a deep breath and released it loudly with a sigh as he crossed his arms. “Alright.” He said, causing Nel to lighten up a bit. “I don’t exactly trust you, Nel, but I do trust Rukia and Tim. If both of them say that I ‘can’ trust you, I’ll at least give you the benefit of the doubt.” He then turned to Timothy. “I won’t say anything to Captain Hitsugaya about this, but you do realize that, regardless of what you do, she ‘will’ eventually be discovered, right?”

Timothy nodded. “I know, I just hope we can deal with Aizen before that happens. And you ain’t gotta worry, Renji. If the Captain finds out about her, you knew nothing about it.” He assured.

The red-haired man simply waved him off. “I’m not that worried about to be honest. I just hope you know what the hell you’re doing.” He said, then turned to Nel. “So, what were you planning on doing once this is all over? Go back to Hueco Mundo?” he inquired.

“No, Kisuke and I were planning on helping her settle here in the world of the living. Thing is, I doubt she’ll be able to go back to Hueco Mundo after all this. I’m pretty sure Aizen has labeled her as a traitor, and once word has gotten around about that, I seriously doubt that the Arrancar left living would allow her to stay there.” Timothy pointed out.

Renji nodded. “That does make sense, but what will happen once the soul society finds out about her?”

Rukia looked at him with an amused face. “Renji, Kisuke and Yoruichi managed to stay hidden from the soul society for over a hundred years until recently. Don’t you think they would have the ability to keep her hidden if they wanted to?” she asked mockingly.

Renji sweat dropped at that. “Good point.” He moaned, then resumed his seriousness. “Anyway, why tell me about her? Wouldn’t it be better ‘not’ to tell more people that she exists?”

Timothy nodded. “Normally, yes. However, it’s like you said; she ‘will’ one day be discovered. I’m hoping to get as many people on my side to held defend her case if the soul society tries to sentence her.”

The redhead lightly scoffed. “I got it now, you’re looking for people to say that she’s not the monster everyone believes she is.” He said with an amused grin, then scratched his head. “Well, like I said, I don’t trust her yet. I won’t say anything to the Captain about her, but I’m not going to lie for her sake until you guys can prove that she’s not who everyone thinks she is.”

Rukia nodded. “I guess that’s fair.”

“Anyway...” Timothy started, getting their attention back. “…thanks for not saying anything, Renji. She saved my ass twice now, so I owe her at least this.”

“Yeah, I got ya. Anyway, we need to get downstairs before Captain Hitsugaya starts wondering.” Renji stated as he stood up, along with Rukia.

“Don’t worry Tim, Renji won’t say anything. Just give him time and he’ll help you out.” Rukia reassured with a smile.

Renji turned to her with a scowl. “Hey, don’t go making promises and shit behind my back!” he growled.

Rukia scoffed and started pushing him towards the door. “Oh, shut up and let’s go.” she hissed as she opened the door and shoved him out.

“Hey! Quit shoving me!” Renji yelled at her as she snapped the door shut, leaving Timothy and Nel staring at it with deadpanned expressions.

“Tim…” Nel started without looking at him or changing expressions. “…should I be worried?” she asked in a low tone.

He turned back to her. “About what? Him telling, or having to deal with more idiots?” he inquired.

She turned her eyes to him. “Both.”

He then sweat dropped. “…On the first; possibly. On the second…” He paused and returned his gaze to the door. A second later, he facepalmed. “…definite yes.”

Nel’s head then dropped with a long moan of agony. Timothy dropped his hand to his lap and slowly laid back down on his bed with a sigh. She raised her head a bit to look at him to see that his eyes were closed with his hands over top of his stomach.

“Hey Tim.” she called.

“Yeah.” He replied in a low voice.

She paused for a moment to think about how she wanted to say what she wanted, long enough that Timothy opened his eyes and looked at her questionably.

“Something wrong?” he inquired in a slightly concerned voice.

Nel gently shook her head. “No, I just wanted to ask you something.” She answered.

He nodded, then tried to sit back up, but groaned and fell back down. “God damn I’m sore.” He moaned as he clutched his stomach.

She likely chuckled. “I’m sure. Kisuke told me about your training and that it was very demanding.” She stated with a smile.

“Tsk…that’s putting it mildly.” He commented. “Anyway, what did you wanna ask, Nel?” he asked further as he took a heavy and relaxing breath.

Her smile faltered, then she took a breath as well. After Yoruichi and Orihime’s insistent pestering the night before, she finally agreed to ‘tactfully’ ‘ask him out’, but not directly do so. If not to get to know him better, then to at least get that annoying demon off her back.

After spending a few seconds picking out the words she was going to use, she took a shallow breath and began.

“Kisuke and Yoruichi…”

She was interrupted by his loud growl. “What the hell did those to evil morons do now?!” he hissed at her.

She quickly held up a placating hand. “They didn’t do anything this time, Tim. They only made a fair suggestion.” She assured.

He rolled his eyes at her. “With those two, I seriously doubt that.” He mocked.

She couldn’t say anything to that, because the truth was, she seriously doubted it too. “I agree, but this time they did have ‘something’ useful to offer.”

Timothy growled again, but nodded. “Go ahead, and I promise I’ll ‘try’ to not kill him until after your finished.”

Nel chuckled and shook her head, but then became serious again. “Anyhow, because I’m going to be staying here in the living world once everything is over with, they suggested that I get out and spend some time seeing how things are here.”

He looked at her skeptically. “Let me guess…Yoruichi suggested ‘I’ be the one to do it? Probably trying to make fun of us again.” He said sourly.

She simply shrugged a shoulder. “She did, but she didn’t make any…‘suggestive remarks’ about it. I…I think she’s actually trying to help this time.”

Timothy gave her a heavy sigh. “I don’t mind helping you with that, Nel. But the thing is, is that I don’t like being played in doing things. And that’s what Yoruichi and Kisuke like to do sometimes, it seems. So, I’ll try to get some early training in if my body can handle it, then we’ll head out and go look at the city. It’s been a while since I was last here in the living world, and I’ve only been out a couple times for a few hours. Anything that interests you?”

Nel shook her head. “Not really. I don’t know anything about the living world, except from what I’ve read in a couple books…and those were quite vague.”

“Well, I guess we’ll just go with the flow then. I’m gonna get a little more rest for now. You mind sending Kit back here?” he asked.

She nodded and stood up. “I’ll tell her. Thanks Tim.” she returned, then started walking towards the door.

As she reached to slide the door open, it instead opened on its own to reveal Kitsune on the other side. The spirit stopped and looked at the teal-haired woman in front of her, then snickered. Timothy narrowed his gaze at her in concern. The only reason she would be laughing now was if her and Kisuke were up to something.

“What?” he questioned dangerously.

She stepped around Nel and waved him off as the teal-haired woman watched her movements closely. “Nothing, just something funny that came to mind.”

“With you, I don’t doubt that.” Timothy mocked.

Nel gave a depressed sigh, then waved. “I’ll see you later, Tim, Kit.” She said, then left the room and closed the door behind her.

Timothy then glared at his partner and waited until she was sitting next to him. “You’ve got two seconds to tell me what the hell you and Kisuke are up to.” He warned.

Kitsune groaned. “I told you, we’re not up to ‘anything’. When I saw her, something funny popped in my head, that’s all. I swear.”

He scoffed at her answer. “And that’s another thing, I had a little ‘talk’ with ‘Johnny’, and he tells me that you’ve been annoying the shit outta him.”

She let out a brief snort from trying not to laugh. Clearing her throat, she smiled cheerfully at him.

“I’m just having a little fun is all.” She assured.

Timothy face palmed, forcing his head back down to the bed with a small thump. “For god’s sakes, ‘please’ don’t turn my inner world into an inner hell.” he pleaded.

Kitsune sighed heavily. “Come on, Tim, you know I’m just fooling around. Even ‘Johnny’ knows that.”

He gave her an unamused stare. “Then why is it that he tells me you can come out whenever you want because he lets you?”

She chuckled sheepishly as she rubbed the back of her head. “Well…I keep pestering him to have a conversation, but he’s far too quiet. He never talks, unless it has to do with training and the such. I get bored. And every time I try talking to you, you shut me up.” She admitted.

Timothy growled in annoyance. “Alright, I’ll make a deal with you.”

Kitsune dropped her hand and nodded. “I’m listening.”

He looked at her with firmness. “As long as you promise to behave and not tease every living thing around you, you can come out whenever you want and mingle, or whatever. But I am curious…”

She rose a brow when he paused. “Yeah?”

“…Just how long ‘can’ you remain materialized at a time? And also, are you able to go out on your own without me around?” he inquired.

The spirit shook her head gently. “No, I can’t go too far from you. If I do, I’ll likely lose consciousness and fall back into your inner world. Basically, I’m restricted to your general vicinity. As far as how long I can stay like this; a zanpakutō spirit can only remain in the real world for as long as its partner’s spirit energy will allow. Generally, with most people, it’s roughly around a couple hours or less; but with your high amount of energy, I could probably be like this for most of the day.” She educated.

Timothy nodded with a sigh. “Alright. As I said, as long as you behave, I don’t mind you coming out whenever. I just ask that you ask me first, just in case doing so would be a bad idea at a particular time. But I swear to you, Kit…” he said, then pointed at her with a glare. “…any more of your damn plotting with Yoruichi or Kisuke, and the deal’s off, got it?” he threatened.

She quickly nodded. “I promise. But seriously, do you ‘have’ to ruin ‘all’ the fun?” she pouted. He kept his stare unchanged, causing her to sigh in defeat. “Fine.” She moaned and crossed her arms with a huff.

He scoffed and shook his head side to side on the pillow. “Anyway…” he started, getting her to turn her eyes to him. “…what can you tell me about my Bankai’s abilities? Anything special?”

The spirit sighed and dropped her hands to her lap. “There is, but I can’t tell you that right now. I want you to only focus on being able to handle ‘being’ in the Bankai state. I’ll only tell you about its abilities when me and ‘Johnny’ ‘both’ think you’re ready for it. And in case you’re about to ask, I’d say that’s going to be a while. But I can tell you this, while in that state, you can use my flames as you have been. Also, they now become ‘fox fire’ while in that state. Think of it as when you released me before against Zaraki and Komamura.”

Timothy glanced at her with a raised brow. “The flames can still be moved, right?”

She nodded. “They can, but ‘not’ while you are using that particular flame for your cloning technique. And they’re still just as slow moving too. As I said, I want you to worry about using your stock abilities while in Bankai and get used to it before you try anything ‘really’ demanding.”

“And what about the flames around my hands and arms? Are they fox fire as well?” he inquired.

“Yes, and they would normally cover your entire body, but I was suppressing them and restricting the flames to only your arms in case something happened and Yoruichi had to interfere without burning herself. You can do the same thing as well.” She stated.

He rose a brow at her. “How?” he asked.

She held up a hand and pointed at an imaginary glove while flexing her fingers. “The flames originate from the gauntlets on your hands and spread throughout your body from there. By ‘not’ suppressing the flames, your entire body would be covered.” She said, then dropped her hands. “But if you suppress them, they will pull back from your body and back into the gauntlets. The more you suppress them, the less of your body will be covered. You can also suppress a single side if you want, but that will take a bit of practice and concentration. But I don’t want you to worry about that right now. We’ll bring that into the training another time.”

Timothy nodded and took a relaxing breath. “Thanks for the info. I’m gonna get some sleep, I’m tired as hell.”

Kitsune chuckled and nodded back. “Yeah, I’m a bit tired as well. I guess I’ll head back inside for now.”

Something then clicked in his head and he looked at her in seriousness. “Another thing, if you want to come out whenever, you leave ‘Johnny’ alone.”

She growled and moaned at the same time. “Why have you got to be so mean? Can’t a gal have ‘some’ fun once in a while?”

“Hah! Once in a while, yes; but with you, it ‘never’ stops!” he hissed back.

The spirit rolled her eyes with a scoff. “Whatever, I’m tired and going to sleep. And don’t worry, I’ll leave ‘Johnny’ alone…grouch.” She mocked, then vanished back into his inner world.

**_“I cannot…thank you…enough for…saving me from…that woman.”_** ‘Johnny’ said in a low tone.

Timothy snorted. _“Yeah, now she can be someone else’s problem.”_ He stated.

**_“Shut up! I am ‘not’ that bad!”_** Kitsune yelled in his mind.

_“Yes, you are!”_ / **_“Yes, you are!”_** partner and spirit yelled back in unison.

**_“…I hate you all.”_** She retorted, then went silent.

** Las Noches, Hueco Mundo, Present **

Every Espada in Las Noches possessed their own large room with conjoining smaller rooms where their fracción would sleep. They were normally decorated to the resident’s specific tastes with whatever they could acquire that interested them.

This particular room, the room belonging to the Primera Espada, Coyote Stark, only bore a couple of small couches, a single bed, and a countless number of pillows of varying sizes and shapes.

Many of these pillows and cushions were gathered into a few large clumps large enough for someone to lay down on quite comfortably. And this was something that the Primera did on frequent occasions, much to his fracción’s chagrin.

The doors to his room opened and Stark entered the room with a tired expression on his face. Taking only the time necessary to close the door, he immediately, like he always did, walked straight for the nearest pile of cushions and fell forward face first.

Once his body had fully stopped from the impact, he rolled over and pulled one of the pillows over his face before closing his eyes and began to doze off. But he quickly found that he couldn’t do so, because something just wasn’t right.

Grabbing the side of the pillow near his chest, he lifted it up and closely observed the room around him. It didn’t take him long to figure out what was amiss. His fracción, Lilynette, wasn’t in the room, like she always was after a meeting, to bug and berate him about sleeping all the time.

But now that she wasn’t there and the room uncharacteristically quiet, the perfect setting for him to get the sleep he wanted, he found that he couldn’t doze off like he wanted. The whole thing just didn’t seem right.

Letting out a deep breath, he flopped the pillow over to the side and sat up with a calm grunt. “I wonder where she could be.” He said in a nonchalant tone.

With another grunt, he leaned forward and pushed himself back up to his feet before walking back towards the door and leaving the room to look for his companion.

Spending the first fifteen minutes looking in the areas where she normally would spend her time to no avail, he came to a stop in a corridor in one of the south-eastern palaces. He had tried earlier to use his pesquisa to locate her spiritual pressure, but she was obviously suppressing it for some reason.

It was then that a thought clicked in his head, causing him to sigh heavily and turn back the way he came.

Fortunately, the next place he thought of checking was in the same structure that he was currently in and only needed to go down a few floors. But after a few minutes, he found himself standing outside a pair of closed doors.

This was the one room he was hoping to avoid going near again. For this room had once belonged to the Quinto Espada, Nelliel.

After she had escaped Hueco Mundo, Sōsuke Aizen, as part of his plan, had called a meeting of the Espadas and shown them a ‘doctored’ security recording of the entire event on the balcony. By having Szayelaporro make a few modifications to the sound, he made it appear to them that she had ‘intended’ to leave the Espada.

According to what was shown, her two fracción, Pesche and Dondochakka, tried to talk her into staying. To Nel, it was Aizen and Nnoitra standing there, being under Aizen’s illusion; but to a recording, that even Kyōka Suigetsu’s illusions could not fool, it was really Pesche and Dondochakka standing there instead.

When Nel had attacked Aizen, she had attacked her two fracción; killing them in cold blood. Then when Aizen tried to ‘punish’ her for her actions, she had fled Hueco Mundo. The end result? Every one of her former comrades believing her to be a murderer and traitor.

Stark took a deep breath and pushed the door to the former Quinto Espada’s room. As he walked inside, he quickly remembered all of the times that he had spent in this room…usually to try and hide from Lilynette to catch a nap with Nel covering for him.

“Lilynette?” he called out in his generic tone.

He looked around at each of the couches to see if she might have been sitting on one, but did not see her. As he looked to the right, he saw the double doors that led to Nel’s old bedroom; with one of them slightly ajar. He knew the last time that he came to the room after Nel fled, those doors were actually closed.

He turned his body and began walking towards the opening, pushing the door open a bit more and glancing inside.

Sure enough, he found Lilynette sitting on top of the bed leaning back against the headboard with her head down and knees pulled in to her chest.

He and Nel were good friends, spending a good amount of their spare time, when he wasn’t sleeping, talking or playing chess and such. But Lilynette, she thought of the teal-haired woman as something close to that of an older sister.

When Nel left, she took it hard. What made it even harder was when her close friend had supposedly killed the two people that were even closer to Nel than she was, and had been labeled as a traitor.

She didn’t want to believe that she could do something like that, but Aizen had said otherwise, and there was physical ‘proof’ that she had did it. She simply couldn’t understand how someone who valued life and would do whatever it took to avoid killing, even in combat, would do such a thing.

But now, ever since she had left, Lilynette would sometimes sneak into her old room, and just sit and think for a while.

“Lilynette.” He called, getting her to look up reluctantly.

“Hey Stark. Something wrong?” she asked.

He slipped his hands into his pockets and leaned against the doorframe. “You know you shouldn’t be in here.” He reminded.

She dropped her head to rest her chin on her knees. “I know. I’m still having a hard time believing she’s gone, and what she did. It just doesn’t make sense. If she really wanted to leave, she would have just left and not killed her two best friends.” She pointed out.

“So, you’re doubting what Lord Aizen told us?” he inquired carefully.

Lilynette tilted her head forward to where her forehead was now on her knees instead. “No, I’m just saying that none of it makes any sense. It feels like…we’re missing something about all this.” She clarified.

The Primera did not like what the small Arrancar was saying, taking the fact that what she was insinuating was borderline treason. And with Nel’s recent ‘actions’ taken into account, he knew that Lord Aizen would not take it lightly.

But, even still, he couldn’t disagree with what the girl was saying. What the video had shown him and the other Espada did not, except for physical appearance, look like Nelliel at all. Even he had to admit that the woman in the video killing her own fracción did not feel like her. It was just something that she wouldn’t do; her personality simply would not allow it.

Stark took a deep breath. “I can’t disagree with you there. This does seem a bit strange, but the fact of the matter is that Lord Aizen showed the Espada proof that she did what she did. You saw it yourself, Lilynette.”

She looked at him with seriousness. “It could have been an illusion of his.”

“Lord Aizen’s illusions don’t work on cameras, Lilynette. I don’t like to admit it either, but what Lord Aizen showed us was the truth. There were no illusions involved in this.” He stated.

The small Arrancar gripped her knees tighter. “But…what if ‘she’ was tricked? What if Lord Aizen used an illusion on ‘her’?”

Stark rose a brow. “And why would he do that? Are you saying that Lord Aizen turned on her? That makes even less sense than her killing her two friends. All this nonsense is just going to get you into trouble, Lilynette. I know she was really close to you, and she was my friend too. But what’s done is done. Now come on before you do get in trouble for being in here.” He said as he stood straight and turned to leave.

Lilynette sighed heavily and reluctantly scooted off the bed to follow her companion. But by the time she made it to the doors to the room, see noticed that Stark was already gone. This caused her to moan with annoyance.

“Damn it, Stark! Now where the hell did he go?! Probably to one of his hiding spots to sleep again.” She growled, then vanished with a buzz of sonído.

The moment she did, a face peeked around a corner and smiled just a bit. The figure walked around the corner and headed straight for the, now empty, room with a hint of a chuckle.

“It should take her a while before she figures out that I never left…just long enough for a nice nap.” Stark commented as he walked back into Nel’s former room and plopped down onto the bed.

Not five seconds later, the empty room was filled with the sounds of the snoring Primera Espada.

** Squad 7 Headquarters, Present **

Sajin had just finished signing one of the last bits of the morning paperwork when a solid knock sounded on the office door. He put the completed form aside and set down his pen before answering.

“You may enter.”

The door opened, and Sajin looked up to see Tetsuzaemon walk in. The man closed the door and offed the large man a respectful bow.

“You wanted to see me, Captain?” he greeted as he rose.

Sajin nodded and gestured for him to sit in front on him. “I did, but it is nothing serious, Tetsuzaemon.” He answered.

The acting Lieutenant of Squad 5 walked up and took a seat on the cushion in front of the man’s desk.

“Tea?” Sajin offered.

“Thank you, sir.” the shaded man responded with a nod.

Sajin poured him a small cup and refilled his own before passing his friend the newly filled container. Tetsuzaemon accepted it and blew on it a few times before taking a sip and setting it down on the desk.

“What was it you wanted to see me for, Captain?” he inquired.

The Captain took a sip, then set his cup down as well. “I received a report from Squad 4 that Lieutenant Hinamori had woken up earlier this morning. Although, they do state that it will be a while before she will be fit to return to duty as Lieutenant.” Sajin informed.

Tetsuzaemon raised his brows in surprise. “So, I guess that means she’s out of the woods, then?”

Sajin nodded. “It would appear so. So, tell me, have things gotten better at the squad?” he asked, then took another sip.

The man sighed. “Not really, Captain. A lot of damage has been done since Aizen turned traitor. Two days ago, the 4th seat gave me a transfer request to Squad 13, and I have a feeling that the 3rd seat ain’t far behind. After looking at the squad roster, I’d have to guess that the squad’s at roughly fifty to sixty percent of the strength it should be at.”

The furry Captain rose a brow in a bit of shock. “You must be joking, Tetsuzaemon.” He stated in a voice with a hint of concern behind it.

The man simply shook his head. “No, sir. I spoke with Lieutenant Ise after the 4th seat gave me the transfer request to see if it was possible to get at least some of the transferred members back, but she stated that not one of them will be willing to come back. Unless we want to risk a mutiny by forcing them to transfer back, there’s nothing that we can do.”

Sajin leaned back a bit with a heavy sigh and rubbed his temples. He knew that Squads 3 and 9 were also having a few personnel issues, but at least they had their Lieutenants to help them. But with no senior officers in Squad 5, the entire squad had apparently fallen apart.

That was why the Head Captain had personally transferred his Lieutenant to assume Squad 5’s position as Lieutenant, even on a temporary basis. But, it was now apparent that the action had come much too late and the damage was already done.

“How is your situation on the squad’s paperwork?” Sajin asked in a depressed tone.

“I’m managing, Captain. Izuru and Shūhei have been switching out giving me a hand every couple of days to get caught up, so at least I don’t have to worry about that. Shūhei offered to try and find a few of his members willing to transfer to the squad, but we both know that won’t happen.” The Lieutenant pointed out.

Sajin nodded in agreeance. “All I can offer you is the advice to keep up with your hard work, Tetsuzaemon. Fortunately, the next class from the academy will be graduating in a couple months, so you will regain some of your numbers. If our own numbers in officers were not as lacking, I would send a couple to you on a temporary transfer to assist you. But as you know, our 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 7th seats are currently vacant; 8th and 9th seats are still under assignment in the world of the living, and Tim is assigned to Captain Hitsugaya’s team. That only leaves me with 6th seat Minato in regards to the higher ranking officers.”

Tetsuzaemon finished his tea and set the cup aside. “What about that woman that Durn was working with? Ogawa?”

The Captain gently shook his head. “I spoke with miss Ogawa about it, and even offered her the position of 7th seat, but she had declined.”

The Lieutenant rose a brow. “Declined?” he asked in disbelief.

Sajin sighed, then nodded. “She had informed me that she did not feel she was ready for the position. But I may have also brought the proposition to her too soon, as she was still recovering from the death of her friend during the fight with the hollows. I believe that she will accept the position at a later time; but for now, I must respect her decision.”

“I see. Well, she’s managed to gain a bit of my respect if she’s willing to admit that she wasn’t ready. And what about the guy’s sister? Wasn’t she on the team as well?” the Lieutenant asked.

“She’s…recovering. Miss Sano is starting to return to her former self, but she will need a bit more time. I’ve had her return to duty, but kept her under light duty for now. Miss Ogawa has been keeping an eye on her.” Sajin answered.

The shorter man nodded. “Anyway Captain, I need to be getting back to the squad. Thanks for the tea, sir.” Tetsuzaemon said as he stood back up and bowed.

The larger man returned to gesture, then they both rose. “Do not fret, Tetsuzaemon. It may take some time, but as long as you do not give up, the situation will begin to improve.” He assured.

Tetsuzaemon nodded, then turned and left the office with Sajin watching him leave with a bit of worry. But as the Lieutenant was leaving, Minato stepped in and bowed to the two men.

“Morning Lieutenant, Captain.” He greeted, then turned to Sajin. “I have the rest of the morning paperwork ready for you, sir. Would you like them now?” he asked.

Sajin nodded as Tetsuzaemon left the office. “Yes, thank you, Minato.”

The officer walked up and set down a small stack of forms and turned to leave before Sajin stopped him.

“Have you looked over the finances for the squad’s mission budget?” he inquired.

Minato nodded. “Yes, sir. Tim used some of it a few days ago, but it was just the normal stuff. He purchased a gigai, gikongan, plus a little extra with a note stating that it was for living expenses. Besides that, he hasn’t touched it.” He informed.

Sajin took a breath and crossed his arms. “I hope that Captain Hitsugaya’s team returns soon. We could use Tim’s help back here.”

The officer tucked his arms in his sleeves with a calm face. “What about the 8th and 9th seats, Captain? Now that the hollow is gone, do we really need to keep the extra personnel in the world of the living?”

The Captain thought it over for a moment, then nodded. “I agree. We’ll keep them there for a little while longer, then I’ll have them return. It’s possible that I may send one of them to Squad 5 to help Tetsuzaemon with his affairs.”

Minato nodded. “What that squad ‘really’ needs is more members, Captain. Can’t we spare some? Even temporarily?” he asked with concern.

Sajin sighed and shook his head. “Tetsuzaemon made a good point earlier. Squad 5 is currently a squad that is hated simply because it was Aizen’s squad. No one wants to be a part of it, and unless we are willing to risk a riot, we cannot force anyone to transfer against their will.”

The 6th seat sighed as well and shook his head. “It’s only because they view it as damage to their pride. They think that, just by being in the squad of a traitor, they will be viewed as the same thing and treated poorly. Which, I really hate to admit, they are half right.”

The Captain looked up at the officer with a serious stare. “What do you mean?” he questioned.

Minato sat down in front of him and returned the serious expression. “I haven’t seen anything myself, but I ‘have’ heard a few of our members talking about how squad 5 members are being discriminated against because they are a part of, and I quote, ‘A house of traitors’.”

Sajin’s hands, that were resting in his lap, clenched into tight fists in anger. It was understandable that most would feel wariness towards the squads whose Captains had turned traitor, but to openly harass those squads’ members was inexcusable.

“I hope none of our members are a part of this nonsense.” He warned.

Minato quickly shook his head. “As far as I know, none of our members have done anything. You’ve taught them quite well to ‘not’ judge others by appearances, Captain. I’ve also spoken with the said members about it, and even asked them how they felt about those squads.”

“And?” Sajin questioned further.

The officer shrugged his shoulders. “And nothing, Captain. Apparently, no one seems to hold a grudge towards the members directly. But, I doubt any of them will want to transfer over to the squad under the fear of being mistreated just by simply being there.”

Sajin nodded, but kept his firm face. “I’d like you to still ask around and see if anyone is willing to go, even under a temporary transfer, to Squad 5.” He instructed.

Minato nodded solemnly. “Any particular number you’re aiming for, Captain?”

“If possible, I would like to send twenty members. But be sure to remind them that it is not a permanent transfer, only long enough until Squad 5 can regain some lost members. Once the squad has acquired enough replacements, they will return to our squad.”

The 6th seat then stood and bowed. “I do what I can, sir.” he responded, then rose and left the office.

Sajin leaned forward and propped his head up with his intertwined hands in thought. Twenty members was a very high expectation, considering that he would be lucky to get five or six members that were willing to go.

There was no rule or law that prevented members from transferring to another squad; even if the losing squad would be understaffed and the gaining squad had more that the required number of personnel. But now, Sajin was hating the lack of such a rule.

As long as both Captains, or appropriate ranking individuals, accepted the transfer, it didn’t matter what the situation was; because in all honesty, any Captain with at least some form of intelligence would be able to see that such an action would greatly hurt his or her squad.

That was why Central 46 thought it pointless to make such a rule or law. Because, if a Captain was willing to transfer someone out of his or her squad and leave them under staffed like that, except under extreme circumstances, then that person simply shouldn’t be a Captain, and the Head Captain would have demoted them.

But as it stood, there was no Captain in those squads. And the 3rd seat, who had accepted the transfers out, was clearly not experienced enough to be in the position of ‘acting’ Captain. And you couldn’t really say anything to the receiving Captains because, while they had a rough guess, they didn’t know what the current numbers of the losing squad were.

Over all, the current situation that Squad 5 was in was nothing more than a massive loophole in the rules that the 3rd seat had, unknowingly and unintentionally, exploited.

Sure, the Captains ‘could’ force the members to transfer back, and they had the authority to do so. But, as Tetsuzaemon had pointed out to Sajin, those members would possibly revolt against those orders. And with the current state of unrest in the Seireitei, it was highly possible that the revolt would turn into a civil war.

That was the last thing that the 13 Court Guard Squads needed at the moment, not when they have to deal with Aizen and the sudden appearance of three Espada in the world of the living. The soul society would end up falling into ruin, and Aizen wouldn’t need to some much as lift a finger.

Dropping a hand down onto the desk and rubbing the fur on his forehead, Sajin let out a low moan of pain from a headache that quickly hit him from his worrying. But after a few minutes of rubbing with no relief, he sighed as he reached over and grabbed the next form from the stack of paperwork to focus on something else.


	22. Confessions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 22

**(Confessions)**

** Urahara Shop, The Next Morning **

Waking up before anyone else did, as was normal for him, Timothy found that he was still a bit sore from his Bankai training. He could move around easily enough with minimal pain, but if he moved his body too much, then he could feel the sting of the recovering muscles.

Even so, he still intended to do some of his morning training; though both of his zanpakutō spirits were very adamant when telling him that he still needed more rest. He protested just as firmly at first, but it only turned into a spree of bickering and insults.

Needless to say, Kitsune won the argument.

Defeated, Timothy was sitting down at the dining room table with a small pot of tea that he had made for himself, and Nel when she woke up; considering that she normally woke up around an hour or so after he did. The hot tea was a very welcome comfort as it soothed his muscles.

Holding the cup in his hand and resting the said hand in his lap, he leaned his head back to rest against the wall and closed his eyes. As he rested there, taking slow and calming breaths, he could feel the tightness, almost literally, melting away; and it was a very wonderful feeling.

But his relaxation didn’t last as long as he would have preferred, seeing that Kitsune chose this moment to materialize into a sitting position next to him. He half opened his eyes and turned his head enough to see her reaching over and pouring herself some tea as well.

“I told you that you were still a bit too sore.” She stated, then took a sip.

He rolled his head back and shut his eyes with a low moan. “Please, don’t start your stupid games this morning.” He whined.

She glanced at him with an offended look. “I’m not, I was only making a statement, Tim. I ‘can’ be serious at times, you know.” She pointed out. “So, what you got planned for the day with Nel?” she asked with a, surprisingly, straight face.

Her partner sighed and took a sip himself before answering. “No idea. It’s been twelve years since we were alive, and as you’ve seen, things have changed, ‘a lot’.” He then returned his head to rest on the wall. “I guess go get something to eat, wander around for a bit and try some things out, maybe even go see a movie.”

Kitsune nodded and set her cup down. “I wonder if John Candy is still making movies.”

His eyes shot open and he looked at her. “I never even thought about that! We have ‘got’ to look into that!” he stated in shock.

She rolled her eyes with a chuckle. “You and that stupid actor. I mean, he is funny, granted, but he’s not ‘that’ funny. In my opinion, Rick Moranis was better.”

He slapped a hand on the table, then pointed at her with a glare. “Don’t you ‘dare’ insult John Candy!” he demanded, then dropped his finger and crossed his arms as he tilted his head. “But, I will agree that Moranis was very funny. We’ll have to check up on him too and see what he’s come out with. I wonder if Kisuke might be able to help us with that.”

Kitsune then started snickering, causing him to raise a brow. “We should go haunt him, that would be a good one.” She joked.

His other brow rose as well, then he scratched his chin in thought. “That’s not a bad idea. We could actually ‘see’ the guy in person. Him, and Candy.”

“I’m afraid that won’t be possible, Tim.” I voice said from the hallway.

Timothy and Kitsune both looked to see Kisuke walk into the room as he yawned. “Morning, Kisuke.” Kitsune greeted as Timothy nodded.

“Morning.” The shop owner returned as he sat down.

Kitsune poured a cup of tea and gently passed it to the man. “What do you mean by that, Kisuke?” she inquired as he took a sip.

The man let out a relaxed sigh, then his face turned a bit grim. “I’m sorry to say that mister Candy died seven years ago, my friends.” He informed in a low tone.

Both of their eyes went wide in shock. “What?! You’re kidding!” she stated.

Kisuke gently shook his head. “I’m afraid not. He passed away in 1994, from what, they assumed, was a heart attack.”

Timothy ran a hand through his hair, then rubbed the back of his head. “…Wow. Just…wow.” He said in a low voice, earning a nod from his partner.

“Yeah. Sorry, Tim.” she offered, getting a nod back.

He then dropped his hand and crossed his arms back with a heavy sigh. “Damn…he wasn’t even ‘that’ old yet. What, mid-forties? I assume he was still working as an actor when he died, right?” he inquired.

Kisuke nodded. “I don’t follow the film industry that much, but from what I have heard, I believe so. If you want, I can get some copies of the films he made.” He offered.

Timothy quickly nodded. “Yes, please.”

She then looked at the shop owner. “As long as you include ones with Rick Moranis.” She said in a firm voice, earning a scoff from Timothy. She quickly turned to him in a growl. “Shut up, you damn film Nazi!” she hissed.

He then returned the glare. “Film Nazi?! I didn’t say anything! You’re the one whose obsessed with Rick Moranis! You’d marry him if you could!” he pointed out.

She growled again. “I would not…” she stopped rant and thought for a second. “…Okay, maybe I would…But still, you don’t have to hate on him!”

“I didn’t ‘hate’ on him, only your stupid obsession with him! Damn vixen!”

Kisuke held up his closed fan and waved it at them. “Now now, I’ll gladly get those videos for you two. Just calm down. It’s much too early for you two to be starting any arguments.” He said in a soothing manner.

Timothy scoffed as he returned to resting his head against the wall, while Kitsune crossed her arms with a huff. The man chuckled as he lowered his hand, then finished his tea and poured some more.

It was at this moment that Nel walked into the room. Waving at the three occupants at the table as she walked by, she took a seat next to Timothy as Kitsune slid a cup of tea across the table to her.

“Thank you.” She said, then took a sip.

“Morning miss Nel.” Kisuke greeted as he opened his fan and began waving at himself.

She set her cup down and let out a deep breath. “Morning Kisuke, Kit, Tim.” she returned, earning nods from the pair. “You’re not training this morning, Tim?” she inquired.

Timothy glared at his partner with annoyance. “…No, cause I’m too ‘weak’ to train today.” He mocked.

Kitsune slammed her fist on the table. “I ‘never’ said that! I said you needed to rest!” she corrected.

He slapped a hand to his face and dragged it down with a moan. “There has got to be some higher being that just simply ‘hates’ me.” He whined.

Nel looked at him with a concerned, yet amused smile. “Bad morning?”

The Lieutenant glared at the former Espada. “What gave it away?” he hissed.

The Arrancar laughed while Kisuke chuckled. “Anyway…” the shop owner intervened. “…why don’t you two go ahead and head out. You can get some breakfast at one of the restaurants.” He stated.

Timothy sighed and shook his head. “I am really starting to hate you, Kisuke.” He said, then finished his tea, as did Nel and Kitsune.

The spirit turned to the owner and waved. “See ya later, Kisuke.” She said, earning a nod before vanishing back into Timothy’s inner world.

Timothy then stood up with a heavy sigh, prompting Nel to stand up as well, and turned to the former Captain. “We should be back sometime later this afternoon. Need anything?” he inquired.

Kisuke waved him off with his empty hand. “No, you two go have some fun. And stay outta trouble.” He teased, earning a scoff from the younger man.

“Shut up, Kisuke.” He said, then turned to Nel. “Ready to go?”

She bobbed her head gently, then waved at Urahara. “See you later, Kisuke.”

The man returned the gesture, then turned to Timothy. “Oh, if you should happen to run into Captain Hitsugaya, or anyone else from the team, I simply sent you two out on a few errands. Just in case they ask.” He advised.

Timothy nodded, then waved as he turned and walked to the door with Nel right behind. Kisuke watched them as the pair walked out of the shop and closed the door behind them, a wide grin forming on his face the instant the door snapped shut.

“Well, it’s in her hands now. Right, Yoruichi?” he asked as he turned his head towards the hallway.

The said golden-eyed woman was standing in the hallway and leaning against the wall with an equally wide grin on her own. Shifting her weight, she got off the wall and walked to the table to sit down across from her long-time friend and ‘accomplice’.

“That it is, Kisuke. Let’s just hope she doesn’t screw this up.” She answered as she poured some tea.

“I think you’re giving miss Nel to little credit.” The man stated in an amused tone.

“Not at all.” She returned and took a sip, holding the cup in the air near her head afterwards. “I actually have faith in the girl. It’s Kit that I’m worried about.” She clarified.

Kisuke gave her a calculating look behind his fan. “Are you referring that she might say something, or the fact the she used to be Tim’s wife?” he inquired.

Yoruichi took another sip and thought about it a moment.

“Hmm…I guess you could say both, but mainly the first one. I think that Tim and Nel being alone together will drive her to want to tease them, ruining the whole thing.” She said in a concerned voice.

“I don’t think that will be a problem. After what happened the other day when Nel disappeared, and with how furious Tim was, I doubt she’ll do anything.” He assured, then continued waving his fan.

Yoruichi looked towards the front door with a raised brow. “I guess you do have a point, Kisuke. Now that I think about it, Kit’s the one who’s probably going to endure the most torture with having to keep quiet.” She finished in a chuckle.

“Don’t worry, Yoruichi. I have my money on miss Nel.” He affirmed.

She looked at him with a grin. “Too bad we’re rooting for the same thing, otherwise I’d take that bet.” She joked, then continued sipping her tea.

** Karakura Town City Center, 20 Minutes Later **

“Soooo…what should we do first?” Nel inquired with a slightly confused voice as she looked around with shock.

Although she had been in the main part of the city before after Yoruichi and Kit’s excessive teasing, she didn’t really pay any attention to what was around her, due to the mood that she had been in. But now that she took the time to look around, she found herself a bit overwhelmed by everything around her.

Dozens among dozens of multiple sized cars, trucks and vans passed by them every minute, and the sidewalks were nearly flooded to the limit with humans bobbing and weaving around each other in order to get where they were going.

As she looked up, the sky was nearly consumed with the numerous, medium-sized skyscrapers. When she looked left or right, she could see store after store on both sides of the street. In each of the windows for the said stores were just as numerous neon signs that either said they were open or were advertising something.

And that was what confused here the most. Once they entered the entertainment district of the city, besides a few private companies, that was literally all they saw were stores and businesses. Not one single living residence except a couple buildings that looked to be ‘temporary’ residences.

_‘Just where do all these people live?’_ she wondered.

Timothy chuckled lightly with a small smile at her behavior. Although he was about as shocked as she was, mainly with the newer technology and such, he still found it a little amusing how a warrior like her, someone that the soul society adamantly believes to be exceptionally dangerous, could look like a deer frozen in front of a pair of headlights.

“First, we find something to eat. Then we’ll look around a bit.” He answered in a calm voice. “Any particular type of food you prefer?”

She looked at him and shrugged her shoulders. “Not really. In Las Noches, we were served meals from many different cultures.” She informed.

He rose a brow. “Really? So…you don’t have a favorite food then?”

The woman held her chin and hummed in thought a moment. “A favorite…I guess the food I liked the best would be what some of the other Espada called ‘Thai’. It was a bit spicy, but it was good.”

Timothy scratched his chin. “Uh…I’m not sure there’s any Thai places open this early, but we can ask around. You ever had any American cuisines?”

Nel nodded with a smile. “I’ve had pancakes and waffles before, and I’ve been told those were American.”

He tilted his head and thought about that. “Actually, those really aren’t a strictly ‘American’ breakfasts. Everybody makes those, but every country does it their own way in making them. I’ve heard Belgian waffles are the best, but I’ve never had em. Wanna go for a traditional breakfast this morning, then we’ll see if we can find a Thai place for lunch?” he offered as looked back at her.

She nodded again. “That’s fine, thanks.”

The pair continued their walk for another five or so minutes until they came upon a standard looking restaurant. It did have an outside pavilion with tables and chairs for outdoor eating, but considering that they might be spotted by Captain Hitsugaya and the others, Timothy opted to eat inside instead.

Once they had taken a seat, in a nice 4-person booth towards the back, a waitress walked up with a set of menus and gave one to each of them. Taking out a pen and notepad, she inquired what they would like for drinks.

Timothy went with a coffee and orange juice, while Nel asked for tea. Taking a moment to write it down, the waiter gave the pair a swift bow before leaving them to get their drinks.

He didn’t even bother to look at the menu, knowing what he already wanted; but Nel was looking the 2-page article over very slowly. Timothy watched with an amused grin as Nel’s eyes widened and she began to drool at the many pictures of different breakfast orders that simply looked immaculate.

Two minutes later, the waitress returned with their drinks and inquired if they were ready to order. Nel didn’t hear her, or even register that she was there as she was still stuck on the first page of her menu.

Timothy shook his head. “I think it might be a few more minutes before we’re ready, ma’am.” He stated.

She smiled and bowed. “Please let me know when you are ready.” She said, then left them alone.

He turned back to Nel and propped his head up on the table as he kept watching his friend nearly drown herself in her own drool. But after a few minutes more, he started chuckling.

“You plan on burning a hole through the menu with that stare, Nel? And do I need to buy a boat for the lake you’re trying to fill with your drooling?” he teased.

Nel flinched, shutting her mouth with a snap and wiping away the drool with the back of her hand as she glared at him with a blush.

“N…No! I just…Everything looks so good. I don’t know what to get.” She defended…poorly.

Timothy lightly laughed. “How bout this, just close your eyes, then without looking, place your finger somewhere on the menu. Wherever your finger lands, that’s what you order. At least, that’s what ‘I’ used to do when I didn’t know what I wanted.” He suggested.

“But…what if I want something more than what my finger lands on?” she inquired in voice with a hint of concern.

He simply tossed a shoulder. “Then do a custom order. You don’t ‘have’ to order what the menu says. You could have both pancakes ‘and’ waffles together if you wanted. The menu is basically just to show you what the house special orders are.”

She rose a brow. “So…I could order whatever I wanted together?”

“Yeah. Just don’t order too much. Sometimes these orders can turn out to be much bigger than you thought, leaving you with lots of leftovers. I don’t know about you, but I’d prefer to not have to carry leftovers around all day.” He advised.

She waved him off gently with a chuckle. “Don’t worry, I won’t.” he affirmed.

Gesturing to the waitress, she walked back over to the pair and began receiving their orders. Timothy went with a simple scrambled eggs and pancake platter, while Nel ordered eggs, and a couple pancakes and waffles.

The waitress bowed, telling them their orders would be ready in a moment, then left. Timothy took a sip of his coffee as Nel drank some of her tea. Neither of them spoke at first, an eerie silence looming over the table; driving Kitsune, almost literally, up a wall.

After a few moments, Nel looked back at Timothy sheepishly while she twiddled her thumbs under the table.

“So, can I…ask you something, Tim?” she began.

“Sure.” He returned, taking another sip.

She gave him a curious look. “Before my…training…with Gamuza, Kisuke said something about how my situation was similar to yours. I know that Kit…was your wife…” she said, then dropped her head for a second before looking back. “…but he also said that what I did was also similar to what you did. What exactly does he mean by that?” she inquired.

His face dropped, then he sighed heavily. “It’s…difficult to explain, Nel.”

Nel dropped her head again. “I’m sorry…I didn’t mean…”

Timothy waved her off. “It’s not that, Nel. It’s just exactly how I said it, it really is a bit hard to explain. To put it the easiest way to understand, when you and I first met in that park against that hollow, Kit…wasn’t ‘my’ zanpakutō.”

She raised her head back with a confused face. “What do you mean? I thought Aizen…already did that…or whatever it was to her before then.”

He nodded slowly. “He did, but at that time, she was ‘only’ a zanpakutō spirit. But, she didn’t have an inner world, if that makes sense.”

The Arrancar shook her head, keeping her confused expression. Timothy then and propped his head in his hand as he rubbed his temples.

“Alright, give me a sec to try and find a better way to explain…Basically, a soul reaper and his or her zanpakutō spirit ‘both’ share an inner world. If I’m not mistaken, you do the same thing with Gamuza, right?” he inquired, getting a nod. “Ok, so you understand that part. The problem Kit had, was that she didn’t have an inner world to live in. Her and I were bound together somehow, complements of the Hōgyoku, but she did not share my inner world. Still with me?”

She gave him another nod. “Alright. To put it simple…Kit was dying in that state.” He said in a low voice.

Her eyes shot wide. “Wait…what do you mean Kit was dying?! Is that even possible?!”

Timothy nodded. “If a soul reaper dies, their zanpakutō spirit dies along with them. Essentially, that’s what happened in her case. Kisuke could explain this much better than me. But anyway, because she didn’t have an inner world to support her soul, she was steadily getting weaker and weaker as time went on. Eventually, she would have simply faded away. Now we come to what Kisuke was talking about.” He stopped and crossed his arms with a deep breath.

“In order for her to live, Kisuke had me place her in my inner world; made her a part of me and essentially making her my true zanpakutō. Now, let me ask ‘you’ something, Nel” he stopped, getting an interested look from her. “What do ‘you’ mean that your situation was similar to mine in regards to what you did? What exactly was your ‘training’ about?” he asked in a serious manner.

She tucked her head in in shame and looked away. “Um…” she started, but couldn’t finish.

“I ain’t gonna get mad, Nel; I just want to know what you went through is all. From the way you said it, and if Kisuke was comparing it to what ‘I’ went through, then it had to have been a bad experience. I’m asking out of concern is all, Nel.” He assured.

Nel looked back at him and nodded gently. “It was. Gamuza thought that…I abandoned her.” She admitted.

He rose a brow. “She did? Why? Last time I checked, you were worried to death about not being able to talk to her or sense her.”

Her head dropped down to stare at her lap. “I was worried. I really…thought I lost her forever. When Kisuke told me to release my Resurrección, I tried to, but she didn’t respond. My heart dropped, and I thought that she was gone forever. I guess…in a way…I ‘did’ abandon her. I…accepted the fact that…she was gone.”

Timothy nodded in understanding. “I see what you’re saying, and I can understand why Gamuza would be upset. So…what exactly did you do? Did you manage to get her back, your hollow powers?”

Nel nodded back. “I did. Kisuke said that somehow, while her and I were still bonded to each other, our connection was broken. He had me use some kind of device to force her out, and I had to end up fighting her.”

He tilted his head in surprise. “You had to fight Gamuza? You own powers?”

“Yes, if you want to call it that. In the end, there was nothing I could do against her. It wasn’t until she threatened to…” she lowered her head a bit and sniffed. “…to kill you, that I risked everything to stop her.”

Timothy’s eyes narrowed at her. “What do you mean ‘everything’? And why would Gamuza want to kill me? What did I do to her?” he asked in a firm voice. She turned her head away, just enough that he could see a stray tear run halfway down her cheek. “Nel, answer me. What were you going to do?” he demanded in a calm voice.

“I…I told her that…she’d have to kill me…before she would ever touch you.” She said in a loud whisper.

“…Why? Why would she want to kill me, Nel? I can’t see anything that I’ve done that would leave her wanting to kill me.” He pointed out.

She looked back at him, her eyes red with tears. “Because she thinks that I ‘abandoned’ Aizen for you.”

His eyes widened in mild shock. “Huh?”

Nel nodded firmly. “I’ve told you about my aspect of death, right Tim?”

“If I remember, I believe you said it was Loyalty, right?” he said.

She nodded with a hum. “Yes, and Gamuza believed that I went against my aspect, against my loyalty, for you. She saw ‘you’ as the problem. She felt that, by killing you, I would go back to Aizen.”

He scoffed lightly. “I’m pretty sure I already know the answer, so I won’t ask. But Aizen turned on ‘you’, put you two in that state. So perhaps you can explain how the hell it could possibly be ‘my’ fault with what happened. It’s just not adding up, Nel.” He said in a slightly elevated tone.

“Because Tim…” she almost yelled, but caught herself and took a breath. “Because, she thinks I had doubts about Aizen after he showed the Espada what he did to you and Kit. She thought that I turned against Aizen because I felt sorry for you. Because I…” She stopped and turned her head.

Timothy slightly rose a brow. “…Because…?” he pressed gently.

“Because…she thought that…I had feelings for you.” She said in a whisper, surprising him.

He watched her in silence for a moment, then sighed heavily as he slumped in his seat. “Christ…why is everyone making all these assumptions about feelings? So, let me see if I understand this correctly; Gamuza wanted to kill me because ‘I’ was the reason you ‘abandoned’…” he said with an air quote. “…Aizen, the guy who tried to ‘kill’ you? Because she thought you had feelings for me? Am I understanding this right?” he inquired, getting a sheepish nod back.

Timothy moaned as he cradled his head in his arms on the table. Another long moment of silence fell on the pair, before Timothy turned his head to the side, looking towards the front door. He watched as people walked by going about their business for a moment before he sighed.

“Ever since we met…since we met Kisuke and Yoruichi, you and I have both been…bombarded with hints and remarks about feelings for each other.” He started in a weak voice, getting her attention. “Kit even annoyed you to the point where you simply vanished one day, all because they are, for some reason or another, adamant that we ‘do’ have feelings for each other.”

He sighed again as he sat up straight with his head leaned back and eyes closed. “I admit…I am as dense as they come when it comes to feelings for one another. It’s just…something that never seems to click in my head for some reason. For three or four years while we were still in high school, Kit had feelings for me and I never once noticed it. She even told me that she was practically ‘presenting herself’ to me purposely just to get my attention.” He said with a chuckle.

“I’ve always been blind to those kind of things. I just couldn’t help it. Maybe I’m…still blind.” He said solemnly.

Nel gave him a concerned look. “Tim?”

He sighed heavily and lowered his head to her. “Yoruichi and Kisuke seem like the kind of people that just like to screw with others for the fun of it. Hell, Kit’s worse than them most of the time. But…now you’re telling me that your own hollow spirit, or whatever she is, is essentially saying the same thing? Even wanting to kill me because of it? I…I have to admit Nel, it really is leaving me to wonder something that…that I’m almost afraid to ask.”

She kept her concerned face, but now with a bit of worry behind it. That worry grew even more when Timothy leaned forward to rest on his crossed arms on the table; giving her a firm, but calm look.

“Nel…I’m an idiot in these matters, so I have to ask…” He paused and lowered his head a bit. “…Do you…really have…feelings for me? Any at all?” he asked in a whisper.

Nel’s eyes widened and her fists clenched as her face turned pink. “W…What?” she choked out.

He looked back at her calmly. “Is what Yoruichi, Kisuke, and Kit been hounding the hell out of us for true? Do you feel anything for me? I’m not asking to make fun of you or anything Nel, I really…need to know.” He pressed harder.

Her face morphed to red, but a moment later she lowered her head. “Does it matter?” she asked in sadness.

Timothy tilted his head. “What do you mean, Nel?” he followed in concern.

She turned her eyes to him and he was surprised to see them filled with sadness. “I don’t want to have feelings for you, Tim. You know as well as I, that the soul society would never allow it. I don’t want you to end up ruining your own life because of me, an Arrancar…a hollow. But…from what Kisuke tells me, it wouldn’t matter anyway; because if you had the slightest amount of feelings for me, you’d do anything for me…even leave the soul society for me.”

She then turned back away, and Timothy saw a tear run down her face again. “I don’t want that, Tim. I don’t want you to lose everything just for me. After…everything you’ve been through…you and Kit…you deserve to be happy. To live what’s left of your life happy. But like I said…it doesn’t matter what I do. Just by looking at you, I can see that what Kisuke said was true. That you really would do ‘anything’ for me if you did have feelings for me.”

The woman turned back to the table and clutched her head in her hands, her fingers grabbing loose strands on her hair tightly. “At first…I thought that I was feeling my aspect, Loyalty, towards you. That I was loyal to you, and I am, Tim.” She dropped her hands to the table and looked at him with tearful eyes. “After all the help you have given me, everything you are risking to help me, I can’t help but feel that I should be loyal to you.” She admitted, then looked to the side.

“But as the days went on…it didn’t feel the same. It didn’t feel…like loyalty. It felt…closer, like I had to be around you, wanted to be around you. I didn’t think anything of it at first, that all of Yoruichi and Kit’s teasing was just that, teasing. But the more I thought about it, the less stupid it sounded, and the more sense it made. I know Kit told you about what I said…that I…didn’t know what these feelings were.” His expression fell, but he nodded.

“Even now, I’m still unsure if what I’m feeling is what you would call ‘love’ or whatever. I…I do feel ‘something’, like a longing to be with you…” she said as she turned red again. “…but I don’t know what to do about it.”

Timothy leaned back and crossed his arms with a heavy breath. “Kisuke didn’t send you out here with me to get better acquainted with human life…did he?” he questioned. Nel lowered, then shook her head. “I thought not. I’m going to venture a guess that Yoruichi and Kit talked you into this, right? Try to get closer to me?”

She closed her eyes. “…Yes. But…please don’t be mad at them, Tim; they’re only…trying to help.” She stated.

“I know…I just…I just wish they would mind their own business, is all.” He admitted.

**_“If I did that, then it would have taken centuries and a damn kiss before you figured it out, stupid.”_** Kitsune mocked.

“Shut your damn mouth, vixen.” He hissed back in a whisper, getting Nel’s attention with a raised brow.

“Tim?”

He looked at her, the growled. “It’s Kit, she’s being her usual self again.”

Her face fell. “I…don’t think I wanna know.” She stated.

“No, she’s just pointing out the obvious that I could have gone the rest of the day without is all. I hate the fact that she can hear everything we’re saying. And if you ‘ever’ want to come out again, you’ll keep your damn mouth shut and not say anything to Yoruichi, Kit.” He warned.

When she said nothing further, knowing that doing so would really piss him off, he turned back to Nel. “Going back to what you were saying Nel, Kisuke was right.” He stated, causing her to raise a brow again. “If I did have feelings for you, and viewed you as someone special to me, I ‘would’ do anything for you…just like I did with Kit when we were alive. I’ve never cared that much about myself Nel; even if people insulted me, I didn’t care. But if someone I really cared about was at risk, I really would do anything to protect them. It’s just simply who I am.” He stated, then interlaced his fingers on the table as he leaned on his arms.

“I value my friends more than anything, Nel; but loved ones I value more. If the two of us did end up together, I wouldn’t think twice about leaving the soul society. Sure, I do have some good friends there, and I would be upset to have to leave them. But the fact is, is that I would gladly do it for someone that I loved.” He paused and reached out to rest a hand on top of hers, surprising her and getting her to look at him with wide eyes.

“I feel something for you Nel, I really do. I feel that I do care for you more than the others, on a deeper level, so to say. But at this particular moment, I can’t say with certainty that I love you yet. You say that you are unsure about these feelings, but if I had to guess, I would say that you are the same way; that you really do care for me deeply, but don’t fully ‘love’ me yet.” His grip on her hand tightened a bit.

“Honestly Nel…” he started, then lowered his head to look at her hand in his. “…I’m not against looking more into these feelings, and seeing where it could possibly go.” He said before looking back to her. “But, that’s only if you want to do the same, Nel. If you don’t feel comfortable looking into this further, I’ll understand, and we can simply let it go and remain as close friends.” He stated.

He gave her hand another gentle squeeze, then let go and leaned back to rest his hands in his lap with a sigh. Nel looked down at her hand that he held, then used her other hand to grab her wrist and sighed well.

“I…I don’t want to hurt you, Tim.” she said a sad voice.

“Nel, look at me.” He instructed, causing her to do so. “You ain’t gonna hurt me regardless of what you do. Essentially, my ‘fate’, as it were, was already sealed the moment I decided to help you and protect you from the soul society. And knowing Kisuke and Yoruichi, I’m sure they have both said the same thing to you. So, don’t worry about me, Nel.” He said calmly.

It was at this time that the waitress came back with their orders. Setting their plates down in front of them and taking a second to refill his coffee and her tea, she then bowed and told them to enjoy their meal before leaving the pair alone.

“I’ll let you take however long you need to think on what you want to do about it, then you can tell me when you’re ready. Either way Nel, I won’t be mad or upset with whatever you decide. Now, with that outta the way, let’s dig in so we can get back to looking around and getting you better acquainted with the human world, alright?” he offered as he grabbed his silverware.

She nodded, then smiled a bit cheerfully. “I’d like that.” She returned.

“And don’t worry, I’ll make sure Kit keeps her trap shut about this.” He stated further.

Her smile then fell. “Please do.” She pleaded with a moan.

**_“…I hate you.”_** Kitsune growled.

“Keep quiet, damn witch.” He hissed back in a whisper.

**_“I am not a witch! Take it back, or I ‘will’ tell Yoruichi! And I might even ‘exaggerate’ a little when I tell her!”_** she threatened back.

He stopped from putting food in his mouth, holding the fork in front of him when she did. “You do that, and you will ‘never’ come out again! And ‘that’. Is. A. Promise!” he growled, causing Nel to widen her eyes.

“Do…I even want to know?” she reluctantly asked.

Timothy looked at her with pity. “No Nel…you don’t.” he confirmed, now causing her to whine in worry.

“Maybe…I should have let Gamuza kill me.” She commented.

He closed his eyes with a sigh as he lowered his fork back down to the plate. “Is it too late for her to do me in as well?”

**_“No…it’s not. I’m still willing to kill him, if that’s what he wants.”_** Gamuza stated in her mind with a malicious grin.

Nel’s face dropped again. “…She said no…and that scares me.”

Timothy rose a brow at her. “So, you can speak with her again?” he inquired, getting a nod back. “If that’s the case…do you think she’d be willing to kill a perverted vixen?”

**_“Hey!”_** Kitsune yelled back.

**_“Pfft…You seriously have feelings for someone who gets tortured by his ‘own’ zanpakutō? I mean, seriously! How can someone be so damn weak that they get put down by their own spirit? There is no way that his zanpakutō spirit can be ‘that’ bad.”_** Gamuza mocked.

Nel’s expression turned to pity. “…You have no idea, Gamuza.”

Timothy narrowed his eyes at her. “What?” he demanded calmly.

“Gamuza thinks that you’re weak for being bullied by your own zanpakutō spirit, and that she couldn’t possibly be that bad.” She informed.

He now gave her an angry stare. “Can she hear me?” he inquired, getting a nod. “Alright then, you listen here, ‘Gamuza’, if you think you can do a better job at handling her, Be. My. Guest!”

In Nel’s inner world, Gamuza rose a brow at the statement. **_“…Is that brat challenging me?! If only I could materialize like those stupid zanpakutō spirits can, I’d gladly take him up on his offer! That ‘vixen’ he’s crying about can’t possibly be as horrible as he states!”_**

“Gamuza…you do not want to go there.” Nel stated, then began eating.

“…Still doesn’t believe you?” he inquired.

A simple glare from Nel was his only answer. He let out a heavy sigh as he shook his head before he began eating as well.

After spending a little over an hour eating in relative peace, and Timothy paid for their meal, the pair left the restaurant, where Timothy insisted that Nel lead the way to whatever interested her. At first, they stopped inside a few random stores, the ones that had the most prominent neon signs that easily caught the Arrancar’s attention, and simply browsed around.

Nel was, at least discreetly, hammering Timothy with a seemingly endless supply of questions; from what a particular item was, what an item did, why, it just didn’t stop. Timothy did the best he could to answer her questions, but a vast majority of the items she was asking about were new to even him.

He was trying his hardest not to laugh at the woman’s childlike antics as she moved from one place to another in rapid succession, looking at everything the living world had to offer. But where he had tried, Kitsune had failed; as she, Timothy was willing to wager, was rolling on the ground of his inner world as she nearly died from laughing.

But Nel’s antics only got worse the instant that they walked into a nearby book store. The moment they entered the door, her jaw dropped, and her eyes nearly fell from her head. It didn’t take a genius to discern that the woman must have liked to read. But that was fine, as he also enjoyed reading himself.

The term ‘kid in a candy store’ held nothing to what Nel was showing in that place. She was quick to snatch his wrist and very nearly pull the arm of the faux body from its socket as she dragged him off to the nearest shelf.

Not even bothering to look at the title, she grabbed the first book she could and began reading the back to get a brief understanding of what it was about. With a hum and a shrug of the shoulder a few seconds later, she put the book back, then grabbed the one next to it.

Book after book, spending only a moment to read the backs, she browsed through the first shelf, picking two that interested her. Before Timothy knew it, she was already working on the next shelf and repeating the process.

Timothy snorted with amusement as he set down the books she handed him on top of a table and sat down in a chair next to it to wait on her. It was now, painfully, obvious that he was going to be there for a while.

Leaning back into the chair and folding his hands in his lap as he crossed his legs, he let out a deep breath before closing his eyes to relax a bit while she continued on her determined task of browsing.

He never even noticed himself drifting off into slumber, until it was nearly two hours later that he was leaning against the table with his head propped up on a fist, sound asleep and lightly snoring.

A light tap on his shoulder was his wakeup, as he snorted from surprise and slowly opened his eyes to see Nel staring at him with a bit of concern. He blinked a few times to clear some of the sleep from his eyes.

“Nel?” he started, then lightly shook his head. He let out a yawn as he stretched his arms out wide and flexed his back. “Sorry…must have dozed off, Nel.” He said as he relaxed again.

She tiled her head at him. “I’m sorry if I tired you out, Tim.” she offered.

He simply waved her off with a smile. “You’re fine, I guess my body is still a bit tired from the training the other day is all. You all done, Nel?” he inquired.

The woman smiled back and nodded as she gestured to the table next to them. “Mm hm, I found a few that looked interesting.” She answered.

**_“Uh…Tim…”_** Kitsune started in a hesitant voice.

Timothy calmly looked over to the…

“What the hell?!” he nearly yelled.

What had started out as a couple books when he dozed off, somehow turned into nearly an entire flipping library. There was no way he could tell exactly how many books were stacked on top of the table without getting up and manually counting them, but he could tell by quick glance that it ‘had’ to be at least two dozen; and some of them were quite thick.

She looked at him with a bit of shock. “Is…that enough?” she inquired.

He quickly looked back at her. “Enough?! Are you trying to open your own freaking library?! How long do you think it’ll take you to read all that, Nel?!”

She raised her head and touched a finger to her chin in thought. “Hmmm…A few weeks…maybe a month.” She answered in a sure tone.

His jaw dropped, but he quickly recovered and gave her a serious glare. “Nel…” he called, getting her attention back. “…I am ‘not’ buying ‘that’ many damn books! The best I’ll give you is half!” he stated.

Nel then stomped her foot. “Half?! That’s not fair! At that rate, they wouldn’t last two weeks!” she complained with her fists to her side.

He narrowed his gaze at her. “Half.” He restated in a growl.

She growled back, then held up three fingers. “Three fourths!” she demanded.

“One third! Afterall, ‘I’m’ the one who’s paying, Nel. Or do ‘you’ have any money that can be used here?” he returned, causing her to flinch.

The woman quickly held up her hands in surrender. “Ok ok! Half!” she said, getting a firm nod back from him.

“Good, so go pick out what you want, and we’ll leave.” He said in a calmer voice.

She crossed her arms with a huff and walked over to her ‘collection’ of books, taking her time to carefully pick out which ones she wanted and which ones she had to ‘sacrifice’. After roughly ten minutes of ‘careful consideration’, she finally managed to reduce her selection to only about twelve or thirteen books.

Taking a few minutes more to return her ‘discarded’ pile back to their respective places, the pair grabbed the ones she picked and walked over to the register. As they did, he glanced over to see that she still had a displeased look on her face. When she noticed that he was looking at her, she quickly turned away with a huff, earning a scoff and head shake from him.

“For goodness sakes, Nel…if you ‘really’ like reading ‘that’ much, we can look around and find out where the library is. That way, you can read all the books you want. But seriously, you can’t expect me to buy the whole damn store, can you?” he asked, trying to placate her.

She glanced back at him with interest. “They have a library here in the world of the living?” she asked in surprise.

He nodded with a small smile. “Yes, they do. I’ll buy these for you, but if you want anything else, get it from the library. I’m sure Kisuke can help you out with a library card, or whatever they use nowadays to borrow books.”

Her face then lit up as she returned the smile. “I would love that!” she affirmed as they arrived at the register.

Needless to say, the cashier was a bit surprised with the stack of books that the pair had brought to him, but he simply shrugged his shoulders and began scanning the articles. Timothy was expecting the bill to be a little high, but his jaw nearly detached form his head when the man told him the total price.

“That will be twenty-two thousand, nine-hundred and eighty-eight yen, sir.” the man said with a bit of shock.

Timothy slowly turned his head over to Nel, who had turned a bit red from embarrassment and was rubbing the back of her head sheepishly.

“You owe me for this, Nel.” He hissed, then pulled out his wallet and, very reluctantly, handed the cashier his card that allowed him to access his squad’s mission budget. “The Captain is going to murder my ass for this.” He mumbled.

Timothy watched as the man swiped the card through a small device, and he swiftly put a hand to his face and dragged it down with a moan. This only caused Nel to become more embarrassed as she took a single step to the side.

Taking the card back from the man, and grabbing the two bags filled with books, the pair ‘finally’ left the shop with Nel leading and Timothy following reluctantly behind; a dark aura of heavy depression and sadness hovering over him.

Kitsune was laughing while ‘Johnny’ simply shook his head. **_“She has got you soooo beat, Tim!”_** she teased.

**_“I agree.”_** ‘Johnny’ added.

_“Not…a fucking…word!”_ he hissed back as him and Nel walked out onto the street.

** 4 Hours Later **

Orihime and Rangiku walked side by side through the main district of the city, out to do some ‘much needed’ shopping. After Orihime came home from school, the busty Lieutenant hounded the poor teen over and over to go shopping with her.

Needless to say, she didn’t need all that much convincing. The two women were just simply too much alike in many aspects. Both had the same ‘killer’ body that tended to leave men drooling, both were excessively chipper and caring, both had their own ‘unique’ tastes in foods…

And ‘both’ had the excessive urge to shop for clothes.

Taking only a few minutes to change out of her school uniform and to take care of a few household things, the two women quickly left the apartment to go about their activities.

Rangiku had initially asked Captain Hitsugaya if he wanted to go with them, but as Rangiku expected, he was going to have nothing to do with they had planned. In fact, he loathed the idea of his Lieutenant going out and making a fool of herself just to buy an endless supply of fashion articles to add to her ever-growing collection.

He simply couldn’t understand how the woman could waste literally ‘all’ of her earnings on such useless things. It wasn’t as if she couldn’t wear the clothes in the soul society, but such events where she ‘could’ wear them were far and few in between. But as long as she didn’t use the squad’s mission budget to pay for her ‘shopping sprees’, like she had done before, he didn’t care.

The pair rounded a corner and could now see the large shopping center, where they would likely be for the next several hours, and Orihime’s face lit up in surprise when she happened to notice Timothy and Nel walking towards them.

Rangiku noticed the sudden change in expression on the teen’s face, so she looked in the direction she was looking and smiled when she noticed the pair as well. She smiled brightly and waved out to them.

“Tim! Nel!” she hollered out, getting their attention.

Nel smiled and waved back as Timothy nodded, seeing as how his hands were full with the two bags of books, plus a few other items that they purchased. Orihime waved back as well as the two pairs walked up to each other and stopped.

“Hi, miss Matsumoto, Orihime.” Nel greeted.

“Hi, Nel!” Orihime returned, as Rangiku slapped a hand onto the Arrancar’s shoulder.

“Oh, come on Nel, you can just call me Rangiku. We’re friends, aren’t we?” the woman insisted.

Nel cowered a little. “Um…I guess? I’m sorry, but I really don’t know you that well to be honest.” She admitted.

Rangiku laughed at her. “So? That doesn’t mean we ‘can’t’ be friends! So, what are you two up to?” she inquired.

Timothy’s face fell, and he stared at his companion. “…Shopping.” He answered in a low tone, causing Nel to laugh sheepishly.

The busty Lieutenant’s eyes widened. “Really? If that’s the case, why don’t you join us, Nel? You look like you could use some extra clothes.” She pointed out.

He turned to her with wide eyes, figuring out exactly what she was saying. “Oh God no! The books were enough! I doubt I can handle a God-awful amount of damn clothes!” he whined.

A chop to the top of his head, sending him down to the pavement, silenced him. “Oh, be quiet, Tim. How can you take a woman out shopping and ‘not’ take her out to buy some clothes? It’s sacrilegious.” Rangiku stated in a serious tone.

“R…Rangiku!” Orihime fretted.

The woman waved her off proudly. “Oh, he’ll be fine. So, what do you say, Nel? Care to join us?” she inquired. Before Nel could possibly answer, the woman swiftly grabbed her wrist and began dragging her back towards the shopping center. “What am I saying, of course you’ll join us! Don’t worry, Nel, we’ll find you some wonderful looking clothes!” she stated as she continued to drag the poor woman off.

Orihime offered Timothy a hand to help him back to his feet as he moaned. “I just ‘know’ that there is someone that outright hates me.” He whined as he took her hand and returned to his feet.

“Don’t worry Tim, at least she doesn’t suspect anything about her.” Orihime pointed out.

Timothy then froze. The thought about Nel being in such close proximity to the Lieutenant now worried him beyond comparison.

“Oh shit! If she finds out about Nel, she’s done for!” he stated in a panicked voice.

Orihime held up her hands to calm him down. “It’s alright Tim, as long as she doesn’t say anything, this could help to reduce any suspicion they may have against her. And once Rangiku sees that she’s not a bad person for herself, she may be less inclined to fight against her if they do find out.” She offered.

He looked back at the woman, still being pulled behind the busty Lieutenant, and began to sweat. “You have a point, Orihime…but I still don’t like it. It’s gonna take all three of us to make sure nothing happens that could cause the woman to suspect her.”

The teen nodded. “I’ll help however I can, Tim. Nel’s my friend too, and I don’t want to see her hurt anymore that you do. So how is your date going?” she inquired, then immediately gasped and slapped a hand over her mouth at her mistake, turning red with embarrassment.

Timothy looked at her with disbelief. “So…you’re in on that too?” he questioned in a moan.

Orihime’s eyes widened further. “Y…You know?!” she asked in shock.

“I figured ‘something’ was up, knowing Kisuke and Yoruichi; but to be honest, I never expected you to be a part of it, Orihime. And before you ask, yes, we did have a little discussion between each other. And that is how it will stay for now, between ‘us’. So, don’t bother asking how it went, and don’t even think of asking that damn vixen in my head about it either. We’ll tell you guys when, and only when, we decide we are ready for you to know. Fair?” he insisted.

She lowered her hands a bit and nodded. “I’m…I’m sorry, Tim. I didn’t…”

He held a hand up, stopping her. “Don’t worry about it, Orihime. ‘You’ were actually trying to help, but Yoruichi and Kit are the ones who like to make fun about it. So, I do mean it when I say thanks for the help, but I’d also like to ask that you step down and let me and Nel deal with it. I’d prefer if you didn’t get dragged into Yoruichi’s stupid games.”

Orihime nodded quickly. “I won’t say anything anymore, Tim. I just…I hope we didn’t…ruin anything between you two.”

Timothy sighed heavily. “I’ll at least give you this much, Orihime. Me and Nel are…discussing, for lack of a better term, our ‘relationship’ at the moment. But promise me you’ll keep from saying anything to Yoruichi or Kisuke about it, please?” he pleaded.

She nodded firmly with a smile. “I won’t I promise.” She said just as firmly.

He smiled and nodded back. “Thanks. Now, let’s get going and catch back up with those two. Somehow…I have a ‘really’ bad feeling about leaving Nel with that woman.” He said in a whine.

Orihime chuckled at him. “She’s not that bad, Tim. She’s just a little…excited?” she offered.

The man gave her a serious look. “That’ is one hell of an understatement, Orihime.” He said, then turned and began walking with the teen next to him.

** 1 Hour Later **

It was at this moment, that Timothy promised himself that he would ‘never’ complain to Nel about her unhealthy obsession with books. To put the current situation he faced into comparison, the book store was absolutely ‘nothing’ when it came to Nel and clothes!

Although she was very hesitant at trying on different clothes at first, that hesitance very quickly evaporated, and she turned out to be just as bad as the busty Lieutenant. While all Nel saw was ‘a few’ different sets of clothes to try on, all Timothy could see was a monstrous bill at the end of the day.

He was sitting on a bench outside one of the dressing rooms that Nel was occupying with his head down and his face buried in his hands, the dark and depressing aura once again hovering all over his body.

Orihime was sitting next to him, trying, and failing, at comforting him; while Rangiku stood inside the changing room with Nel to help her out.

“I’m dead…I am soooo dead.” He moaned into his hands. “The Captain is going to damn well kill me…I know it.” He added, then dropped his head further and grabbed tufts of hair with his hands tightly.

The teen started rubbing his back with a smile. “Doesn’t the soul society pay you, Tim?” she inquired.

He lifted his head just enough to turn and look at her. “I haven’t been payed yet, so I’m forced to use the squad’s mission finances for now. What the hell do you think they’re going to say once they see that I spent a God-awful amount of money for women’s clothes?! Clothes! The mission budget for clothes!” he hissed, then returned his head to his hands.

“Aaannnnd…We’re ready!” Rangiku announced as she opened the door to the dressing room.

Orihime’s eyes widened in surprise, but Timothy didn’t even look up; having not heard the woman because he was lost in worry. The teen turned back to him and tapped his shoulder, getting his attention again.

He looked at her with worry and despair in his eyes, but when she pointed in front of her, he turned to where she was pointing, and the worry and despair simply vanished as his eyes went wide in shock.

Standing in front of him was Nel…and he couldn’t even begin to describe to himself what he thought at that moment. Even Kitsune had her jaw dropped at the sight in front of them, leaving her, for the first time in decades, speechless.

Nel was wearing faded, skintight, blue jeans that showed off her wide hips and her toned thighs. It was one of the designs where the fabric had purposely-made wear holes on the knees and other random spots; allowing him to see patches of her slightly tanned skin. The waist of the jeans only went up high enough to be level with her hipbone.

As for footwear, Rangiku picked out a pair of snug fit, almost knee-high length, flat heel women’s boots that were a very deep brown, almost black in color. Around her waist, she had a narrow, and somewhat thin, red leather belt that was a bit too long; leaving the excess part to hang halfway down her right thigh.

If her lower garments weren’t bad enough to almost causing him to burst a blood vessel, the upper articles of clothing threatened to cause him to simply pass out. With a color almost matching the belt around her waist, the shirt she was wearing was, with it being the only word he could possibly think of, perfect.

It was a high cut, red shirt that only came down to where her abdominal muscles began; leaving her flat, yet toned stomach exposed. It was a button-up style that, for his mercy lest he pass out, was fully done up all the way to her collar except for that one annoying top button that no one uses.

Luckily, the shirt was big enough that her rather large chest wasn’t threatening to cause the buttons to rip off and turn into projectiles; giving just enough space that a few loose wrinkles in the fabric could be seen. But the sleeves were another matter. They held onto her arms tightly, and only went down her arms to the halfway point of her forearm.

To add the metaphorical ‘cherry to the icing’, she also had a sleeveless, flat black, and shining leather vest over top of the shirt; offsetting, yet somehow, also blending the shirt and jeans together. As she turned around to give him the full view, he could see a dark-red, reflective design on the back in the side-view of a jousting knight.

As Nel stood there showing the clothes off to him, Timothy’s worries just simply melted away into nothingness. If anyone were to ask him why he was upset before, he more than likely wouldn’t even remember even ‘being’ upset before, much less ‘why’.

“What…the ‘hell’…did you do to her?!” he choked out, causing the woman to turn away and blush. “Are you sure…that’s even Nel?!” he questioned in disbelief.

Rangiku scoffed at him while Nel tucked her head in. “Of course, it’s her! What the hell kind of a question is that?!” she demanded.

“Do…Do you…not like it, Tim?” Nel asked, making the, now red faced, Lieutenant freeze.

“Like it?! Hell no! I damn well ‘love’ it! It’s freaking amazing!” he corrected firmly.

He didn’t want to admit what he thought about her now, fearing embarrassment; but he was so shocked by the outcome that his brain simply ceased all logical functions. He sure as hell wasn’t going to admit what he thought about the clothes beforehand.

At the time when he saw Rangiku pick the different articles of clothing out, he had made a mental picture of what it would look like and thought that the poor woman would look like a clown. But now that he was seeing the final result in front of him, he was desperately wishing he could go back and beat the living hell out of himself for doing so.

He then realized that, while Rangiku could be an airhead and too cheerful for her own good, the woman ‘clearly’ knew how to make one hell of a fashion statement. He simply couldn’t believe that the woman standing in front of him was the same former Quinto Espada that he knew. She looked more like a normal, caring woman than a dangerous warrior.

Nel glanced back at him shyly. “You…really love it?” she inquired.

The only answer Timothy could manage was a vigorous nodding of his head with saucer wide eyes. His embarrassment and antics caused Rangiku and Orihime to laugh while Nel turned away and offered a barely noticeable smile.

“Thank you…Tim.” she said in a whisper, too low for him to hear above the other two women’s laughter.

Fortunately for them both, Rangiku chose that time to rush Nel back inside the dressing room, peeking her head out the door.

“Don’t you two go away! We still have plenty more things to try out!” she informed, then closed to door with a snap.

Timothy sweat dropped at her statement. “…If I have to see Nel in any more clothes like that, I think I might end up in the hospital from a heart attack.” He said with a moan.

Orihime chuckled. “Yes, she was very pretty, Tim. I’m glad you two are at least trying to work something out between you two.”

He side glanced her in annoyance. “Please don’t start, Orihime. I’m surprised Kit hasn’t said anything perverted yet.” He informed.

Somehow, and in some way that he could even begin to understand how it was possible, Rangiku opened the dressing room door and already had Nel in another outfit. And when Timothy looked up and saw what she was wearing now, it proved to be too much for him to handle.

“Holy…” he started. **_“…Shit!”_** Kitsune finished.

A small line of blood ran down from his nose as his eyes rolled into the back of his head and he fell backwards off the bench onto the floor, out cold. Orihime and Nel both gasped in shock and ran over to him, with Nel grabbing his shoulders and trying to shake him awake again.

“Tim! Can you hear me?!” she asked in a panic.

Rangiku merely scoffed with a wave of her hand. “Pfft, he’ll be fine, Nel. Your hot body in those clothes simply proved to be too much for his male mind to handle. Just leave him there and he’ll come to eventually. Now come on, we still have more clothes for you to try out.”

Nel kept switching her glances between Timothy and Rangiku, but eventually, with much encouragement from the large chested Lieutenant, reluctantly left him on the floor with his feet still on top of the bench and returned to the dressing room while Orihime kept an eye on him.

** Timothy’s Inner World **

Timothy shot up into a sitting position on the grassy field where he normally landed when he entered his inner world. His eyes were wide in shock as he brushed a hand through his hair. He was even more shocked when he saw Kitsune standing in front of him with a similar expression.

“What the hell are you looking at me like that for?! You look just as shocked as ‘I’ am!” he yelled at her.

“Only because I am at a loss for any words to describe what I saw. Even ‘I’ have to admit that she looked very impressive. If you two don’t make something happen between you, I’ll ‘never’ forgive you.” Kitsune threatened, causing him to flinch.

He gave her an evil glare. “Shut your damn mouth, vixen! What happens between me and Nel is ‘our’ business! I don’t even like the fact you can see and hear everything that goes on!”

She returned the stare and crossed her arms. “Ok then smartass, who do you think looks better: me when we were alive, or Nel?” she challenged.

His eyes widened. “Oh, you did ‘not’ just go there! I am ‘not’ getting pulled into that one! Especially when you ‘know’ I could care less what a person looks like, but rather who they are inside! So, don’t even ‘try’ to play the guilt game with me!” he hissed as he stood up.

“But you ‘are’ willing to admit that Nel did look amazing, right?” she inquired with a raised brow.

He sighed heavily. “Yes…I’ll admit that she was beautiful and, as you said, amazing.” He affirmed.

“Better than me?” she pressed further with a grin, her hands now on her hips.

Timothy pointed at her threateningly. “I told you, I’m not going to be fooled into playing your stupid games, Kit. So, drop it. And why are you acting like this? Shouldn’t you like…be ‘against’ me having any feelings for others, being my former wife and all?”

Her expression fell quickly to a mix of sorrow and annoyance, then she crossed her arms again. “Are we seriously going to go through this again?” she inquired.

He matched her expression, but instead of sadness there was anger. “And you’re going to stand there and tell me that this…my feelings for Nel, doesn’t bother you?”

She sighed heavily. “I’ll admit that it does bother me a bit, seeing you two together. But you should be fully aware that something like that is only natural, seeing that you and I belonged to each other in the past. It’s not exactly something that I can help, Tim.” she pointed out.

He sighed and tilted his head with closed eyes. “I know, and I do feel the same way as well. It…” He paused and took a deep breath before continuing. “It feels like I’m cheating on you. I know that you and ‘Johnny’ told me that you are no longer my wife…but it still hurts, Kit.” Her face saddened when she saw tears well up in his eyes. “I still can’t accept the fact that what we had is gone…It’s not like you passed away…” He paused again as he thought about that. “…Ok, technically you ‘did’…but you know what I’m getting at. Anyway, it’s not like you’re no longer around, or we separated from each other and I can just…move on.”

He sighed heavily again and sat back down with Kitsune lowering her arms to her sides. “You’re still here with me, Kit…and we both ‘still’ have residual feelings for each other. And don’t even bother trying to deny it, I can see it in your eyes.” He pointed out with a firm stare.

Her shoulders slumped a bit. “Yeah…I do. But we ‘have’ to face reality, Tim. There is ‘nothing’ that can fix this. I’m stuck like this for the rest of our lives.” She said, causing him to drop his head.

But he was surprised a moment later when he felt a pair of hands on his shoulders, then he looked up to see his partner on her knees in front of him, resting her hands on his shoulders with a small smile.

“But I’m ok with that, Tim. We can’t live like we used to…we can’t ‘love’ each other like we used to…” She paused and cupped his chin in her hand as tears came to her eyes. “…But at least I still have you, in one way or another. I can’t be your partner in love, but at least I can be your partner in combat. I know it hurts Tim, because trust me…it hurts me as well, but we both have to accept the fact that our relationship as lovers is over; replaced by a relationship as partners.” She said with a warming, yet painful smile.

He clenched his teeth as tears ran down his cheeks. “I…I can’t. I can’t Kit…it hurts too much. I can’t let you go.” he said in a sad voice.

With the hand she used to hold his chin she gently slapped the side of his head. “You’re not, stupid. I’m a part of you now…literally. The fact is…the feelings I have for you may never go away…I will likely always love you the way I did, and I’m sure it’ll be the same for you. But we can’t be together like we used to, that much ‘is’ certain.” She then rested her hand against his cheek, where he placed his own over top of hers.

“I can’t deny it Tim, it’s going to hurt seeing you with someone else; be it Nel, or any other woman. But it would be very selfish of me to keep you away from a happy life because I want something that will never happen.” She moved her hand with his to hold it with both of hers between them. “And you don’t have to worry about hurting Nel about still having feelings for me, Tim. She’s a good person, and I can see that she would understand what you have to go through. And I seriously doubt that she would hold it against you either.”

She clutched his hand a bit tighter. “I’ll admit that I’ve been going a little overboard with my teasing of her, but you know that’s just who I am. It’s one of my faults, and I can’t deny it. But you should know full well that I don’t mean any harm in it. I like Nel, and I have ‘nothing’ against her. In fact…” She used a hand to raise his head back to her. “…if I could choose ‘anyone’ to take my place in your heart Tim, it ‘would’ be Nel. She’s a bit clueless on certain things, and easy as hell to tease…” She paused and held his cheeks with both hands.

“…but she is kind and caring…loyal and protective. If ‘anyone’ deserves you Tim, it’s her. I am not forcing you, or even pushing you to try and get closer with her; I’m only telling you where I stand in all this. It hurts Tim, and always will; but I ‘will’ support you and her being together. No matter what happens Tim, I will always fight for what you want. You gave me ‘everything’ you could have possibly managed, and more, when we were alive; and now it’s time I did the same for you.”

She gave him a couple light taps on his cheek as she chuckled, before standing back up and holding out a hand to him. “Now, I think it’s time you woke up and see what else Nel has to surprise us with.” She offered with a smile.

He smiled back and accepted the hand, allowing her to pull him up to his feet. When he was back up, he then rested his hands on her shoulders.

“I’m sorry for everything, Kit. And I’m sorry that I can’t help you with the pain you’re feeling.” He said solemnly as he rested a hand on her cheek.

She placed a hand over his and smiled wider. “Don’t be, none of this is your fault, Tim. And I don’t want you to ‘ever’ think otherwise. What happened, happened. All we can do now, is live out the rest of our lives as partners.”

He sniffed, but nodded as he dropped his hands to his sides. “Would it be weird to ask you for a hug at least?” he inquired.

Before he knew what happened, she swiftly slapped him hard on the cheek, throwing his head to the side.

“You fucking idiot!” she hissed, as she rested her fists on her hips with an angry glare.

He looked at her with shock as he nurtured his red cheek with a hand. He nearly flinched when her face quickly shifted back into a smile, then she lurched forward and wrapped her arms around him tightly.

“I’m your partner, stupid. You can ‘always’ have a hug from me.” She asserted firmly.

He scoffed, but wrapped his arms around her as well, resting a hand on the back of her head. “Thank you…Kit.” He said in a whisper.

The spirit smiled, then nodded. “Anytime, Tim.” she returned.

Embracing for a moment longer, they reluctantly released each other and stared into each other’s eyes. “Ready to start life again…‘partner’?” he inquired.

She snickered at him, then held out her hand with a toothy, and maddening grin. “I ‘greatly’ look forward to what life has for us to deal with, ‘partner’.” She affirmed.

He scoffed again and shook his head as he took her hand and gave it a firm shake. “Well then…let’s kick life in the ass, shall we?”

The spirit snickered again. “Yes, let’s.”

She then snatched her hand away and palmed him in the face, pushing him back and out of his inner world.

** Real World, Present **

He back into being with a small headache and a blurry vision. A small moan from him alerted the orange-haired teen next to him of his return to the living world.

Orihime was at his side in an instant with worry in her eyes. “Tim! Are you ok?!” she inquired quickly.

He lifted his head and, with her help, slowly got back up into a sitting position before rubbing the back of his head where it had impacted the ground earlier from falling off the bench.

“Yeah…I think so…I just ‘hate’ it when she does that.” He said, earning a chuckle from the young woman.

“I’m so glad. You had me a little worried there.” She stated.

He turned to her with an annoyed expression. “You try being a man, then seeing something like that and ‘not’ pass out.” He challenged, causing her to laugh.

“Okay, ready for the next one, Orihime?” Rangiku asked through the door.

Timothy’s eyes shot wide open. “Oh no.” he mumbled, then very reluctantly turned the face the dressing room door as it opened.

This time, Nel was wearing a tight, white t-shirt with knee-high socks and tennis shoes, and a navy-blue skirt; one of the shortest, if not ‘the’ shortest, skirts that he had ever seen in his life.

If a skirt that short wasn’t bad enough when standing at full height, still being on the floor after recovering from a state of unconsciousness only made it so much worse. He could swear on his ‘afterlife’ life, that just the smallest breath of wind, or a move in the wrong direction would grant him the perfect view of her underwear.

But, again, unfortunately for him, that was exactly what she did; not yet realizing that he was awake and on the ground. She turned her body to the side just fast enough that he ‘was’ granted a view that any man will kill for.

And, yet again, it proved to be too much. Before anyone knew it, they all heard a loud thumping sound as his head collided on the ground after his eyes shot back and sent him straight back into the world of unconsciousness.

“Tim!” Nel yelled.

** Timothy’s Inner World **

Like the last time, he was forced into his inner world from an event that, he had to admit, was ‘not’ unpleasant. He shot up to a sitting position with a loud gasp, but this time he quickly clutched his chest as his heart rate threatened to cause his heart to explode.

A moaning sound next to him caused him to swiftly look over and see Kitsune lying sprawled out on the ground. If that wasn’t bad enough of a shock, seeing a trail of blood running from her nose really took the cake.

“What the hell happened to you?!” he demanded.

She slowly rolled her head to the side and he froze when she looked at him with wide eyes. “I retract my previous statement, Tim! If this is an example of what our new life is going to offer, ‘we’re’ the ones whose asses are going to be kicked!” she stated.

His jaw dropped. “What the hell are you talking about?! How the fuck can you think that way about another woman?!” he yelled in the upmost confusion.

The spirit gave him an evil glare as she growled. “Tim…the one lesson you have ‘yet’ to learn about the world of women, is that ‘no one’, not even another ‘woman’, is immune to the God-given, and God-damned beauty ‘of’ a woman! What that damn Arrancar was wearing was something ‘beyond’ the realm of the possibility of comparison!” she hissed back.

She then turned her body and raised it to lean on her arm as she bared her teeth and growled at him. “If that damn woman keeps this up, I seriously think I’ll start regretting ‘ever’ becoming your partner!”

Timothy leaned away from her and swallowed hard as he saw that she meant every word she said. “Sadly…I might have to agree with you on that, Kit. I still can’t believe that you could have thoughts like that for another woman.” He admitted.

“Damn it! I told you that it can’t be helped! There is not one living being in this world that is immune to the allure of a damn woman!” Kitsune then pointed her finger firmly on the ground. “You are staying ‘here’ until she is done! If I see anymore of that, if ‘either’ of us sees anymore, we’ll both probably end up dying!” she asserted with no room for any argument.

He quickly nodded his head. “Trust me, I whole heartedly agree!” he said in a just as firm voice.

But he then thought about something, before snickering to himself and causing the spirit to narrow her gaze at him in a dangerous manner.

“What the hell is so funny?” she demanded.

Timothy looked at his partner with one of ‘her’ toothy grins; and that scared the spirit. “I think Nel has found a way to pay you back for all the teasing you’ve been doing to her.” He stated, causing the woman to swallow hard as she started to sweat. His grin then grew wider. “Come to think of it…I think I’ll give that information to Nel ‘and’ Yoruichi. One can only wonder what would become of that.” He said with his chin in his hand.

The spirit was starting to go into panic mode. “Y…You wouldn’t dare! You wouldn’t ‘dare’ submit me to such torture! ‘Us’ to such torture! You wouldn’t!” she stated with worry.

He slowly, oh so slowly, turned to her with a grin so wide, it was a wonder his face didn’t split in half. “Oh? Wouldn’t I?” he said in a tone that Kitsune could swear would give Yoruichi a run for her money. “I’ll admit, that I ‘too’ would suffer from such acts from Nel; but as long as I get to see ‘you’ squirm from it, it is ‘worth’ it!”

She quickly rolled over onto her hands and knees and crawled over to him, reaching out and grabbing the collars of his shirt. She then looked him closely in the eyes with worry and pity in her own.

“Y…You wouldn’t do that to me…you own partner!” she stated again.

Now he had her ‘exactly’ where he wanted her, she just needed a little extra push. “I don’t know, Kit…after what you did to Nel, forcing her to leave in sadness the other day, I’m more inclined ‘to’ tell them.” He threatened, causing her blood to freeze.

“That’s not fair! I said I was sorry about that! You can’t use that against me, especially since I already ‘paid’ for it! Now you’re just being cruel, Tim!” she yelled as tears came to her eyes and she shook him vigorously.

“Hmm…I’d be willing to keep it a secret…for a price.” He said as he side-glanced her, causing her to squirm in her seat.

“Uh….and what…could that be?” she inquired cautiously, letting him go.

He smiled, then turned to the side. “Oh ‘Johnny’.” He called out in a sing-song voice.

As soon as he did, his other spirit came into being a few yards away in a sitting position. “You called?” he said in his low and slow voice.

“Perfect, you can be a witness to this.” Timothy said to the spirit, then turned back to Kitsune. “Here’s the deal, Kit: I’ll keep my mouth shut, but ‘you’ have to keep ‘your’ mouth shut about what me and Nel discussed this morning at breakfast.” He offered.

“Deal!” she quickly answered and held out her hand.

But Timothy simply held up a finger. “And’…you have to stop being annoying to ‘Johnny’…”

“Deal!” she yelled louder, but Timothy wasn’t done.

“…‘And’!...you are forbidden from teasing Nel!”

She quickly stood up and backed away from him with a gasp. “T…That’s not fair!” she bellowed with her fists tightly clenched at her sides.

Timothy simply held his hands, palms up and shrugged his shoulders. “Fine then, I guess you and I are going to end up suffering for a loooonnnng time, Kit.” He said with a smile.

Kitsune flinched with wide eyes. She stared at him with the most hateful stare she could manage.

For the first time in the, almost, three decades that they knew each other, he, Timothy Durn, had ‘finally’ managed to back ‘her’ into a corner with absolutely no way that she could possibly turn the tables back onto him. And he did so with one hell of a damn bite!

“F…Fine! Deal!” she hissed, then walked up and tried to take his hand.

But he pulled it back at the last second, scaring her. “I mean it, Kit: one word, comment, tease, ‘anything’, the deal’s off, and I’ll tell Nel and Yoruichi your secret before you can say your own name! Understood?” he asked, then presented his hand to her again.

She growled as she bared her teeth again, but took his hand. “I hate you!” she said, then quickly snatched her hand away, and faded away into hiding.

Timothy then thrusted his fists into the air and yelled. “Yes! I’ve finally won! Finally!” he said, then fell onto his back with a ‘very’ pleased grin on his face.

“I cannot…thank you…enough…You have…saved me…from so much…pain…and suffering.” ‘Johnny’ said in a…relaxed tone?

The Lieutenant smiled at the spirit’s words. “You’re welcome, but now we watch and see how much she values her sanity. Which reminds me…” he paused and looked at his ‘other third’. “…Did Nel’s…appearance…not affect you?” he inquired with a raised brow.

“Not in…the manner…you are thinking.” The spirit informed firmly.

Timothy’s other brow rose as well in shock. “You lie! There is no way that that amount of beauty didn’t faze you!” he insisted. The spirit didn’t respond, but merely stared at him. “Ok…maaaybe not.” He corrected, then turned away to look at the sky. “So…is she done yet?” he inquired.

‘Johnny’ rose a skeptical brow at him. “Do you…honestly believe…that those women…are even…‘close’…to done?” he questioned.

Timothy flinched at the man’s answer, then sweat dropped. “…Good point. I guess I’ll be stuck here for a while.” He moaned.

The spirit closed his eye and lowered his head a bit. “Make…yourself…comfortable.” He insisted.

“…No choice.” He commented in an emotionless tone.

** Real World, 2 Hours Later **

Once the women had finished trying out clothes, and Kitsune deemed it was safe, she ‘allowed’ Timothy to return to the living, feeling worse than he did before. It surely didn’t help that when he did wake up, he noticed that the women had laid him down on the bench from before…and his head was in Nel’s lap.

He looked up…or straight considering his ‘unique’ position, at Nel with wide eyes. As his senses started coming back to him, he now noticed that she was also raking her fingers through his hair.

_‘What the hell is she doing?!’_ he mentally panicked.

The panic didn’t last long though, because the gentle, and calming motions of her nails along his scalp were threatening to send him right back out of wakefulness. And he was very quickly losing the battle to remain awake as he gave out an involuntary sigh, thankfully alerting the woman above him to his consciousness.

“Tim? Are you ok?” she asked with a bit of worry as she stopped rubbing his head.

Although he had to admit that he enjoyed her gentle massage on his scalp, her stopping was just what he needed to regain control of his senses. He looked at him with a slightly confused face.

“Why were you doing that, Nel?” he inquired.

She thought about his question for a second, but it quickly dawned on her what he was talking about. She swiftly, and carefully, removed her hand and turned her head away with pinkish cheeks.

“S…Sorry, Tim. At first, I was rubbing the spot where your head hit the floor to ease the pain. But…when I started to rub it away, it…” She then turned a bit more red. “…sounded like…you were enjoying it. So, I kept going to help you relax.” She admitted.

Now that he thought about it, he wasn’t feeling any pain on the back of his head where he should. Granted, it did sting a little at the exact spot that made contact with the floor, but it didn’t outright hurt. He then figured that her rubbing and massaging actually helped to reduce the swelling, and he was thankful.

He offered her a small smile. “Thanks, Nel. Where are Orihime and Rangiku?” he inquired, wondering why the busty Lieutenant wasn’t making any comments about his and Nel’s current ‘situation’.

“They left about ten or fifteen minutes ago. I told them that you and I had some business matters to take care of for the shop, and that we would be leaving when you woke up. Rangiku’s a nice person, and I think I like her, but I still don’t trust her fully yet.” He stated with a similar smile.

He hummed in agreeance and closed his eyes. “Yeah, I can’t argue with you on that, Nel. And that was good thinking, using ‘shop business’ as an excuse.”

She nodded, then looked out into the passing patrons of the store that they were still sitting in. They needed to get up and take care of purchasing the, very surprisingly, small amount of clothes that she picked out; managing to stay with only two sets of the dozens the Lieutenant forced her to try out.

But the problem was that ‘neither’ of them really wanted to move. Timothy was feeling so calm and relaxed where he was at, especially since Nel started massaging his scalp again. And Nel…she really wasn’t sure exactly what she was feeling.

If simply being somewhere around Timothy made her feel weird, having him laying down, with his head in ‘her’ lap, only made that odd feeling so much worse. But not in a bad way; not in the slightest way did she feel bad about the way the two of them were sitting together.

No, for some reason that she couldn’t explain, even though Yoruichi and Kit had pestered her endlessly about it and told her numerous times what it was, she found herself feeling…happy…content. She simply didn’t care if they sat there, the way they were, for the rest of the day.

For the next thirty minutes almost, that was exactly what they did; and they both actually enjoyed it. But it was already mid, almost late afternoon, and they still had a few things they wanted to do before heading back. Timothy was still awake, but he was surely not in a state that one could call ‘fully aware’.

“Nel…” he called in a low, and very weak voice.

She continued her rubbing as she sighed, knowing what he was going to say. “Yes?” she answered.

He reached up with his hand and placed it over top of her massaging one to stop her actions before opening his eyes to look at her warmly. “We should get going.” He informed.

The woman sighed again, but nodded. “I know.” She acknowledged, but made no attempt to move. “Tim…” she started in a low voice.

“Yeah?” he returned, and was a bit surprised when she twisted her hand around in his grip and returned the hold.

“While we’ve been sitting here, I’ve been thinking…about what you said.” She admitted.

He closed his eyes again with a sigh as he held her hand a little firmer. “I’m listening.”

She continued to watch the random people walking by for a moment, before she took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

“I’m still…a little lost on…what these feelings are. It’s something that…is very difficult for me to understand entirely. But…I do know that they mean a lot between two people…that it’s something very important.”

He began to worry when she paused and gripped his hand tighter, feeling the trembling nerves through the skin. He then flinched when something small, warm, and wet landed on his cheek. He was shocked to see that she was crying, and the object that had hit his cheek was a tear that fell from her face.

“And…I do want to understand them. I’ve lived my entire life, as far as I can possibly remember, as a being that knew nothing but emptiness. I thought that…when I became an Arrancar…that I was whole again. That, for once in my life, I was…complete.” She paused to wipe away the tears from her face with the back of her free hand. “At least I thought I was.” She added in a lower voice that he barely caught.

The man sighed heavily and closed his eyes again. “But now you have these ‘feelings’, and you somehow feel like something’s missing again?” he offered.

She lowered her head a moment, then nodded. “Yes. I hate feeling this way, Tim. I despise it. I am an Arrancar, one of the strongest hollows in Hueco Mundo…but I feel so weak right now. I feel so…pathetic. I just want to feel whole again, to fill the void inside my soul. I still think the way humans show feelings for each other is a bit weird, but if these feelings are truly what’s missing inside me, then I want to experience them.”

She turned her head to look at him with sorrowful eyes that were still producing tears. “And…I think…I want to experience them…with you, Tim. If you are willing…if it really doesn’t matter what we do…then I would like to…to possibly have a relationship. Would…Are you really willing…to have that with me…a hollow?” she asked in a broken voice.

He looked at her closely, and it pained him to see her shoulder shaking as she tried to fight a losing battle, to keep from completely losing it. He pulled her hand down and rested their, still embraced, hands on top of his chest.

Taking a second to consider his next action, he then took a deep breath. “Nel…I’m sorry, and…I hope you can forgive me.” He said.

She lowered her head more and closed her eyes, suddenly feeling rejected and worthless. But those thoughts were quickly shattered when the man below her quickly put a hand behind her head and pulled it down; her lips colliding with his.

She opened her eyes wide in complete and utter shock at what he was doing, but quickly closed them back and returned the kiss as she rested her free hand over his cheek. Their embraced hands swiftly readjusted themselves to where their fingers were now interlaced with each other.

As the two of them sat there, their lips still connected, Nel finally felt nearly all of the feelings of emptiness simply fall away. But they quickly threatened to come back when Timothy pulled away, breaking the kiss, and pulled her forehead to rest against his.

The woman didn’t understand why, but for some reason, she already found herself missing the strange action that they had just been performing. The odd action of joining their mouths together to show affection. But what began to worry her, was that she wasn’t only missing it, she wanted something more from it.

“Nel…” Timothy started in a low voice.

She flinched when, for a reason she couldn’t understand, she heard his voice and it made her feel warm inside. Only a minute ago, when he spoke last, nothing changed; it was just simply his voice. But now, after what they just did, his voice was somehow affecting her; like she couldn’t get enough of hearing it.

“Yes?” she answered in her still broken voice.

He moved his hand from behind her head to rest it on her cheek and smiled. “I don’t care what you are. Human…soul reaper…hollow…it don’t matter to me. All I care about, is ‘who’ you are ‘inside’. You may be an Arrancar Nel, but that’s not what I see inside. Inside, I see a kind, and caring woman; one who simply had a horrible life in the past, and only wants to make it better. If you really want to pursue these feelings Nel, then so am I.”

She snapped her eyes shut and clenched her teeth as her shoulders shook. Moving his free hand back around, and swiftly breaking the hold she had on the other, he gently pulled her into a hug; smiling warmly when he felt her do the same, but almost in a death grip.

He then heard her sniff loudly. “Thank you…Tim.” she said in a weak voice.

Timothy smiled even more and started rubbing her back gently in large circles. “I’m glad I could help, Nel. So glad.” He returned.

The two off them remained there for a short while longer, neither one willing to break from the other’s embrace.


	23. How to Move Forward

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 23

**(How to Move Forward)**

** Karakura Town City Center, Present **

Although it saddened them to do so, Timothy and Nel eventually had to release each other from their embrace to leave and get something to eat before returning to the shop. And when they did, they suddenly found it difficult to even look at each other; both still a little embarrassed at their actions.

At least Timothy found ‘a little’ comfort in noticing that after all the browsing, and trying out many different clothes, Nel had managed to limit her choices to only two sets of clothes. But that comfort quickly changed to blushing when he saw the choices that she did make.

The first set were the faded, hole-riddled jeans, knee-high boots, red button shirt, and black vest; the first set that she had tried on. The other, which was what caused him to blush the most, was the blue ‘mini’ skirt and tight, white shirt combo.

_‘Of ‘course’ she had to pick that one!’_ he hissed in his head.

**_“…I can’t think of anything to say in argument of that.”_** Kitsune added.

Snapping the bag shut in his hands, he quickly shook the dirty thoughts that were starting to fill his head away, taking some of his blush along with it. Taking a deep breath as the final seal against said thoughts, he then reached down and picked up the other bags that contained the other items they bought earlier that day.

“I dread the warrant of death known as the ‘bill’ that is coming up.” He mumbled.

Nel, who was still sitting on the bench next to him, heard him and lowered her head. “If…you don’t have it Tim, we can…take it back.” She offered with a bit of disappointment.

He looked down at her to see a mix of sadness and embarrassment on her face, and he suddenly felt guilty as hell. He didn’t mind buying things for her, he actually liked it a little; but as he was forced to use the squad’s mission budget until his first check came in, he was really hoping to avoid using it at all.

Knowing that he would ‘never’ hear the end of it from Yoruichi for not buying her, even just a couple sets of clothes, he had no choice but to release a heavy, and very defeated sigh.

“No…it’s fine, Nel. I’ll just have to bite the bullet later.” He moaned.

She looked up at him with a bit of worry, and also confusion now. “Bite the bullet?” she asked.

He let out a snort of air and shook his head. “It’s just an expression, Nel. It means I’ll just have to accept getting yelled at later. Anyway, at least you didn’t try to have me buy the whole store again. I don’t even want to begin to imagine how much Rangiku and Orihime bought.” He stated.

Nel chuckled and shook her head. “No, I don’t think you do. Really, she tried to talk me into getting more than that, but I told her that about the books you already got me, so she let it go. But she was very insistent that I get the blue skirt.” She informed.

His face fell. “I find myself completely unable to do anything but believe that. I should have known that she would have you pick that one. Yoruichi is going to have a fucking field day with this.”

Her eyes widened, and her face turned red at the thought. “I…I didn’t think about that! I changed my mind, let’s take them back!” she insisted.

Timothy very quickly nodded in approval. “Yes, let’s!” he said, then paused to think for a moment. “Actually, the skirt we’ll take back; you can keep the jeans and red shirt. That one was ok.” He admitted.

Nel thought about it, then began to blush a second later. “You…liked that one?” she asked in a low voice.

He nodded gently with a small smile. “Yeah, I did. You looked pretty good in it, Nel.” He comforted.

She smiled warmly. “Thanks, Tim.”

Shifting the bags around and looping the handles onto his arm, he held out his, now free, hand out to her. She smiled a bit more and took it, him giving hers a gentle, and caring squeeze before pulling her up and to her feet.

But the gesture only proved to be a mistake, as they both, again, found themselves not wanting to let go of each other’s hand. Of course, neither of them would have minded holding hands while walking, except that walking would be a little difficult when one of them was facing the wrong way.

So, sadly again, they had to release each other, where Nel reached over and grabbed two of the lighter bags from him, relieving him of some of the weight. Shifting the bags he still had around again, he smiled at her.

“Thanks.” He said.

She nodded, then started walking beside him as they headed towards the clothes racks to, thankfully, put the ‘skirt set’ back onto the racks. It felt a little weird though, when he walked through the lines of clothes without Rangiku stopping every two or three inches to look at another shirt or something.

They quickly put the items back where they went, then proceeded to the checkout to pay for the one set she had left. And if there was a God, or some form of higher being that was watching over him that day, at least that being chose now to be merciful; considering that the bill for the one set of clothes only cost him fifty-five thousand yen.

A ‘hell’ of a lot better than the horrible thoughts that plagued him earlier while they were shopping, to be sure. At least now he wouldn’t feel so guilty when he took her to go get something for dinner, especially with where he planned to go.

As they walked out of the store, noticing that the sun had already dropped below the lowest buildings, Timothy turned to her with a curious look.

“Hungry?” he inquired.

She smiled and nodded. “A little. The Thai from lunch was good, but it was much spicier than I thought, so I couldn’t eat that much. Where did you want to go, Tim?” she asked in return.

He grinned with a light scoff. “You’ll see. It’s my favorite food, and I really think you’ll like it, Nel.” He stated.

The woman chuckled, then held out her hand, gesturing for him to lead the way. “After you, Tim.” she offered.

The Lieutenant chuckled as well and began walking towards the place he had in mind, with Nel walking right beside him and holding the two bags she had in front of her. They walked for about five minutes, until they came to a stop in front of a western styled restaurant.

“Here we are.” He said proudly.

She looked at the place with a bit of curiosity. “What do they serve here?” she asked with her head tilted.

He side glanced her with a smug grin. “It’s called a steakhouse; and as the name suggests, they serve steaks. Granted, they don’t cook em like they do back home in Texas, but they’re still pretty good. God, what I wouldn’t do for a nice eighteen ouncer, medium cooked from back home.” He said as he began to drool at the thought.

Nel looked at him with wonder, then started to laugh. “That good, huh?” she inquired.

Timothy closed his mouth and looked at her in disbelief. “Is that a rhetorical question?”

She shook her head, then gestured towards the door. “Well, instead of standing here talking about it, why don’t we go have some?”

He snickered a second. “With pleasure.” He said, then gestured himself for her to go first.

Nodding, Nel walked inside with Timothy behind, and led them to a booth in the back, so they would avoid being seen. The waiter was quick to arrive, handing them their menus and waiting for their drink orders.

Timothy and Nel nodded at each other, then he looked at the man. “An order of sake, two shots of Jameson, and some water, please.” He ordered.

“Sorry sir, but we don’t have Jameson here. Something else?” the man inquired.

The Lieutenant let out a sigh of disappointment. “Jack?” he tested.

The waiter smiled and nodded. “An order of sake, two Jacks, and two waters. I’ll be right back.” He confirmed.

Timothy leaned back into the seat and slumped a bit. “Busy day. You have fun?” he inquired. When she didn’t answer, he lowered his head to see that she had her head down. “Nel?” he called.

She looked back up to him, her face showing that something was bothering her. “Yes?”

He rose a brow. “You alright?” he pressed.

The woman sighed. “What are we going to tell the others? You ‘know’ Yoruichi is not going to stop until she finds out, one way or another.” She pointed out.

Timothy shrugged his shoulders. “To be honest, if you don’t care about them knowing, neither do I. If you want my opinion…”

“I do.” She quickly interrupted. “I want to know what you think, Tim. Now that I have at least a better understanding as to what these feelings are, her and Kit’s teasing won’t hurt as bad.”

He waved her off gently. “You ain’t gotta worry about Kit, Nel. Her and I have come to…an ‘understanding’ between each other, and we made a deal. She promised she won’t say anything to you, or Yoruichi.”

Her eyes widened a bit. “How…did you manage that?” she asked in surprise.

Timothy snickered a moment. “That’s between me and her, as promised. Regardless, she won’t tease you anymore, Nel. As far as Yoruichi and the others, I don’t care either way. If you want them to know, we’ll tell em. If not, the demon will just have to suck it up.”

Before Nel could reply, the waiter came back with their drinks, setting them on the table between them. Nel then remembered that she didn’t even look at the menu to see what they had, so she turned to Timothy for guidance.

He, thankfully, noticed her dilemma, so he turned to the waiter holding up two fingers. “Two, twelve-ounce rib-eyes, medium cooked. Both with mashed potatoes and green beans.” He ordered.

The man wrote it down, then nodded. “It should be out shortly, sir. Enjoy your drinks.” He said, then left.

Timothy turned back to Nel and handed her one of the shot glasses. “What’s this?” she asked as she studied the dark liquid in the glass.

“Whiskey. ‘My’ type of alcohol.” He answered, then swung his glass back, downing its contents in one gulp.

Nel looked at her glass for a second longer, shrugged her shoulders, then did the same. Her eyes shot wide open, then her face turned red before she started chocking and coughing with a face of disgust.

“What…what the hell…” she tried to ask between coughs.

Timothy chuckled a bit. “Don’t like it?” he asked in a soothing voice.

She lightly thumped her chest with her fist as she tried to clear her throat. “It’s…not bad…just didn’t expect that.” She admitted.

He nodded gently. “Yeah, it’s got a bite, that’s for sure. But I honestly prefer it to sake.” He said calmly.

Nel cleared her throat a couple more times, then took a drink of water. “Like I said, it’s not bad, I actually find it to be good. But it’s another thing to drink something that has a ‘bite’, when you are used to something mellow.” She admitted.

Timothy scoffed lightly. “That’s true. Anyway…” had started as he poured them each a saucer of sake. “…do you want to tell them back at the shop about us, or no?” he inquired, then handed her a saucer.

She took it and took a sip before answering. “I’m actually wondering a little about that, Tim. As you know, I know very little about how all this works. So, what happens now, after we…” She paused, then began to turn red in the cheeks.

He thought about why she stopped, then it hit him, and he turned a bit pink himself. “You mean…after we kissed?” he inquired in a quiet voice. She took another sip, then barely nodded. He set his saucer down and sighed. “That’s a difficult question to answer, Nel.” He said as he raked his hair. “Honestly, the whole dating and girlfriend/boyfriend thing really depends on the pair. Some people go on occasional dates or outings, some simply spend a lot more time together. Hell, I dated Kit for almost four years while we were in college before we finally got married.”

At the mention of the word ‘married’, Timothy froze, then turned away a bit in embarrassment. Nel however, pulled her head into her shoulders and grew redder.

“It’s…um…” he started, trying to recover and failing. “It all depends on the individuals, Nel. Essentially, the dating ‘phase’, if you will, is mainly for the two people to see if they are compatible on a deeper level; a more intimate level.” He said, finally managing to get his color back a bit.

“Is…four years a long time?” she inquired.

He looked at her and shrugged his shoulders. “Maybe a little. Kit and I both had our own issues that we had to resolve before we decided we were ready to slap the rings on. But, it’s actually not uncommon to wait that long, if not longer. So, going back to your question, I guess you could say we’re in that phase called ‘dating’. But all this is a mutual understanding, basically. Like…a common agreeance. So, let me ask you Nel, and I know that you don’t know that much about all this, how do you want us to move forward with this?”

Nel crossed her arms loosely and tilted her head back with a deep sigh as she closed her eyes. “I am not really sure. You…sort of surprised me when you…kissed me.” She said in a low voice.

Timothy started rubbing the back of his head. “Yeah…sorry about that, Nel. I was…just trying to show you that I meant what I said.”

She swiftly looked at him with a bit of anxiety. “No, that’s not what I meant, Tim! I mean…” Her expression changed to one of deep thought as she raised her head. “…It’s hard to explain…”

He gave her a gentle wave. “Like I said Nel, I know you’re a little vague on this, and you don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to.”

The woman offered a kind smile. “It’s not that either, Tim. I don’t mind telling you, but I really don’t know the best way to say it.”

Timothy simply shrugged a shoulder. “Just say it the best way you can, I’m not gonna get mad or anything. I’m asking because I care about you and I don’t wanna make you feel…uncomfortable about all this.” He clarified.

“Thank you, Tim. I guess…” She sighed deeply. “I guess the simple answer is that I want to look more into these feelings for you, but I’m not exactly sure how to go about doing that. When you…kissed me earlier, I felt…” She then dropped her head with a bit of sadness in her eyes. “I felt…whole…like I finally found something that was missing inside me.” Her gaze returned to him. “When you kissed me, I was completely shocked by it. But then…I strangely found myself wanting more. And when we stopped, I missed it.”

She folded her hands in her lap and sighed again. “I…enjoyed kissing you, Tim. I really did. But as I said, I don’t know what to do exactly at looking more into this. And at the same time…I guess I’m afraid I might do something to ruin everything. I’m…almost tempted to…ask Yoruichi.” She admitted as she turned her head.

His face fell. “I would ‘really’ prefer if you didn’t do that. Somehow, I have a feeling that that demon will only make things worse.” He then gave a heavy sigh. “But if you think it would be a good idea to you, then go for it. Just be sure you’re cautious around her.”

Nel looked back at him inquisitively. “What do you think we should do, Tim?”

He closed his eyes and tilted his head. “I really only have past experiences with Kit to go on, and like I said, we both had a lot of problems that we had to work through. To be honest, there were a lot of times where we nearly fell apart and broke up; one time we actually ‘did’ for about two months, then we talked it out and got back together. But ‘our’ situation is a little more…unique. Kit and I had some knowledge about the dating world, but you don’t have any.”

He sighed and began rubbing his temples. “Why don’t we do this…” he said, then dropped his hand and leaned closer to her on the table. “For now, at least until you have a better understanding behind all this, we’ll simply consider ourselves in a relationship, a simple one. And as you learn more about dating and things like that that involve ‘us’, we can develop our relationship into more as we go. Sound good?” he offered.

She lowered her head a bit and thought it over. It did sound good to her, as well as fair. But, it then brought a question to her mind about the kiss from earlier. She enjoyed it, and if she could, she would like to do it again. But how would that make him feel?

Granted, ‘he’ was the one who started it, but he had told her that he did it to show her that he meant everything he said and that he truly had feelings for her. Would it be alright to ask him for more?

“Tim…” she started, causing him to raise a brow in a bit of concern. She lifted her head back to him with worry. “Is…is kissing…out of the question?” she asked as she turned a bit pink in the cheeks.

His brow dropped as he snorted lightly before reaching out with his hand and setting it against her cheek. He smiled at her as she raised her own hand to place it over his.

“If you’re comfortable with it Nel, it’s fine with me.” He offered, then rubbed her cheek with his thumb.

She smiled back and closed her eyes as she gave his hand a gentle squeeze. “Then…if it’s okay…could I…” She paused, then lowered her head a little.

He moved his hand to her chin and raised her head back up, his face now less than a foot from hers as he leaned far over the table. She stared into his eyes, and he hers, as he gave her a warm smile.

“I said it’s fine with me, if you are comfortable with it, Nel.” He said, then leaned in more and pressed his lips to hers.

Her brows dropped a bit before she closed her eyes and leaned forward into the kiss, moving the hand that had held his hand earlier to rest on his cheek.

Again, just like last time, she instantly felt the empty space inside her disappear; replaced by a deep, warming feeling that began filtering through her body and gathering into her stomach before clenching tightly.

And Timothy, he was feeling a series of mixed emotions. Happiness was at the forefront of them all, happiness that only finding someone to hold deep feelings for could give. He was happy that he could experience this moment with Nel.

But at the same time, he could also feel that lingering feeling in the pit of his stomach, the feeling of betrayal. Kit and ‘Johnny’ had told him time and time again that the relationship he and Kit had was over; but deep down inside, Timothy knew that there was still something there between them.

And it hurt.

Kitsune obviously could sense his deep distress, and chose now to speak up; the first time since he had metaphorically pinned her against a wall with his ‘deal’.

**_“Don’t even think it, Tim.”_** she said in a firm voice.

Timothy and Nel broke away from each other as he leaned back in his seat and sighed with his head now resting against the back, while Nel had her head lowered with a smile on her face.

_“I can’t help it, Kit…you know that. It’s going to take me a long time to get over it, so cut me some slack. Besides, you can’t play stupid with me, Kit; I know what happened just now, and back in the store got under your skin a bit.”_ He shot back.

**_“I won’t deny that, I do feel a bit uneasy about seeing you two kissing. But I’m biting my tongue and letting it go, because I have to. I know it’s going to take a while Tim, I’m only giving you a bit of encouragement is all. And while we’re on the subject…”_ **

“Tim?” Nel called out.

He looked at her, now broken from his conversation with his spirit, to see she had a concerned look on her face. He offered a weak smile.

“Sorry, was having a little chat with Kit. She’s being her normal self again.” He lied.

**_“Hey!”_** she yelled.

_“Oh shut it, I only said that so she wouldn’t worry. I’ll get back with you in a second.”_ He hissed.

Nel nodded at him. “I see. I can imagine she’s…probably unhappy with seeing…us kissing.” She said in a low voice.

He sighed deeply. “A bit. We’re both still having a hard time coming to terms with what happened all those years ago. It’s just something that takes time, Nel. And actually, if you must know, ‘she’s’ the one who insisted on all this.” He informed.

**_“Tim…”_** she pressed.

He sighed again and held a finger up. “One second.” He moaned, getting a nod from her as he leaned back again.

_“Yes, your highness?”_ he mocked.

He could hear a small snicker. **_“Why, thank you, sweetie…how kind of you to finally acknowledge me.”_** She teased back.

He growled inwardly. _“What do you want?!”_ he yelled.

**_“Jeez, so damn pushy. Anyway, while we’re talking about feelings and such, if you’d like, I can talk to Nel about the finer details about dating and such.”_** She offered.

Timothy flinched. _“Oh God no! You’ll scar her for life!”_

**_“Pfft…whatever stupid. I’m actually offering to help you two. You know damn well I can be serious when I want to be, as well as kind and caring. That ‘was’ why you married my ass in the first place, right?…Or would you prefer Yoruichi?”_ **

He then froze at a flash of the thought. _“You! Definitely you!”_ he quickly answered.

She grinned in his inner world. **_“I thought you’d come to your senses. Just be sure to ask if she’d like my help, though.”_** She advised.

A heavy sigh from him drew Nel’s attention back as he looked at her with a bit of worry, causing her to worry as well.

“I don’t like that look on your face, Tim…what did she have to say?” she inquired.

He waved her off gently. “Nothing bad…this time. She actually had…some advice for me. That, and she’s…offered to help you.” He admitted as he turned away.

She rose a brow in wonder. “Help? How?”

Timothy turned his eyes to her without moving his head. “She’s offered to sit and talk with you about…dating and such. The kind of things to do, things to say, all of that stuff. She wants to know if you’ll accept her help.”

Nel’s eyes widened a bit. “I’m…a bit worried about that, honestly. You’re sure she won’t be…her usual self?” she asked hesitantly.

“Unless she wants to be submitted to a vast amount of mental torture, she’ll keep her mouth shut. So, you don’t have to worry about that one. And besides, ‘she’s’ the one who managed to break my dense wall and convince me to marry her, so I can definitely say that she can offer you some good advice. But it’s up to you if you wanna accept her help.” He said calmly.

She gave a straight face and nodded. “I’d like her help, provided she doesn’t go too far.”

“She’ll behave, I promise. Now, with that outta the way, I don’t have a problem with us kissing, or even holding hands, Nel. If you feel comfortable with it, feel free to do so; I’m not going to turn you away, unless it’s an inopportune time for it. Are you fine with that?” he asked, now fully turned to her.

The woman smiled and nodded. “I am, as long as you are.” She affirmed as she reached over and grabbed his hand with hers in a gentle squeeze, with him squeezing back.

“We’ll figure all this out as we go, Nel. It will likely take a while to figure out, but I’m willing to take that time.” He stated, earning another nod from her.

“Me too.” She returned, then held up her saucer. “To us?” she offered.

He chuckled, then held up his as well. “Us.” He confirmed, then they both finished their drinks.

They set their saucers down, then the waiter returned with their orders. Setting the two large plates down and retrieving the empty shot glasses, the man gave them a swift bow, then left them to their meal.

Timothy rotated his plated around to where the steak was now in front of him, and was about to dig in when he glanced at Nel and saw her almost drooling over her plate; staring at it with wide eyes.

“Having problems, Nel?” he asked with a humorous voice.

She snapped her mouth shut and wiped the drool away with the back of her hand as she glared at him. “No! It just looks really delicious is all.” She stated as she grabbed her utensils.

He gave her a soft chuckle, then took a bite of his food; his eyes nearly falling to the back of his head in enjoyment. It wasn’t more than a few seconds later before Nel took a bite as well with her own eyes doing the same as his a moment ago.

“Sooo good.” He mumbled, with Nel humming in agreeance.

** 1 Hour Later **

Once they had finished dinner with a couple more drinks, and noticing that there was still a little bit of light out, Timothy and Nel began their walk back towards the shop. But that was quickly halted when Nel pointed out a brightly lit shop with multiple flashing lights and odd noises.

It turned out to be one of the few arcade centers in the city, and seeing that he used to play video games when he was in college on occasion, he was more than willing to introduce that aspect of life to the Arrancar.

The majority of the games were new to Timothy; racing games, games where you actually had to hold a plastic gun and ‘shoot’ the enemies on the screen, they even had a game with a device you held onto where the screen turned when you did.

Timothy looked around with a raised brow at all of the weird game consoles, while Nel gaped at everything around her; completely mesmerized by the mixed music and sounds coming from all of these strange devices that the humans were standing in front of.

But Timothy was glad to see that the place had a few ‘button masher’ consoles that he remembered from when he was alive; one game in particular that he liked to claim he was a ‘legitimate’ master at.

Pac Man.

He was quick to snatch Nel’s wrist and ‘escort’ her over to the older console, quickly fishing in his pockets for loose change.

“What’s this?” Nel asked as she studied the large, box-like object in front of her.

“This…” he started as he pulled out a few coins, inserting them into the slot. “…is Pac Man, one of my favorites.” He announced, then pressed the button to start a one-player game. “Just watch closely and you’ll see how it’s played.

She nodded, then watched as the game began. The woman watched with wonder as Timothy navigated the little yellow circle around the board; collecting many smaller dots while trying to avoid four, multi-colored ‘blobs’ that chased him.

“Soo…what happens if one of those things touch you?” she inquired, but quickly found the answer when ‘Sue’ boxed him into a corner and caught him.

“Damn…” he hissed, then turned to her with a frown. “That.” He answered simply. “The object is to collect all of the dots on the board, but you can’t let the ghosts catch you. That’s what those four colored guys are.” He educated, then turned back to the game.

In the end, he managed to clear the board five times before he finally lost, and with a pretty decent score as well.

“Wanna try?” in asked, getting a smile and nod. He nodded back and inserted a couple more coins, letting Nel take over. “Just tilt the stick in the direction you want to go. It’s all about planning ahead and trying to get the ghosts to go where you want them to. There was ‘supposedly’ a set programing as to how they behave, or something like that, but I’ve always called bullshit on that.” He said as he pressed the start button.

He then watched with crossed arms as the woman moved Pac Man around the board collecting the dots. But he was a bit surprised that she was doing really well for her first time playing. She actually managed to clear the first board fairly quickly.

“Nice. Also, you should know that the levels get harder with each board you clear. The ghosts get ‘smarter’ and faster.” He informed.

“Why do they turn blue like that?” she asked as she grabbed one of the bigger dots.

“They’re powerups, so to say. When you grab one, the ghosts will turn blue and run away from you for a short time. During that time, you can ‘catch’ the ghosts and get points for it. It’s the only time where you can touch them. But once they go back to their original colors, better start running again.” He said with a chuckle.

She nodded, not taking her face away from the screen, but then got ‘caught’ when the ghosts suddenly went back to their original colors. Cue the whining musical number.

As it turned out, Nel was actually a natural at the game, almost matching Timothy’s score; much to his embarrassment. It took him two years to get that good, yet the woman managed to do it her first game.

“That was fun.” She said as she turned to him with a smile. “Can we try something else?”

Sadly, Timothy shook his head. “Got no more change left, and it’s getting a bit late. We should head back, and I’ll bring you here next time; if you’re game.”

She nodded quickly. “Oh yes, I think I like this game and I’d like to try the others.”

He chuckled and picked up their bags. “Sounds good. Well, let’s head home.” He said, then gestured towards the door. Nel led the way out of the arcade as they continued their journey back to the shop; hopefully, Timothy prayed, with no more distractions.

Fortunately, his prayers went answered, as the two of them finally made it back to the shop. But where a blessing comes, a damnation follows. Timothy quickly realized this as they noticed Kisuke and Yoruichi both sitting on the front porch enjoying some sake; and Yoruichi with a small grin on her face.

“Well well, I was beginning to wonder when you two love birds would come back. I was beginning to think that the two of you might have decided to get a room.” She teased while Kisuke hid behind his fan, obviously trying to hide a smile of his own.

“Oh, shut up, you damn demon!” Timothy growled back as Nel turned away with pink cheeks.

The shop owner waved him down with his free hand. “Now now Tim, you know how Yoruichi is. But, on a side note, you two have fun today?” he inquired with an amused voice.

Timothy walked up and stopped only a foot from the man’s face. “Unless you want me to have Kit burn that ugly hat of yours off your head, you shut your mouth, Kisuke.” He warned.

“Yes, Kisuke, we had fun today. Thanks for asking.” Nel jumped in as she sat down on the opposite side of the door. “And please…don’t start Yoruichi.” She pleaded further.

Said woman poured the Arrancar a drink and handed it to her. “Oh, lighten up, Nel. It’s just a bit of fun, no need to get all worked up about it.” She said as Nel accepted the offered drink and took a sip.

Timothy let out a depressed sigh. “Why do I even bother?” he moaned, then turned to Nel. “I’ll stick this stuff in your room Nel, then I’ll join you guys.” He informed, earning a nod from her.

He then stepped inside the shop and proceeded to the woman’s room; opening the door and setting her bags to the side. Closing the door, then moving across the hall to his own room, he walked in and set his things next to his bed.

He was a little surprised when he suddenly heard a small and slow clapping noise behind him. “Well done, Tim. I admit, I’m impressed and a little jealous with you.” A now materialized Kitsune said behind him, slowly clapping her hands with a grin.

The man breathed another heavy sigh. “Pleeeaasse don’t start, Kit.” He begged, then turned to her. “It was a good day today, and I’m begging you and Yoruichi to ‘not’ ruin it with your games. Besides, you agreed not to tease her.”

She held up a finger. “Ah, and that’s where you seem to forget something. I agreed not to tease ‘her’, not you. ‘You’ are still fair game, Tim.” she pointed out, much to his dismay, then dropped her hand and crossed her arms. “Besides, I’m not heartless, Tim. I was just pointing out that you really surprised me when you kissed her like that. Hell, even ‘I’ was in complete shock for once.” She admitted.

His face dropped. “You make it sound like I don’t know how to be romantic, or whatever.” He moaned.

“…I didn’t say that, stupid. God, I was giving you a complement, not a torture. If anyone needs to lighten up, it’s you.” She scolded.

Timothy slapped a hand to his face and moaned. “Ok, I’m sorry for getting upset. Happy?”

She snickered at him “Very. But, I do have an honest question, if you’d care to humor me.”

He dropped his hand at her serious tone of voice. “Yeah?”

“Just curious…” she started, then leaned against the wall. “…but do you intend to take your time with Nel, like we did?”

He rose a brow. “Why? And does it even matter?”

She simply shrugged a shoulder. “As I said, just curious. I’m definitely ‘not’ saying that we took too long, or went too quickly, I think we went at about the right speed. But we both know that Nel’s…a special case, for lack of a better word.”

“You’re talking about her not knowing what these feelings are entirely?” he inquired.

Kitsune nodded. “That, and the fact that she seems ‘really’ bonded to you. And don’t try to pretend you didn’t notice it, Tim. Not even a damn monkey could miss it. I don’t know how, or exactly why, but the woman is very attached to you, even if she’s not fully aware of it yet.”

He crossed his arms loosely with a slow breath. “I did see it, but it honestly didn’t click in my head. I really have no idea why, or how she became so attached to me. To be honest, it scares me, but I also don’t have too much of a problem with it. That’s one of the reasons I told her we’d do things at her pace. And besides, she did agree to your help with all this, so you’ll at least be able to guide her.”

The spirit nodded again. “I’d be happy to. And like I said at dinner, I’ll be serious and such with the advice and help I give her. I like to joke around a lot and such, but I do know that something like this is not a light matter. But anyway…” she paused to stand straight. “…mind if I join you all for a drink or two? Being stuck inside all day, especially after…certain events…” she said as she turned a bit pink, causing him to do so as well when he realized what she was referring to. “…I think we ‘both’ could use a few.” She finished, then walked towards the door with him behind.

But she quickly stopped, turned around, and held a finger to his face with a growl. “And not a damn word about that to anyone!” she hissed.

He kept his face and pulled her hand down. “Trust me, that’s the ‘last’ thing I’ll ever tell that demon.” He confirmed as he gave her a gentle shove out into the hallway.

“Better not.” She said in a low tone.

“Oh, by the way…” he started, stopping in the hallway.

The spirit turned back to him over her shoulder, stopping as well. “Yes?”

He offered her a kind smile. “Thanks for keeping your ‘jokes’ to a minimum today and letting me and Nel deal with our…problems, alone. Means a lot, Kit.”

She smiled back before turning back to the front and waving over her shoulder. “You’re welcome. I’m not ‘always’ evil you know.” She stated and walked out of the hallway towards the porch. “Kisuke, pour me one.” She yelled out.

Timothy shook his head and followed her a second later. As he rounded the corner, he nearly bumped into Nel who was just walking in with a slight frown on her face. He raised a cautious brow at her.

“What happened?” he demanded.

She let out a defeated sigh and let her shoulders slump. “Yoruichi is ‘demanding’ that I show her the new clothes.” She informed in a depressed voice.

He slapped a hand to his face and moaned. “Why can’t she give it a rest for five freaking minutes?”

The man was surprised when she reached out and grabbed his hand in a soothing grip. “It’s fine, Tim. We both knew this was going to happen. I’m just worried what she’s going to do when she finds out about…us.” She said as she turned away a bit.

Timothy gently flicked the side of her head, regaining her attention. “Hey, all the woman can do is tease. In fact, if you’re up for taking a risk, we might be able to turn it around on her.” He said with a grin.

Her eyes widened a bit. “I’m don’t think that’s a good idea, Tim. Yoruichi is ‘not’ someone who would simply ‘back down’. If anything, it would only make it worse.” She pointed out.

He placed his fists on his hips with a skeptical look. “What, no faith in me?” he challenged.

The woman rose a brow at him. “Oh no, I have faith in you Tim, but I honestly think that you are simply no challenge to her.”

Timothy’s grin only grew, worrying the Arrancar. “Trust me.” He said.

She stared at him with concern for a moment, but finally conceded with another sigh of defeat as she rubbed her temples. “This is a bad idea, Tim. You know that…right?”

He crossed his arms firmly. “I am done backing down from that woman and her antics. If she wants to play, then we’ll play. What else can she do, besides tease?”

The former Espada quickly glared at him. “Are you ‘seriously’ asking that question, Tim?! If so, then you bring a whole new meaning to the word ‘dense’!”

The man chuckled and placed a hand on her shoulder. “Just keep that attitude and we’ll be fine, Nel.” He assured.

“I’m more likely to get into another brawl with her if I do that.” She pointed out.

His eyes widened a bit. “What do you mean? You and Yoruichi fought?” he asked in surprise.

She held up two fingers. “Twice, because she wouldn’t shut up.”

“Who won?” he inquired further.

Her face dropped. “Who do you think?” she asked in return, then walked around him to her room.

“Hey Nel…” he started, causing her to stop and turn back to him.

“Yes, Tim?”

He looked back at her in return. “Before Yoruichi and the others start their bullshit, just wanted to let you know that you looked really nice in those clothes.” He said with a kind smile.

Nel smiled back. “You already told me that, twice.”

“I know, just reminding you again.” He stated.

The woman nodded. “Thanks, Tim. That’s real kind of you. I’ll be back out in a minute.” She said, then turned back and walked into her room.

Timothy continued on outside to see Kitsune sitting next to where Nel was, holding a saucer and chatting with Yoruichi; surprisingly having a simple, and ‘clean’ conversation. The golden-eyed woman reached next to her and poured Timothy a drink, then handed it up to him before he sat down where Nel was earlier.

“So…how was your day, Tim? You show miss Nel everything she needed to know about human society?” Kisuke inquired with a grin behind his fan.

Seriously, Timothy wanted so bad to just yank that stupid thing from his hand and have Kitsune turn it into ashes with her foxfire. He took a sip from his saucer and let out a deep, relaxing breath as he prepared for the inevitable onslaught ahead.

“You mean the ‘date’ you tried to use Nel to trick me into?” he questioned in a calm voice before turning to the man. “I’m not stupid, Kisuke. I ‘knew’ something was up the moment your name left her mouth. I’ll give you that you know your stuff, and that you’re very intelligent, but I have yet to see you do something…genuine…when it comes to personal affairs.” He mocked, then took another sip.

“But to answer your question, the…date…went fine. But the details behind it are ‘mine and Nel’s’ business, not yours or Yoruichi’s.” he said firmly, then side glanced the woman. “And don’t bother trying to get the information from Kit. Her and I made a little deal, and she’s agreed to keep her mouth shut.” He informed.

The golden-eyed woman grinned at the spirit. “Oh? How much you wanna bet that I can make her tell me everything? I’m sure with a mind like hers, she would be ‘oh so willing’ to tell me.”

Said spirit side glanced her with a serious face. “Not this time, Yoruichi. Trust me, I would ‘love’ to tell you, but Tim found the one thing I fear worse than you, and is using it against me.”

Yoruichi crossed her arms and gave the man a disapproving stare. “Blackmailing your ‘own’ zanpakutō spirit? That’s just cruel, Tim.”

Timothy glanced at her. “To save me and Nel’s sanity, it’s something I’m willing to do. Besides, it’s for my own protection as well, so me and Kit are ‘both’ benefitting from the deal.” He informed.

It was after he finished his statement that Nel walked outside wearing her new clothes, earning a wide variety of looks; and a lack thereof. Kisuke had a brow raised in interest, Yoruichi had both brows raised in amazement, Kitsune avoided looking at her, pretending not to notice, and Timothy almost started drooling as his jaw hung low, nearly touching the floor.

“Damn girl, Rangiku really knows how to pick em. You bring a whole new meaning to the word sexy.” She commented with a hint of suggestiveness in her voice.

Nel turned away, her face turning red at the statement, while Timothy turned to the golden-eyed demon.

“Yoruichi, leave her alone. Can’t you simply stick with ‘You look very nice’?” he inquired.

Nel smiled a bit at his continued complements, while Yoruichi looked at him with a toothy grin. “What’s the matter, Tim? Even you have to admit that she’s sexy as hell, right?” she said with a flash of her brows.

_‘That does it…time to fight fire, with fire.’_ He mentally concluded.

Timothy then returned the same grin. “You know Yoruichi, I’ve always wondered why, exactly, that you are so persistent in teasing Nel and I, and I think I finally figured it out.” He said.

The woman raised a brow in interest. “Oh? Do tell.” She pressed in wonder.

His grin then grew wider as he crossed his arms. “It’s simple…teasing is all you ‘can’ do. Afterall, you gotta make up for your lack of ‘nighttime action’ somehow. Hell, I doubt you even have any experience in that department.” He mocked.

Kitsune, who was sipping from her saucer, instantly spit the contents of her mouth out, while Kisuke’s eyes shot wide open in shock, and Yoruichi’s jaw dropped at the, very unexpected, retort from the man.

Nel also quickly snapped her head to him with saucer eyes. _‘What the hell are you doing, Tim?! You’re going to kill us both!’_ she fretted.

“T…Tim!” she yelled out at him with worried in her eyes.

He maintained his stare at the golden-eyed woman as she stared back at him in complete, and total shock. She figured that he would say something to try and get back at her for her suggestive remarks, but she had definitely ‘not’ expected him to go that route.

Noticing his long-time friend was still trying to recover from the remark, Kisuke started waving his fan vary rapidly at his face. “Well…that was…unexpected.” He stated, before looking at his friend and giving her a gentle nudge with his elbow.

The action finally broke Yoruichi from her state of shock as she swiftly shook her head and smiled back at the Lieutenant, crossing her arms.

“Well now…I have to admit Tim, you really got me with that one. Well done…but you do realize that teasing back like that is only going to up the ante, right?” she inquired with a challenging glare.

Nel then buried her face in her hands and moaned. “Tim…what have you done…” she whispered, causing the other woman to grin more.

“And poor Nel. If anything, you only made things worse for her. I’m actually starting to feel sorry for her now.” Yoruichi added, making Nel moan more.

Timothy shrugged his shoulders. “If that’s the case, then my previous statement ‘must’ be true. Don’t worry Yoruichi, I’m sure that there’s ‘somebody’ out there for you. Hell, I’m sure if you ask nicely, Kisuke might even be able to use one of his gigais to give you the basics in sex-ed.” He pressed further, causing the woman’s jaw to drop again while Kisuke snorted from trying not to laugh.

Nel quickly turned and grabbed his arm, shaking him with pleading eyes. “Tim! Please stop! You don’t know what you’re doing!”

Kitsune turned slowly to him with wide eyes, still trying to determine if she was dreaming or not. Sure, he had teased her back a few times in the past when ‘she’ made perverted comments to him, but he had never, in the twenty-eight years that they had known each other, ‘never’ taken the teasing that far.

If he had said that to her, sure, it would have surprised her, but mainly because it was new for him to do so. But for him to go that far with ‘Yoruichi’, the absolute master of the universe in the world of perverted teasing, that was essentially ‘begging’ for a death sentence.

“Tim…what ‘are’ you doing?” the spirit asked in shock.

It didn’t take as long this time for the demon woman to recover, as she grinned wide enough to split her face in more ways that two.

“Oh…Tim…I really hope you enjoyed tonight, cause tomorrow…It. Is. On!” she growled in a very amused voice, causing Timothy’s face to drop.

_‘…Oooohhh…fuck…’_ He fretted as Nel slowly let go of his arm, frozen in terror.

“Tim…what have you done?” she whispered.

** The Next Morning **

After Yoruichi’s ‘challenge’, Timothy and Nel were both surprised, and also worried, when the woman, or Kisuke for that matter, did not make a single suggestive, or perverted comment to the two. In fact, for the last hour that the group remained on the porch, they all had very decent conversations.

Timothy and Nel both enjoyed the break of the endless teasing from the golden-eyes demoness, but as the group disbanded for the night and Timothy laid there in his bed thinking it over, he began to wonder…at what cost.

When he and Nel said their goodnights, he could see the look of sheer terror in the teal-haired woman’s eyes, along with a bit of anger at him for the onslaught that was very sure to come. He actually heard the woman lock her bedroom door after she closed it, being the first time that she had ever done so.

But the thoughts from the night before eluded him as he woke the next morning. Getting dressed and proceeding downstairs to the training area like he normally did in the mornings, he was a bit surprised to see a black cat sitting on top of a boulder where he normally trained.

He rose a brow at the creature. “Where the hell did you come from?” he inquired into the air.

The cat responded by simply yawning, then laying down on top of the rock, watching him. He simply shrugged his shoulders and went about his business, calling out his shikai and beginning his training session; the black cat continuing to watch him closely.

Not long afterwards, as ‘she’ normally did, Nel came downstairs to get Timothy for breakfast, a look of worry on her face and her hair in a bit of a mess; obviously showing that the woman had not gotten very much sleep during the night.

Nel waited a few minutes until a break occurred in Timothy’s transitioning sessions between flames before calling out to him in a low voice. Timothy turned around to her and smiled as he waved.

She returned the gesture and was about to walk towards him when she, too, noticed the black cat; now staring at ‘her’. It’s piercing gold eyes looked right into Nel’s and she could swear that the cat was looking into her soul.

“Morning, Nel. Couldn’t sleep?” Timothy inquired as he pointed at her messy hair.

The woman glared at him. “No, and I wonder why. And good morning to you too, Tim.” she returned in an agitated voice.

He stopped and held his hands up as he sweated. “Look, I’m sorry, alright? I thought it would work, but I guess I was wrong.”

Nel crossed her arms and frowned. “You ‘guess’? If her teasing wasn’t bad enough before, now I think she is literally going to try and kill us from embarrassment. I told you to stop, Tim!” she hissed.

“I know! I said I was sorry!” he whined back.

She let out a deep, and distressed breath before looking back at the cat, the animal still staring at her. “Where did the cat come from, Tim?” she asked in wonder.

He turned to the animal as well. “No idea, it was down here when I came down here. Either it’s a stray, or Kisuke had a pet that we didn’t know about. Anyway, I assume you came to get me for breakfast?” he inquired.

The woman nodded and turned to leave, but the cat suddenly jumped off the rock, walked over, and leapt into Nel’s arms. The animal’s actions surprised the Arrancar, but she calmed down when the cat started snuggling into her arm.

“Well, it seems to be friendly.” Timothy commented as Nel started stroking the cat behind its ears.

“Yeah, it does. But…” she paused, then glanced to him. “…there’s something…about its eyes though.”

Timothy rose a brow. “Its eyes?”

She nodded, then looked at the cat as they started walking towards the ladder to the shop. “Yes, its eyes are…strangely familiar.”

He looked at the animal’s eyes as it looked back at him. “You’re right…oddly, the eyes ‘do’ look familiar. But, I mean, it’s just a cat.” He stated, get a nod of agreeance from Nel.

“Yeah, I guess I’m just imagining things.” She concluded, then began climbing the stairs as she tried to hold onto the weird animal.

Once they reached the top of the stairs, the cat leapt from Nel’s hold and strode over to the table, taking a seat on top of it.

“Sure seems like it thinks that it lives here…maybe Kisuke ‘does’ have a pet cat. That, or Yoruichi does.” Timothy remarked as he sat down in his normal spot, with Nel taking a seat next to him.

Kitsune then materialized sitting next to him and reached over to pour tea for the three of them.

“Speaking of Yoruichi…” Nel started, getting Timothy’s attention. She looked at him with a worried face. “…she wasn’t in her room, and she doesn’t seem to be here.” She informed.

Timothy turned back front as Kitsune set a cup in front of him. He scratched the side of his face as he pondered the woman’s statement.

“That’s odd, I was sure she’d be already doing, or saying something to embarrass the hell outta us.” He said in a low voice.

“Oh? So, you’re ready for the fun to begin already, are you?” a light, male voice asked.

Timothy, Nel, and Kitsune all looked around for the owner of the strange voice, and when finding no one around, to each other.

“Was that you?” Timothy inquired to Kitsune.

Her face dropped. “Really? Are you honestly asking if that weird voice came from me?” she asked in a displeased tone.

He turned over to Nel, who was shaking her head swiftly. “I didn’t say anything.” She informed.

Kitsune rose a confused brow. “Sooo…if we all heard it, but none of us said it…who did?” she wondered aloud.

“I did.” The same voice spoke again…from in front of them.

They all turned to see the black cat sitting in the middle of the table facing them. “Uh…I don’t wanna think I’m crazy or anything…but something is telling me that that cat said it.” Timothy stated in surprise.

The spirit glanced at him. “Neither do I…but I hate to admit that I’m starting to think the same thing.” She informed.

Nel turned to her in wonder. “But…cats can’t talk…” she started, then looked back at the animal curiously. “…can they?”

“Whoever said that I was a cat?” the voice suddenly said as the ‘cats’ jaw moved with the sounds.

The three of them froze in place, staring wide eyed at the weird animal. “Ok…I ‘have’ to be going crazy! Please tell me you two saw this…thing, talk!” Timothy pleaded, earning quick nods from the two women.

The ‘animal’ then chuckled. “Really, did you ‘have’ to resort to calling me a ‘thing’?” the animal asked, then sighed in defeat. “Oh well, I guess it’s time for the fun to begin.” It added, then started glowing a light-blue color.

“Uh…Tim?” Nel started in shock and worry.

They all watched as the animal slowly began to change shape and grow larger right in front of them; looking more and more humanistic in nature with each passing second.

Only five seconds from the time the transformation began, it ended. Everyone’s jaws dropped open when, instead of a small black cat sitting on the table, was now the form of Yoruichi sitting cross-legged with her hands on her knees…

…Completely, and utterly ‘naked’.

“W…what the fuck?!” Timothy blurted out as his face turned beat red.

Nel and Kitsune both found themselves frozen in complete shock with their jaws resting on the table, wide eyed, and blood leaking from their noses. The matter was only made so much worse when Yoruichi crossed her arms under her breasts, pushing them up, and readjusted her legs to where her feet were together, and her thighs spread out wide in a butterfly position.

The Arrancar and zanpakutō spirit had slightly off-angle views of the naked woman in front of them, with her legs at least obstructing their view of the woman’s ‘lower asset’. But Timothy, because the woman was facing him fully, had a very clear, and very ‘unobstructed’ view of ‘everything’.

Yoruichi grinned widely as she sat there in a very proud manner, watching as Timothy’s eyes slowly, and unintentionally, scanned her naked form from top to bottom closely, several times.

“Like what you see?” she taunted with a flash of her brows as she tightened and loosened her arms to cause her breasts to bounce a bit in her hold.

“W…w…what…” he tried to start, but his brain had already shut down on him and left him completely unable to do ‘anything’, but stare at the gorgeous woman in front of him.

In fact, he was so lost in shock, amazement, and many other emotions that flooded him, that he never even registered the sounds of two loud thumps from Nel and Kitsune’s bodies falling over and landing on the floor; both of them shocked out of consciousness, with Kitsune vanishing back into his inner world.

How Timothy had managed to remain awake longer than the two women next to him, Yoruichi would never know; but when she lowered her hands to her knees and pressed her legs wider as she leaned forward to his ear, whispering in her strongest, seductive voice, “Since you seem to be a master in this subject, perhaps ‘you’ could give me that ‘lesson’ on sex-ed, Tim. Why don’t you show me how it all works?”…it proved to be the breaking point.

A last, loud thump echoed in the room as Timothy’s, now unconscious, body fell forward; his head slamming onto the table only inches from the woman’s legs. The only other sound that came from the room, was the loud, victorious laughter from Yoruichi Shihōin.

“Going easy on them I see.” Another voice spoke up from behind the woman.

Yoruichi glance over her shoulder to see Kisuke standing in the doorway fanning himself with a smirk. The woman chuckled, then crossed her arms again.

“Hey, he wanted to play dirty, and who would I be if I turned such a challenge like that down?” she stated firmly.

The man glanced over to where Kitsune was sitting before she returned to Timothy’s inner world. “I’m afraid the phrase ‘two birds with one stone’ is a bit of an understatement in this situation.” He commented.

Yoruichi broke out in a brief laugh before answering. “I’m actually surprised it affected her like that. Nel, I can understand; but Kit, I never expected ‘her’ to fall victim as well. If anything, I thought she would join in on the fun. But, this is even better.” She admitted proudly.

Kisuke looked at his friend with concern. “You know those two are likely going to kill him for starting this, right?” he pointed out.

The woman simply shrugged a shoulder. “Serves him right for trying to challenge me. Maybe once they’re done with him he’ll learn to keep his mouth shut.”

The man grinned wider. “That, my dear friend, I have no doubt.” He returned, then took a seat at the table, pouring himself some tea.

** Timothy’s Inner World **

The Lieutenant’s eyes shot open and he quickly sat up in shock, breathing hysterically. Unfortunately, he was not given the chance to calm down, or even begin to try and recover from the nightmare he just witnessed, as Kitsune was immediately on top of him; her hands around his neck, trying to choke him, and her entire body covered in roaring flames.

She was beyond mad…she was ‘furious’!

“What have you done?! You just unleashed a fucking monster! How could you possibly be so fucking stupid, you damn moron?!” she yelled.

He quickly grabbed her hands to try and pry them off as he gagged. “I…I’m sor…sorry!” he yelled back through gasps of air.

“I’m going to kill you!” she yelled further, tightening her grip on his neck and shaking him vigorously.

He managed to turn enough to notice that ‘Johnny’ was standing a short distance away, also glaring at him in anger.

“H…Help…me!” he yelled to the other spirit.

“I am…on her side…this time.” He said in the evilest voice Timothy had ever heard.

He was furious as well.

“Do you have the slightest clue as to what you have done?! Forget Nel in that damn clothing, that fucking demon is a thousand times worse! I’ll take Nel over what I just witnessed every fucking day of the year! How could you do this to me?!” she yelled further, then moved her hands to grab the collar of his shihakusho and pull his face to hers; her with her pointed teeth bared. “You are so fucking dead, Tim! But not before I let Nel beat the living shit outta you for putting ‘her’ through that as well! And I’ll make damn sure she does!”

She then threw him back down to the ground, and quickly vanished. Taking a second to recover from the ‘new’ shock, Timothy propped himself up with his arms and looked at the other spirit.

“I screwed up big time…didn’t I?” he inquired rhetorically.

A disbelieving stare from the male spirit was the only answer he received. He finally let out a defeated sigh, then willed himself out of his inner world. But as he opened his eyes back in the real world, he instantly regretted that decision.

For what could be a worse thing to come back to the living after recent events, than to open your eyes to a crouching, still naked, Yoruichi with her large assets only a foot from your face?

“Oh? So, you’ve come back to us, have you?” she asked with a wide grin.

Timothy’s eyes shot wide open at the site in front of him…or rather, above him. He regretted the decision to come back from his inner world even more when he suddenly looked ‘up’ to see her ‘other asset’ mere inches from his head.

Yoruichi was quick to notice. “Enjoying the view again, are we?” she inquired with a wide, and very amused smile on her face.

His eyes rolled back into his head as once again lost consciousness.

“You’re dead!” a familiar, and very, ‘very’ pissed off voice sounded to his right.

“…I wanna die.” He whined the brief instant before Kitsune was, yet again, on top of him and squeezing the life from his throat.

** Nel’s Inner World, 3 Minutes Earlier **

Nel’s slowly opened her eyes to see herself in a wide open, grassy field with rolling hills in the distance in one direction, and tall mountains in the other. She immediately recognized this place as her inner world, even though she very seldom came here in the past.

“If you don’t kill that soul reaper, ‘I’ will.” The familiar voice of Gamuza stated from her left.

The woman turned to the centaur-like spirit of her hollow powers with a frown on her face. “I don’t want to hurt him…but after what he caused last night, I almost want to agree with you, Gamuza.”

The hollow crossed her arms tightly with a huff. “I don’t care whether you agree with me or not. I could care less about what just happened, hell, that damn woman has absolutely no shame in doing what she did; but that damn soul reaper that you, for some stupid reason, care so much about caused you a great deal of…discomfort, to say the least. In the very least, he needs to be severely punished for trying to pick a fight against someone he ‘should’ have known he couldn’t win against, and causing ‘you’ to suffer for it. I honestly can’t believe you could possibly have any feelings, or whatever, for something like that?” she mocked.

Nel clenched her fists tightly at her sides as she grinded her teeth in anger, but she swiftly took a deep, calming breath and loosened her hands.

“I am not going to get into this with you again, Gamuza. I care for Tim, I ‘do’ have feelings for him, and I plan to ‘continue’ looking into these feelings more. Nothing you say, or do, is going to change that. I’ll gladly admit that what he did last night was nothing short of stupidity, but we both know that he was ‘not’ doing it to make things worse; he did it to try and ‘stop’ any further teasing from that damn demon. It was nothing more than a risk he took…”

“That failed miserably.” Gamuza interrupted in a hissing voice. “Like I said, he’s nothing but a stupid, pitiful soul reaper.”

Nel again clenched her fists. “Knock it off, Gamuza. What happened was a mistake, one than I’m ‘sure’ he is now greatly regretting. Why can’t you just accept that Tim is going to be a part of our lives from now on? Why can’t you just get along with him?” she growled as she threw her hands to her sides.

Gamuza narrowed her glare at her ‘partner’. “Need I remind you, that the ‘only’ reason the brat is still breathing is because ‘I’ am ‘letting’ him. There was nothing you could have done to stop me before, and there is nothing you can do now to prevent me from killing him. You want me to ‘get along’ with ‘him’? Sorry Nelliel, but I seriously doubt that’s going to happen. I have been graciously sitting by and letting you keep on with these ‘feelings’ of yours, so you can discover for yourself how foolish it is to even ‘consider’ that an Arrancar and a soul reaper could ever be together.”

The hollow then planted her hands on her ‘hips’. “You are a hollow, and ‘he’ is a soul reaper. You two are natural enemies, nothing more. It is the natural ‘law’ of the world that you two are to be enemies; to ‘kill’ each other. Not damn well ‘love’ each other. Why can’t you realize that everything you’re feeling towards him is nothing more than the faux human side of you; the side of you that the Hōgyoku forced upon you against your will? Do you honestly believe that he could protect you when the damn soul society discovers you? Sure, he may ‘try’ to, even I can see that he would; but he will fail, and you will be destroyed, like a common enemy that they know you to be. There’s nothing more to it, Nelliel. Accept that!” the spirit growled.

Nel turned her body a bit and pointed at the essence of her powers. “Listen here Gamuza, for this is the ‘last’ time I will tell you this.” She hissed back in a dangerous voice, causing the hollow to raise a brow in surprise.

In all of the years since Aizen used the Hōgyoku to ‘split’ them apart, therefor giving Gamuza an existence, Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck had never once talked to the spirit in that way. She had always been calm and caring toward Gamuza, even if she was very upset or angry. But now, the spirit saw for the first time, the woman, her partner, was mad.

“I don’t give a shit what you think, or how you feel towards Tim.” she continued, surprising the spirit yet again. The woman had also never cursed at her like that before. “Regardless of what you say or do, I will ‘not’ leave him. Yes, he made a stupid, idiotic mistake last night, but I will forgive him. True, he will likely ‘not’ be able to fully protect me from the soul society, and that I will eventually be discovered and executed by them.” She dropped her hand and crossed her arms with a firm glare; something that the hollow had no idea that she was even capable of.

But none of that matters to me, because, unlike anyone else we have ‘ever’ come across, ‘he’ cares for us. ‘Us’, not me, ‘us’, Gamuza! Do you have ‘any’ idea how much it hurt him when he found out that you were gone? How relieved he was when I finally got you back? Do you even have the slightest idea ‘why’ he felt like that at those times? Obviously, you don’t, Gamuza. Would you like to know why?”

The hollow scoffed and crossed her arms as well. “Oh please, ‘do’ enlighten me, miss Nelliel.” She snapped back.

Nel dropped her arms to her sides. “It’s because he not only cares about me…he also cares about ‘you’!” she yelled as she pointed at the spirit, causing her to raise a brow. “You, a being who he is well aware that wants to kill him!” She dropped her hand and crossed her arms again with a disappointed stare. “I can’t believe you, Gamuza. Here is someone that is doing so much for us, yet all you can do is show nothing but hatred towards him. I am well aware that you are my basic instincts in a physical form, but no one could possibly be that naïve. If anything…”

She paused and shook her head slowly with a heavy sigh. “…I’m completely disappointed with you, Gamuza. You are supposed to be a part of me, supposed to at least feel some of the things that I feel; yet, you seem to be nothing more than my exact opposite.” She paused again and looked the spirit in the ‘eyes’. “I’m telling you this now, Gamuza, and I strongly suggest you take it to heart; Tim and I have feelings for each other, whether you agree with it or not. I am going to pursue those feelings, and I am going to be ‘happy’ while doing so. I do ‘not’ want to be a monster that does nothing but devour souls anymore; I want to put all that behind me and live the normal life of a human. If you can’t agree to that, then that is ‘your’ problem.” She concluded, then turned to walk away.

She took only a few steps, before she stopped and lowered her head, making the hollow tilt her head. “Don’t speak to me again…Gamuza.” She said in a low, and reluctant voice, causing the spirit’s eyes to widen behind her mask.

“Excuse me?!” Gamuza demanded.

Nel turned and tilted her head to look at the essence of her powers with remorse. “I am Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck, the essence of Loyalty; and as I have said before, my loyalty is not with ‘you’…it is with ‘Tim’. I am so happy to have you back, Gamuza, I honestly am; but until you can get over your hatred towards the, as you say, ‘stupid and pathetic soul reaper’, I don’t want you to say a single word to me, nor do I want anything to do with you. I’ve finally found something that will fill the emptiness I’ve felt my entire life, to make me happy again, and I will not allow you to take it away from me; even if it means that I have to deny your existence within me.” She said, then turned back front with her head held low.

The spirit’s teeth clenched behind her mask as she growled in fury. “I see…fine then. If that is how you wish to be, Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck, then so be it. Do not bother to call upon me for your powers again, for I will not answer. Until ‘you’ can come back to your senses, and realize the error of ‘your’ stupid ways, I shall not respond to your call. When that day finally comes, I’ll be right here, waiting for your apology.”

Silence fell upon the two beings for a moment, until a lone tear fell down the side of Nel’s cheek. “Goodbye…Gamuza.” She said in a whisper, then left her inner world.

** Real World, Present **

Nel opened her eyes to find herself looking sideways at the sitting form of Kisuke at the table in front of her. Pushing herself up, she looked over to where Timothy was supposed to be to see him out cold with Yoruichi, again still naked, crouching over him, smiling seductively at her.

“Welcome back, Nel. Ready for more?” she inquired with her suggestive voice.

The Arrancar looked down at Timothy for a moment, then turned back and slowly rose to her feet. Yoruichi grinned more, and stood up as well.

“What? Done already?” she pressed.

She was instantly silenced when Nel exerted her full spiritual pressure on the woman with fists held at her sides. Although the gigai that she was in would completely hide all spiritual pressure from its occupant, making that person basically invisible to being sensed, it didn’t stop the pressure if it was forcibly pushed out by that person.

“I am ‘not’…in the mood right now…Yoruichi.” She warned in a low, and dangerous voice, surprising the other woman and shop keeper. “I am going out for a while…” she started, then turned to Kisuke with fury in her eyes. “…and you ‘will not’ stop me.” She finished.

Both former Captains were a bit shocked from her very sudden, and drastic change in personality. Kisuke lowered his fan enough for her to see his face fully with a bit of concern written on it.

“Are you sure that’s wise, miss Nel?” he inquired.

Her pressure didn’t let up as she directed it at the man fully to show that she didn’t care whether it was or wasn’t.

She needed to spend some, very much needed, time to think things over about her ‘conversation’ with Gamuza; and the last place she wanted to be to do so was at the shop, or anywhere near Yoruichi or Kisuke.

In fact, she knew that, with how furious she was at the moment, a single comment, even a simple wrong look, could easily set her off and cause her to attack one of her two friends. That was the last thing she wanted, and she knew the best way to calm down was to simply leave the area. The next last thing she wanted, was for Timothy to see her in that state.

“Very well, miss Nel. But under one condition…” the shop owner stated, getting the woman to draw her pressure back in.

“What is that?” she inquired, not changing her tone with the man.

The man pulled out a cell phone and held it out to her. “You take this with you. Tim’s number is programed into the speed dial, so if you run into any trouble, just give him a call.”

She stared at him for a moment, but finally gave in and took the small device from the man before walking towards the door.

“And what should we tell Tim when he wakes up and you’re not here, miss Nel? You know full well he’s not going to take your sudden disappearance very well.” he inquired further, causing her to stop.

“Tell him I’m fine, and I just went for a walk. I will be back later, and do ‘not’ try to come find me.” She instructed, then walked out of the shop.

Yoruichi and Kisuke stared at the door for a moment longer, until Yoruichi sat down across from him, with Timothy still unconscious on the floor next to her.

“Somehow, I don’t think that was the result of my teasing, Kisuke.” The woman stated.

The man glanced at her with concern. “I doubt that as well, Yoruichi. If I had to guess, I would imagine that miss Nel and her hollow spirit got into another argument. That’s the only logical conclusion I can think of at the moment; and with how…touchy…the subject of her relationship with Tim is between them, it only serves to support that conclusion.”

The woman rose a brow. “What do you mean? If I’m not mistaken, Nel was very happy to have her powers back.”

Kisuke nodded. “Indeed, however, Gamuza was very displeased that miss Nel ‘abandoned’ Aizen in order to be with Tim.”

Yoruichi’s eyes widened in disbelief. “That’s stupid, Kisuke. Considering that Gamuza can see and hear everything around Nel, just like a soul reaper’s zanpakutō spirit can, Gamuza should be very well aware as to what happened to make her leave…actually, discarded is the better word in this case.”

“I agree. However, I must remind you that Gamuza is Nel’s basic instincts. Since her aspect of death is Loyalty, and her and Nel’s entire being revolves around that aspect, Gamuza views ‘Nel’ as the traitor, not Aizen. As I said, Gamuza believes that miss Nel left Aizen for Tim, and she actually wants to kill him for it; from what I heard between the two of them the other day. I’m willing to bet that Gamuza made similar comments again just now, and that made miss Nel quite angry. Seeing how much she cares for Tim, I seriously doubt miss Nel is willing take threats to his life, even from her own hollow spirit, lightly.” He pointed out.

The woman turned her gaze back to the front door and crossed her arms under her still exposed breasts. “You do have a point, Kisuke. Although, I wonder what that could mean between them; Nel and her hollow spirit. If the soul reaper and the zanpakutō are not in harmony with each other, that soul reaper can’t use his zanpakutō’s abilities. I’m not sure that it works the same way with Arrancars and their hollow spirits, but I can imagine that it wouldn’t be good to be on bad terms with them.”

Kisuke nodded. “I can’t say that I know the answer to that either, my friend. But I ‘can’ agree with you that if the two of them do have a falling out, it can’t be good. I can tell you now that miss Nel’s hollow spirit is quite powerful. Even without her powers at the time, miss Nel was still the former Quinto Espada, so she was not ‘weak’ in any regards. Yet, she was still completely unable to lay even a single scratch on the spirit when they fought. We both know full well what happens when Ichigo loses control of his inner hollow, so I don’t want to even imagine what would happen if miss Nel’s hollow spirit took over her; which ‘is’ a possibility. Personally, I would imagine that Ichigo’s inner hollow, and miss Nel’s hollow spirit are essentially the same thing.”

Yoruichi glanced at the man cautiously. “So, you’re saying it might be possible that Gamuza could take over Nel’s body, like Ichigo’s inner hollow did with his in the soul society?” she asked in worry.

The man shrugged a shoulder. “Like I said, it is a possibility. I simply don’t have enough data to come to a solid conclusion on the matter. The subject of Arrancars in general is still a fresh one; one that, even ‘I’, don’t have all of the necessary information on. There are a number of possibilities with what could happen in miss Nel’s case. For now, I’d recommend that we proceed cautiously around her; at least until I can come to a better understanding about her. I know you are not going to like it, and to be honest, I’ll be a little disappointed as well, but I would strongly suggest that you back off of her with your…usual ways.”

He then snapped his fan shut. “If it is indeed the case, and Gamuza ‘can’ take over her body and soul, then the last thing we want to do is to push her over the edge and ‘give’ Gamuza a reason to take over. I think we need to let her and Tim figure this out on their own, and sit back and keep an eye on the situation.” He advised.

Yoruichi moanfully sighed in defeat. “You are such a killjoy, Kisuke. You really expect me to let Tim off the hook so easily after he openly challenged me last night?”

Kisuke grinned at her. “I did say that I knew you wouldn’t like it.”

The woman growled, then threw her hand at him. “Fine. I’ll back off.” She said with a pout, then quickly lit up when something came to her. She turned back to her friend with a raised brow. “But, Ichigo is still fair game, right?” she inquired hopefully.

The shop owner swiftly waved his fan at her with a wide smile. “Of course, of course! What kind of a person would I be to deny my best friend the opportunity to ‘entertain’ her favorite pupil?!” he half asked in glee, earning an amused grin from the golden-eyed woman.

“That’s just what I wanted to hear, Kisuke.”

** 30 Minutes Later **

Timothy let out a low moan as he brought a hand up to his head, rubbing his palm against his temple before slowly opening his eyes to look at the ceiling. Instantly remembering what happened the last time he opened his eyes, he quickly shut them back again.

He flinched when he heard a light laugh behind him…or was it above him with the way he was laying on the floor? He wasn’t sure, and at that moment, he really didn’t care. After nearly being killed twice by asphyxiation, complements of Kitsune, in his inner world, the last thing he needed was ‘another reason’ for her to begin round three.

“You can relax, Tim; I’ve got clothes on now. Though, how long they ‘stay’ on is up to you.” The golden-eyed demon teased.

The Lieutenant growled as he pushed himself up to a sitting position with his back to her, not trusting a word she said. The little voice in the back of his head was screaming at him that her words were just a ploy to get him to turn around for another ‘viewing’.

“Shut up, Yoruichi. You win, I shouldn’t have gone there with you. Happy now?” he said in a reluctant voice.

The woman’s smile morphed into a small grin. “I am now. But, I will give you some credit, you ‘did’ last a bit longer than I thought you would. Guess it wasn’t all talk when you told Ichigo that you’re not much of a prude. If it were him, he would have been out before I could even say a word.” She assured.

He waved her off over his shoulder. “Yeah yeah, whatever. So, are you ‘really’ clothed now?” he inquired.

“She is, Tim. Don’t worry, you’re safe now.” Kisuke said in a voice that would be used to calm a child.

Timothy glared at him evilly. “I swear Kisuke, I will jump over this fucking table and strangle your ass if you use that voice with me again.” He hissed in a very firm tone.

The shop owner opened his fan and covered the grin that formed on his mouth. “Calm down, Tim. Yoruichi ‘really’ has her clothes on, and it’s safe to turn around.” He assured in a normal, yet still amused voice.

The Lieutenant glared at him for a moment longer, but finally sighed and turned to face the table. Hesitating at first, for good reason, he slowly turned his head to see Yoruichi sitting down next to where Kitsune was earlier; indeed, with her clothes on.

He mentally breathed a sigh of relief, along with Kitsune and ‘Johnny’. “Oh, come on, Tim. I know for a fact that this wasn’t the first time you’ve seen a naked woman, yet you’re still worrying about it?”

The man narrowed his gaze at her dangerously. “Right now, it’s not you I’m worried about. That damn vixen just tried to kill me…twice.” He said as he held two fingers up to emphasize his point.

The woman snickered at him. “To be honest, I’m actually surprised that affected her that badly. So, what, she took her anger out on you?” she inquired with amusement, pointing at the red marks around his neck in the perfect shape of hands.

He brought a hand up to his neck and started massaging it. “Damn right she did…wait…” He paused when his neck felt real tender and painful. “…How the hell is my neck sore right now? She attacked me in my inner world, not here.” He wondered.

“That’s actually very simple, Tim.” Kisuke alerted, getting his attention. “As you are aware, any damage you receive to your spiritual body, will transfer over to your gigai when you get inside it, right?” he said, getting a nod. “Well, it’s exactly the same thing between your spiritual body, and your soul. If you were to receive any damage while inside your inner world, that damage will transfer over to your spiritual body. Obviously, Kit gave you a…not so friendly hug with her hands, and the result of that is now on your spiritual body. But don’t worry, damage to the soul tends to heal faster than damage to the body.” He reassured.

Timothy rubbed his neck more with a sigh and nod. “Yeah…she was a…little pissed about that; so was ‘Johnny’ for that matter. At least he didn’t get involved in my ass whooping. You’d probably be digging a grave right about now if he did.”

“Johnny’?” Yoruichi inquired.

Kisuke side glanced her. “He’s Tim’s other zanpakutō spirit. Tim is, to my knowledge, the only soul reaper in existence that possesses two ‘different’ zanpakutō spirits; Kit, and ‘Johnny’, who has not revealed his name yet. Which reminds me…” the man paused to look back at Timothy. “…Any progress on that matter?” he inquired.

“Some, but not quite there yet. ‘Johnny’ did say that I’m ‘nearly’ ready to learn his name though.” He informed.

Something then clicked in his head as he suddenly noticed something, or someone, was missing. He turned to his right to see that Nel was gone, and a quick glance around the corner allowed him to see that her bedroom door was open and the room empty.

“Where’s Nel?” he inquired as he turned back to Kisuke with a raised brow.

His and Yoruichi’s faces dropped a bit, causing Timothy to start fretting a bit. “I’m afraid miss Nel went for…a little walk a short while ago, Tim.” the man answered.

Timothy’s eyes widened a bit in worry. “You let her leave on her own? I’m sure she can handle herself, but if something ‘does’ happen, she’s not going to be able to defend herself without leaving her gigai and exposing herself.”

Kisuke gave him a serious stare. “Considering the mood she was in at the moment Tim, letting her leave to walk it off was actually the best idea at the time.” He stated.

The younger man rose a dangerous brow. “What do you mean ‘the mood she was in at the moment’? Just ‘what’ mood was she in? What the hell did you two do now?” he demanded.

Yoruichi held up a calming hand. “Woah, slow down there, Tim. We don’t think it was actually ‘us’ that caused it this time.” She assured.

He gave her a side glance. “What do you mean?”

“The truth is, Tim, that after you passed out the second time, miss Nel woke back up; and she was furious.” Kisuke said.

“At?” Timothy pressed, keeping his glare on Yoruichi.

The man started fanning himself calmly. “Seeing as she didn’t say anything to alert us as to what was bothering her, we can only offer an educated guess.”

Timothy slammed a fist on the table, causing the, still full, cup in front on the shop owner to spill over. He then glared at the man furiously.

“In case you haven’t realized it yet, Kisuke, I’ve had a rather bad morning, and I don’t want to deal with your mind games right now. So, quit running my ass in circles, and get to the damn point!” he yelled.

Kisuke’s eyes lowered to the spilt cup, then back to him a second later. “I believe that miss Nel may have had a very unfriendly conversation with her hollow spirit. Considering how her hollow spirit feels towards you, as I explained to Yoruichi, Gamuza may have said something about you that caused miss Nel to become quite furious with her. But, again, this is only a speculation. Until miss Nel calms down and decides to tell us in person, we cannot say for sure what has made her so upset.”

He reached down and set the cup back down on its base. “However, judging by her sudden change in personality, I ‘can’ say that what Yoruichi did was ‘not’ the full cause of her anger. But, you don’t need to worry, Tim; she does have a cell phone with her, and she agreed to call you if something was to happen. For right now, I think it would be best to let her be for now.”

Lowering his head, Timothy started rubbing his temples slowly, and vigorously with a low moan. “Why can’t things just be simple once in a damn while? Why is it that ‘everything’ has to be so fucking complicated?” he whined.

It was at this time the Toshiro and the rest of the team walked into the shop in their gigais. Yoruichi waved at the group with a small smile.

“Morning guys.” She greeted, getting waves and nods back.

“Morning, Yoruichi. How you been?” Rangiku asked joyfully.

The golden-eyed woman gave her a shrug. “I’ve been. You guys here for your morning training?” she inquired.

Toshiro nodded, then looked down to see an expression of distress on Timothy’s face. “Something happen, Lieutenant?” he asked.

Timothy lifted his head from his hand and gave the shorter man a deadpanned look. “Don’t. Ask.” He instructed firmly.

The Captain rose a brow, but nodded at him. “Very well. Are you ready to begin training this morning?”

The Lieutenant sighed heavily as he dropped his hand to his lap. “I guess I’m as ready as I can be at the moment.” He answered.

“Good. Then let’s head downstairs and begin.” The Captain concluded, and started walking towards the hatch to the basement.


	24. Moving Forward

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 24

**(Moving Forward)**

** Karakura Town, 1 Hour Later **

Nel stood there silently, in an all too familiar park, looking at a spot that was just as familiar. It was the spot where everything started, the exact spot where she had thrown herself in front of an attack from an Adjuchas that was meant for Timothy. The place where he and her first met.

As she stood there, with her arms crossed and a fallen expression on her face, she ran through all of the events that had occurred since that day; and even before that. The most notable thought was when she had lost Gamuza, or thought she did.

She remembered that, back then, she would have done anything to have her back. To be able to talk with her again. The spirit was her other half, pretty much literally. She was a part of Nel, and Nel of her.

But ever since Kisuke had her use that device of his to force Gamuza into the real world, bit by bit the two of them steadily grew apart. And it all came down to one thing, one person: Timothy.

Gamuza simply despised him, but Nel, a little to her embarrassment, cherished him. She cared for him, was in the process of discovering feelings for him, and if Yoruichi and Kitsune’s words were actually true, possibly even ‘loved’ him.

And Gamuza, she hated him because he was an ‘enemy’. The spirit just adamantly refused to even consider giving him a chance. And it was plain and simple when she and Gamuza fought, when the spirit stated she was going to kill him. Nel knew it, could literally see it in her eyes, that Gamuza was actually going to kill him.

Nel would have done anything, risked anything, in order to get Gamuza back. And here she stood, only three days after she had done so, and she had already tossed her aside; all because she wanted to protect him, because she cared for him.

And it all scared her. Not because she essentially left Gamuza, although it did pain her greatly; no, she was scared the most because she didn’t feel any remorse towards it. Leaving Gamuza hurt her, but for some reason, she just couldn’t feel any regret about making that choice.

It was as if she had cared more about Timothy than she did for her own hollow spirit; a part of her. Did her action towards Gamuza mean that it was true? Did she really care more about Timothy than the hollow spirit? What other explanations for her actions could there be?

With a heavy sigh, the woman sat down, resting her hands in her lap as she looked up at the clouds. They were a tad grey, and covered the majority of the sky; telling her that it was likely to rain soon.

But at the moment, she really didn’t care. Not only was she thinking about her and Gamuza’s interaction earlier, but she was also trying to figure out how it would affect her in the future.

Now that she basically cut Gamuza off, therefor cutting off her own powers, she was now, except for her core hollow abilities and a couple of her special attributes, essentially useless. She could defend herself against typical hollows and Gillians, maybe a few Adjuchas, and lower ranking soul reapers, but that was basically it.

If the soul society found out about her, there was really nothing she could do. She would have to rely on Timothy to help her, and it made her feel like nothing more than a burden to him; something that she absolutely hated.

Taking a deep breath, Nel lowered her head to see the trees nearby. “What do I do now?” she asked in a whisper.

“Well, talking about it would be a start.” A familiar female voice stated behind her.

Nel gave an annoyed sigh, but didn’t turn to face the person when she responded. “Did you not get the hint that I was not in the mood earlier, Yoruichi?” she inquired.

Behind her, the said, golden-eyed woman stood a few yards away from the Arrancar with her arms crossed; a calm and concerned look on her face.

“I’m aware that you’re in a foul mood, Nel; but even though I like to tease most of the time, I can be someone who will listen to what others have to say, and can even give some good advice. So, what do ya say? Care to use an extra set of ears and talk about what’s bothering you?” the former Captain offered.

The Arrancar glanced over her shoulder at the woman with a skeptical look. “Why should I trust you to listen to what I have to say? For all you know, it could be ‘you’ I’m angry at.”

Yoruichi shrugged a shoulder. “That’s true, it ‘could’ be me that you’re angry at. But we both know that that’s not the case this time. I’m gonna take a guess that it has to do with your hollow spirit?”

Nel’s brow rose in surprise. “And how would you know? I don’t recall saying anything about it before I left the shop.”

The older woman walked up and stopped next to her. “Kisuke thought it might be the case. He said that your hollow spirit seems to have it out for Tim, for some reason or another. So, judging by your reaction, I’m guessing Kisuke had the right conclusion?”

The former Espada stared at the woman standing above her for a moment, but eventually turned back to the trees and nodded.

“He is. I can’t understand why, but Gamuza just won’t give him a chance to prove himself. Just because he’s a soul reaper, she absolutely hates him, and wants to kill him. Tim has done nothing wrong, and I have pointed it out to her several times, but she just won’t accept it.” She informed, then sighed and dropped her head. “That’s why…I choose to leave her.”

Yoruichi rose both brows in surprise. “You left your own hollow spirit? What exactly do you mean, Nel?” she asked carefully, then sat down next to the other woman.

“Just as I said; I told Gamuza that I wanted nothing to do with her, until she can accept that she will have to get along with Tim, and accept that he is going to be a part of our lives from now on. And I really don’t want to admit it, but I don’t think that is ever going to happen.” She paused to look at the woman next to her with a saddened face. “Gamuza will never accept Tim, she is always going to hate him, simply ‘because’ he’s a soul reaper.”

She pulled her knees to her chest and rested her chin on them with a deep breath. “I didn’t want to choose between them, Yoruichi; but Gamuza left me with no choice. What’s worse is…I don’t feel guilty for choosing Tim over her. I had thought that…I would feel regret for abandoning my hollow spirit for him, for a soul reaper. But I don’t. I don’t feel…anything. I know that it’s because I ‘do’ have feelings for him, but…” Her voice locked up as she gripped her legs tighter.

Yoruichi maintained a neutral face as she nodded. “But you had no idea that they were ‘that’ deep, so to say?” she filled in.

Nel nodded gently. “Yeah…And now that I’ve made my choice, now I feel like I’ve become a burden to him. Without Gamuza, I’m pretty much useless to everyone. Sure, I can still use ceros, sonído, pesquisa, and my Cero Doble; but that’s it. I feel that…all I’m going to end up doing is holding everyone back.”

The former Captain nodded in understanding. “I see what you mean, and I can understand why you would feel that way; but I think that either you’re choosing not to see it, or you’re just too lost in your thoughts to see it.”

The Arrancar turned her head to the woman. “What is that?” she asked.

Yoruichi rested a hand on her shoulder. “The fact that Tim would never see you as a burden. Everyone can see that. Sure, you might be a little handicapped, or whatever, because of the situation between you and Gamuza, but Tim, nor any of us for that matter, would view you as a burden. I won’t lie and tell you that some of the situations that you being here have caused are not an inconvenience; but you are by no means a burden to us. Are you sure that you and Gamuza can’t come to some sort of compromise in regards to Tim?”

Nel shook her head. “No. After the ultimatum that I gave her, there is no way she will ever allow us to even be near each other. She almost tried to kill him once, and with the condition Tim was in at the time, she would have easily succeeded. It’s simple Yoruichi, it was either Gamuza, or Tim. And I chose Tim.” she stated as tears began to form in her eyes; the severity of the situation finally hitting her.

The golden-eyed woman smiled a bit, but not in her usual, suggestive manner that was normal for her, but rather a kind, and warming smile that was meant to comfort, instead of tease.

“Nel, my girl, there’s really no point in hiding anything now. If you had chosen to ‘abandon’ your own hollow spirit, essentially your powers as well, in order to stay with Tim, then you very clearly have deep feelings for him. It’s especially the case if you are feeling no guilt for making that decision. And I’m not saying this to make fun of you or anything like that, but to point it out to you so you don’t get confused about it later; or even have doubt about those feelings. However, you should never just give up on trying to compromise with Gamuza. I’m sure that she’ll ‘eventually’ at least come to accept that he’s going to be around from now on.” Yoruichi comforted.

Nel gave her a serious look. “Gamuza is extremely stubborn, Yoruichi; she has always been that way. If she has her mind set on something, nothing, sometimes not even myself, can change her mind. If she is this adamant about killing him, even with the threat of leaving her, nothing will change it. She will not be happy, unless Tim is dead, and it is as simple as that. And I refuse to allow that to happen. That is the whole reason ‘why’ I left her. I will not let her harm him.” She declared as a few tears ran down her cheeks.

She turned her head away and sniffed. “Please…don’t mention this to Tim. We both know he would be very upset with this whole thing. And I don’t want him to worry about me when he has far more important things to worry about.” She asked.

Yoruichi gave her a gentle pat on the back. “You don’t have to worry, Nel, I’m not going to say anything. It’s not really my business to do so. But take my advice when I say that keeping this a secret from him will not end peacefully. You know that he’s going to eventually find out, or at least start piecing it together. And when he does, he will likely be very upset with you for keeping something important like that from him.”

Nel swiftly looked at her. “That may be true, but like I said, he has far more important things to worry about, and I can’t be one of them. I will tell him eventually, but right now is just very simply not the time. And just so you know, the only reason I am even still around and have not just left is because I know how much it would hurt him. I know that, if I did leave, he would drop everything, regardless of what it was, to come find me again.”

The woman lowered her head as more tears fell. “I can’t believe has stupidly ironic it is, Yoruichi; that ‘I’ am the aspect of Loyalty, yet Tim is the one who is showing more of it than I. He has ‘proved’ to be more loyal than I could ever be.”

Yoruichi lightly scoffed in humor, then started ruffling the hair on the top of the Arrancar’s head. “I wouldn’t exactly say ‘that’, Nel. You seem to have quite a bit of ‘loyalty’ to him when you willingly throw your own powers aside to stay with him. If you don’t consider ‘that’ loyalty, then your standards are ridiculously high.” She stated firmly, then dropped her hand.

“Yoruichi.” She called in a low and depressing tone.

“Yeah?”

Nel looked at her with a serious face. “Please…be honest with me; with everything considered, what I am, ‘who’ I am, you guys, this whole situation with Aizen…do you think…I’m making the right choice?” Yoruichi eyes widened a bit at her question, causing the Arrancar to turn away. “I mean…helping you guys, who are supposed to be my enemy, feeling the way I do for someone that I’m supposed to hate, just…everything. Am I really making the right choices…or am I just being a naïve woman who is doing nothing but making bad decisions?”

Yoruichi watched the woman closely, trying to discern if she was being serious. “Why exactly are you asking that? Are you regretting everything that’s happened so far? You regretting having feelings for Tim?” she asked cautiously.

The former Espada didn’t answer, but only tightened her grip around her legs. “Nel, I mean it. Why are you asking me that question? Are you feeling guilty for the decisions you’ve made so far, joining with us?” the former Captain pressed harder and firmer, now with a serious look on her face.

“I don’t…I don’t know.” Nel answered in a broken voice. “This is going against ‘everything’ that I have known my entire life, as far as I can remember. A deep part of me is telling me that I’m doing the wrong thing, that I am nothing more than a traitor. But another part of me is yelling, screaming at me that I ‘am’ doing the right thing. I feel so divided…confused. I hate fighting…I just can’t stand it. I would like nothing better than to never have to fight again. But I can’t just sit around and do nothing while everyone close to me ‘is’ fighting for what they want.”

She then buried his face into her knees. “I feel as if I’m fighting for the wrong side…but I also feel glad for doing so. And you’re right, I can’t deny that I have feelings for Tim; but I also feel that I’m supposed to hate him. When I defended Tim against that Adjuchas, and against Yammy, I felt relieved that Tim was safe; but I also felt horrible for fighting against those who are supposed to be my allies. And Gamuza is only making it all worse. She’s making me feel that I am nothing more than a pathetic traitor. I’m so confused, Yoruichi.”

The woman looked up at the former Captain. “Please…I’m asking you as a friend…tell me what I am supposed to do, Yoruichi. Is fighting alongside you, Kisuke, Tim, and the others the right choice…or am I really just a traitor?” she pleaded.

Yoruichi stared at the tear-stricken woman with a pang of pity. Her entire life as a soul reaper she had been taught that hollows, regardless of class, were supposed to be emotionless creatures; even though Adjuchas and Vasto Lorde did have some sense of humanity in them. But what Nel was showing right in front of her, threw all of that out the window.

She knew after the first few days that Nel was a bit more sensitive than she would have thought possible for an Arrancar, especially an Espada; but the woman was literally breaking down in tears right in front of her.

“Nel…” Yoruichi started, then crossed her arms loosely. “…I’m going to tell you this, not as a soul reaper, former or otherwise, to an Arrancar, or even as a woman to another woman, but instead as a friend to a friend, and you can trust me on this when I say I know what you mean; choosing sides in a fight, war, or anything, is not simple. It is not ‘always’ going to be good and bad, right and wrong. Sometimes, both sides are wrong; both sides are bad. That’s why there’s the term, ‘the lesser of two evils’. That’s not exactly the case here, as it’s quite evident that Aizen’s intentions, whatever they may be, are wrong; but the phrase still stands.”

She rested a hand on the Arrancar’s shoulder, gripping it gently. “It doesn’t matter what the situation is Nel, if you do something, anything, that’s not natural, or that goes against what you’ve been taught, it’s going to feel wrong. I already heard the story behind why you left Hueco Mundo, and why Aizen tried to kill you; but let me ask you something, Nel.”

The woman nodded. “Why did you feel the way you did when you saw that footage of Tim’s fight, and after Aizen told you what he did to him and his wife? What exactly ‘did’ you feel about the whole thing?” Yoruichi asked.

Nel dropped her head again. “I felt horrible…That what Aizen did was nothing but just sheer cruelty. There was no reason for him to do what he did. If he had simply killed them, then it would have been understandable; but to do something so inhumane…it was just wrong, regardless of what side you fought for. Even though, at the time, I thought his ambitions were just, I just…I just couldn’t stand to serve someone who could do something like that. It felt so wrong. And when I saw the look on his face when he told us what he did…”

She paused a moment and Yoruichi could see her gripping her sleeves so tightly that her knuckles were turning white.

“I saw no remorse…no regret for what he did in his eyes. In fact…he was ‘happy’ he did it. And I knew, at that point, that his cold actions were not going to stop there. I realized right then and there exactly who he was…what he was. We hollows are viewed as monsters to you soul reapers, but if ‘anyone’ is a true monster…it’s Aizen. At that point…I didn’t care who I fought for…what side I fought on…as long as it wasn’t for him. I didn’t want to be a part of his cruelty anymore. And after…”

Nel stopped and sniffed before slowly continuing. “After what he did…made ‘me’ do…to Pesche and Dondochakka…it was too much…It showed me that that man’s cruelty truly had no bounds. That he would literally do ‘anything’ to get what he wanted. I’m glad that I’m no longer with him. But…” She raised her head to look at the trees again, her face now soaked. “…would it have been better to just stay out of this? Was joining you guys the right choice? Am I really as naïve as Gamuza claims I am to have feelings for Tim? Was choosing to leave her for Tim the right decision?”

Yoruichi sighed heavily and shook her head. “Wow…you’re dumber than I thought.” She remarked, causing the Arrancar to look at her in confusion.

“What?” Nel asked in shock.

“You’re dumb, for thinking like that.” The golden-eyed woman stated again. “Obviously you’re gonna feel out of place for switching sides, that’s a given. And yeah, you ‘are’ going to be viewed as a traitor to those you used to be with. But, the point is that you’re doing what you feel to be right in your heart. You felt that Tim had been through enough in his life, and didn’t deserve to be killed by that Adjuchas; hence why you saved him.” She pointed out, then looked at the woman in disbelief.

“You felt that Aizen deserved to be punished for what he did, and what he’s doing, so you made the choice to join us to make that happen. You made the choice that felt right inside; so that doesn’t make you naïve, but instead, genuine. You chose to fight for what you believed in; and, in my opinion, and I know Tim would agree with this, is always the right choice.”

The woman wrapped an arm around the former Espada’s shoulders, pulling her into a side hug, shocking the woman. “You’re a good person, Nel; regardless if you’re a hollow, or Arrancar, whatever. Even if you may think or feel that it’s odd to fight on the ‘wrong side’; all that matters, is that you followed your heart. And as long as you two care for each other deep enough, then it shouldn’t matter that you’re an Arrancar and Tim a soul reaper. I won’t deny that you two having a relationship is going to be tough, to say the least; but as long as you two are ‘really’ willing to see it through, then you can make it happen. You just gotta have faith in each other.” She concluded.

Nel’s shoulders trembled, before she turned her body and wrapped both arms around the other woman’s waist, resting her head against the woman’s chest.

“Thank you…Yoruichi.” She said in a low and trembling voice.

The golden-eyed woman smiled and held her tighter while resting her free hand on top of the Arrancar’s head to start stroking her hair.

“Anytime, Nel. I may tease a bit excessively every now and then, but I’ll always lend a hand if you’re in trouble. And so would Tim and Kisuke. All of us would do what we could to help you. But in order for us to do that, ‘you’ are the one who has to have faith in ‘us’ that we will be there for you. If Gamuza can’t get over her hatred towards us, then it’s her loss, not yours. ‘She’ll’ be the one who ends up all alone, while you are the one who has others to call friends. Don’t let what she says lead you away from what you think to be right, Nel.”

She released her hold on the woman and held her at arm’s length while gripping her shoulders. “And don’t think that because you can’t use your powers that you’ll be a burden to us, Nel. The only people who become burdens to others, are those that choose to do nothing. That is not you. You are choosing to leave your powers behind to stay with us, to stay with Tim. That is ‘not’ an easy decision to make; yet, you made it, for us. Don’t forget that, Nel.” She stated firmly, then pulled the woman into another hug.

Nel gripped the older woman tightly and nuzzled her face into the woman’s shoulder with a smile on her face.

“I won’t. Thank you…so much, Yoruichi.” She said in a, now calm voice.

Yoruichi scoffed. “Glad to help. So, you ready to head back? Tim was a bit worried about you when he noticed you were gone.”

The two women released, where Nel shook her head. “Actually, I’d like to stay here for a bit longer…if it’s ok.”

The former Captain smiled back and nodded. “Don’t have too much fun, or I might get angry with you for not inviting me.” She teased.

Nel chuckled. “The only thing I think you would find to be ‘fun’ would be something that included your…perverted remarks.”

Yoruichi crossed her arms with a huff. “I guess I can’t deny that one; and while we’re on that topic, I thought I’d let you know that I decided to cut you and Tim a little slack. Afterall, I guess it would be fair to say that you two…and Kit…” she said, then snickered at the thought of the spirit passing out. “…paid enough for his remarks last night. So, I guess we’re even now. But that don’t mean you’re immune from an occasional tease every now and then.” She informed.

The Arrancar’s face fell. “I wish you would just leave us alone, Yoruichi. This is all still new to me, and I have a lot to think about.”

“I know, and if you ever need some advice, and yes, ‘genuine’ advice, on this matter, all you gotta do is ask. Like I said, I may tease a lot, but I’ll always help where I can; even for matters like this. But, if you don’t mind me asking, just how far have you two gotten in your relationship?” the former Captain inquired with a grin.

Nel turned a bit pink and looked away. “That’s…between me and Tim.”

This peaked the older woman’s interest. “Oh? Do tell.” She pressed.

The other woman sunk her head into her shoulders. “…Well…” she started, but quickly stopped.

“Well? I’m waiting. Or, would you rather I get the story by ‘another means’?” Yoruichi threatened.

The threat worked, as Nel moaned in discomfort. “Ok! Fine! We…kissed…” she admitted in a low voice, too low for the other woman to catch.

“I’m sorry, what was that?” Yoruichi pressed, a hand cupped to her ear.

Nel shirked away more. “We…kissed.” She said a bit louder.

“Sorry…can’t hear you. Once more?”

The former Espada glared at the woman and growled. “We kissed!” she yelled, then slapped a hand over her mouth with wide eyes.

Yoruichi’s eyes widened as well for a split second, then she grinned evilly. “Oh? Is that so? I must admit Nel, I didn’t think you had it in you. So, who started it, you or him?”

Nel turned away with a huff and crossed her arms. “H…He did…both times.” She said, then slapped her face at her slipup.

The older woman grinned more with a raised brow. “Oh?! You two kissed twice?! Oooohh, Nel…you naughty girl, you.” She teased, making the woman bury her face in her hands.

“Oh god…what could I have done to earn this torture?” she whined.

Yoruichi laughed and patted the woman on the back. “Calm down, Nel. I’m glad you two have something between you two. Just be sure to ask me if you need any advice with any ‘extra activities’.” She said in a suggestive manner.

Nel quickly looked at her with wide eyes and a red face. “Yoruichi!” she whined further, making the woman laugh harder before she stood up.

“It’s fine if you’re unsure about how to proceed, Nel. I’m sure if you ask Kisuke, he’ll ‘use one of his gigais to give you the basics in sex-ed’.” She teased further, turning Timothy’s own remark against the woman.

“You’re dead!” Nel yelled, but before she could get up to go after the golden-eyed woman, she had flashed away. The Arrancar growled deeply and slammed a fist into the ground. “I’m going to kill that damn demon!” she hissed.

Growling once more, she then took a deep, calming breath before letting it out slowly and giving a gentle smile. “Thanks…Yoruichi.”

** Squad 7 Headquarters, Present **

A knock on the office door roused Sajin from his thoughts when he decided to take a quick break from his paperwork to clear his head.

“You may enter.” He answered in a gruff voice, clearly tired.

The door opened and Minato, along with Hinata walked in, giving the man a brief bow before walking up and stopping in front of his desk.

“Morning, Captain. I came to tell you that four members, including Hinata here, have volunteered to transfer to Squad 5.” He informed.

Sajin turned to the woman with a curious expression. “I see. And you are aware of the situation surrounding the squad, correct, miss Ogawa?” he inquired.

She gave him a firm nod. “Yes sir, I’m aware that the members of Squad 5 have been getting…discriminated against lately. Even so, they need help, so my friends and I have all decided to go help where we could.”

The Captain rose a brow. “By ‘friends’, are you referring to…”

Hinata nodded. “Yes, I mean Kenta, Issei, and Yuka.” She affirmed.

Sajin took a deep breath. “Seeing that you know miss Sano the best, would you say that she is…emotionally capable to transfer and handle these absurd discriminations?” he asked in a concerned tone.

She sighed. “I think…” she started, but couldn’t finish.

“Say what you need to say, miss Ogawa.” Sajin instructed calmly.

The woman nodded. “Sir, I think, in my personal opinion, that a…change of scenery…is what she could use right now. As far as the discriminations, Yuka has never been one to let words get to her down. In fact, she’s more likely to ‘beat’ down the one who said something to her; especially if it was against her brother. As I’m sure you can imagine, with Junya now gone, that fact is only going to be worse. So, I think you should be more worried about those who choose to make fun of her, rather than her being made fun of.” She said with a light chuckle.

Sajin narrowed his gaze. “I see…but she is not prone to ‘starting’ fights, is she?” he asked cautiously.

She quickly shook her head. “No sir! She’s actually ‘very’ friendly! It’s only when others say something offensive to her, or about her brother, that she gets aggressive. And even then, she only gets aggressive enough to prove a point, or to make them stop. She’s completely defensive, not outright aggressive. If you want my opinion sir, I think this transfer would be good, not only for her, but maybe for the other members of Squad 5. I think that, if they see, and no offense to her, a ‘woman’, who has just lost her brother, fight off ‘male’ soul reapers alone, that could very well give them encouragement to do the same for themselves.” She advised.

The furry Captain held his chin in his hand. “Going by what you are telling me, miss Ogawa, I would have to agree. And not only that, but I would like to place you in charge of the group of transfers. Also, if you are willing, I would like to speak with Tetsuzaemon about giving you an officer’s position, even if it’s a lower ranking position.”

Hinata sighed heavily. “Sir…I…”

Sajin held up a hand to stop her. “I know what you told me two weeks ago, miss Ogawa. However, ‘I’ personally believe that you can handle it. I cannot order you to accept the position, but I can request that you accept it. So, I am asking you, if Tetsuzaemon can find an appropriate officer’s position that would suit you, will you accept it?”

She sighed again, but didn’t answer; then Sajin turned to Minato. “Minato, would you be kind enough to give me and miss Ogawa a moment?”

The man nodded, then turned and left the office; leaving the two alone. “Hinata…” he started, surprising her by the use of her first name. “…please, have a seat.” He offered, which she accepted and sat down. “I would like to ask that you be honest with me, and I am not asking you this as your Captain, but rather as one squad member to another. Is what happened to Junya Sano and the other member the reason why you are hesitant to accept my offer for an officer’s position?” he asked in sincerity.

Hinata closed her eyes and lowered her head a bit before giving a gentle nod. “A little, sir. I can’t shake the feeling that my inexperience got both of them killed. And to be honest, and I know this will sound a lot like Tim, but I’m worried that I may accidentally get someone else killed.” She admitted.

Sajin nodded in understanding. “I see. You and Tim are alike in many ways, Hinata.” He said calmly, getting her attention as he leaned back in his seat and crossed his arms loosely. “Both of you are very intelligent, and both of you have a strong sense of humility. You both care so much about others, that you willing to put yourselves at risk for their safety and comfort. But, also like Tim, you also allow that humility to hold you back, and blind you of what you can truly accomplish. As you well know, Tim was extremely hesitant to accept the offer for 5th seat, mainly because of Hetoku’s passing.”

He leaned back forward and rested his arms on the desk. “Tim ‘needed’ a push to get him on the right track, and it is obvious that you need this push as well. It is for that reason, that I am going to give you the same advice that I gave him. You cannot allow what happened to others to be the deciding force behind your future. While very unfortunate, the deaths of those two squad members under your command, happened. Could you have done better? Maybe; but then again, maybe not. Either way, instead of thinking that you are always going to fail others, you should use what happened as a lesson to be learned, and correct your mistakes. That way, you greatly reduce the chances of it happening again.”

Hinata leaned forward. “But sir…” she started in a slightly raised voice, but took a quick breath and calmed down. “Sir…I ‘do’ understand that. In fact, I offered the same advice to Tim once before. But as I’m ‘sure’ you can understand, it’s a whole different level when ‘you’ are the one who is experiencing it.”

Sajin nodded firmly. “I do understand that, Hinata. However, ‘I’ am sure that ‘you’ can understand that you are not going to move on if you keep dwelling on the past.” He sent back in a low and firm tone, causing her to fret a bit. “I am not going to allow any of my members to be corrupted by distress. So, miss Ogawa, I offer you this: either you can look past what happened, and learn from it on your own; or, I can speak with Tetsuzaemon, and I am sure he would be more than happy to ‘assist’ you with overcoming your fear of what happened himself. So, now I ask you, what will it be, miss Ogawa?” he asked, now giving her a serious stare; and a stare like that, coming from a being like him, was not something to take lightly.

It caused Hinata to lean back in her seat as she started sweating. Taking a second to swallow the lump in her throat, she finally found her voice to answer him.

“I…I will try, sir.” she offered.

He gave her a firm nod. “Good. Then can I assume that you will at the very least consider my offer?” he pressed.

The woman sighed as her face dropped. “No need, sir…I trust your judgement more than anyone else’s. And if you really think that accepting the position will help me recover from what happened, and help me to become better…I’ll accept it.”

Sajin relaxed his stare and offered her a warm smile. “That is more like it, Hinata. You think too little of yourself, so think of this as a way to overcome that problem. I will speak with Tetsuzaemon later today and ask him to assign you to a lower seated position, if that would make you feel better. However, I would like you to keep this in mind; once Squad 5’s numbers have gotten better, and you and the others return to our squad, I intend to place you in one of our higher seats. So, learn what you can while you are there, so that you can bring that experience back here.”

Hinata stood and gave the man a bow. “Yes sir, I’ll try to do what I can.” She said as she rose.

The man nodded in return. “I would expect no less, miss Ogawa. You are dismissed. And if you would, please ask Minato to come back and see me as you leave.”

She nodded, then turned and left the office, holding the door open to allow Minato to walk past her before closing the door tightly. The officer walked up to the desk and sat down in front of the Captain with a sigh.

“So, she accept, Captain?” he inquired, earning a nod.

“She did. Although, she was very hesitant, as I’m sure you can imagine.” Sajin answered.

Minato rose a brow. “Like a particular Lieutenant we all know and love?” he mocked in a humorous tone.

Sajin chuckled and turned to look out the window behind him. “Almost ‘too’ alike, Minato. One could almost swear that her and Tim were actually siblings with how much the two of them have in common.”

The junior officer scoffed lightly. “She definitely has his temper, if not worse. The only difference in that regard is that while Tim gets a bit…mouthy…she gets physical.” He stated, causing the furry Captain to turn and raise a brow.

“Is that so?” he asked, getting smirk back.

“Oh yeah. I’ve actually seen it a few times to be honest. To put it simple sir, miss Ogawa’s a ‘mother figure’. She’s as kind as they come; but if you piss her off, you’re done for. Even Tim has met her…wrath, a few times.”

Sajin chuckled at the thought of his newest Lieutenant getting beat down by a kindhearted woman. But he knew that what the man said was true, as he had witnessed her anger once before. Although, she didn’t exactly get ‘physical’ that time around. Mouthy, yes; physical, no.

“I would imagine that anyone who decides to discriminate against her would find themselves not wanting to do so again.” He remarked.

Minato swiftly shook his head. “Unless they enjoy spending time in Squad 4, no. But I would strongly suggest that you don’t point that out to her though.”

Sajin chuckled again. “I see, so she is the type that would deny her own temper?”

“Let’s just say that she would have a ‘very’ difficult time trying to convince you otherwise once you’ve experienced it. But anyway, I just wanted to let you know that we at least had a few volunteers for the transfer, and who they were.” Minato stated, then moved to stand up.

A raised hand from Sajin stopped him. “Before you leave, I had something else I would like to discuss with you.” He informed.

The man rested himself back down and nodded, where the Captain lowered his hand. He then opened a drawer in his desk, pulled out a sheet of paper, then handed it to the officer.

“This is a copy of the initial report from Captain Hitsugaya’s team. But, before you read it, I want you to understand that what we are about to discuss ‘stays’ between us. Is that understood?” he said in a firm tone.

Minato rose a brow, but nodded as he took the form and began reading it over. Sajin waited patiently as the man read through the form, giving an occasion nod every now and then. After almost five minutes of reading, the man looked up with wide eyes.

“Sir…are you sure this isn’t a mistake? I mean…it ‘has’ to be. It’s simply not possible to cut off a soul reaper from his zanpakutō spirit, it’s just simply not.” He said in shock.

“I would have to agree, but we can’t deny what the report says, as this is from a Captain. But that is not what I want to discuss with you. And again…” Sajin paused and leaned forward onto his arms. “…everything we discuss here ‘stays’ here.” He reminded, getting another nod. The Captain then leaned back again. “Are you aware of Tim’s zanpakutō abilities?” he inquired.

Minato nodded. “A little bit. From my understanding, and from what I’ve seen, he uses his zanpakutō to create a bunch of flames around the field that he uses to teleport, or whatever, between the flames.”

Sajin nodded. “That is correct. However, even though I had promised Tim I would not say anything, there is something in that report that simply does not add up. To put this as simple as I can, that zanpakutō of his is not actually a zanpakutō at all.”

The younger man rose a brow again. “…I don’t follow, sir.”

“That zanpakutō is actually the soul of his wife, Susan.” Sajin informed, causing the younger officer’s eyes to go wide.

“Sir?!” he choked out in shock, getting a nod.

“I am not going to go into full details, but that zanpakutō is actually his wife’s soul; a result of Aizen’s experiments.”

Minato’s hand clenched into a tight fist. “That fucker.” He cursed, which was something he rarely did.

“…Agreed. Anyhow, while Tim and Susan are somehow still bonded together, she is not a part of him. This means that her spiritual being is separate from him. Do you understand so far?” he asked, getting a sigh, then a reluctant nod. “Good. Now, if you can recall in that report, Tim has stated that the three Espada that had appeared in the world of the living had used that strange device to prevent him from releasing his Shikai.”

Minato scratched the side of his face in confusion. “But sir…if what you just told me is really true, then that means Tim ‘doesn’t’ have a Shikai…right?” he inquired.

Sajin nodded. “You are correct, Minato; Tim does not possess a true Shikai, or Bankai. Basically, the abilities he uses are actually Susan’s, but she allows him to use them. So now we come to the part that does not make sense; if Tim does not possess a Shikai, how would he know what the device does?”

The other officer tilted his head. “I’m…not sure, sir. Could it be that it somehow prevented him from using…Susan’s abilities?”

“It is possible, but why would he report ‘specifically’ that the device separated the soul reaper from its zanpakutō spirit?”

“Are you suggesting that Tim falsified the report to Captain Hitsugaya, Captain? I mean…considering his situation, he might have had to bend the truth a little to hide his…secret.” Minato pointed out.

“That could be, but seeing as he and Susan are not connected to each other in that way, and live in separate…bodies, if you will, then the connection might not be that difficult to interrupt. But the bond between the soul reaper and zanpakutō is absolute and inseparable. Yet, he clearly states that is what happened. If it is true, and this device ‘can’ separate the soul reaper and zanpakutō spirit, it is a very serious matter. Far more serious than Tim’s case, I hate to say.” Sajin admitted.

Minato sighed and rubbed his temples. “Okay, if that’s the case, why would he report something far worse than what it actually is? Do you think…something happened to him and he’s trying to warn us with false, or at least altered information?”

Sajin sighed and turned to the window. “I cannot say, Minato. It is possible, but knowing Tim like I do, it would seem like he is hiding something.”

“Uh…why is that, Captain?” Minato asked.

The Captain turned back to him. “Although he would do what he could to keep his secret safe, he would not falsify a report like that. I believe what he reported to Captain Hitsugaya was in fact true, but the ‘method’ of how he acquired the information was false.”

Minato tilted his head with a raised brow. “So…you’re saying that he lied about ‘how’ he got the information, and not the information itself?”

Sajin nodded. “I think that may be the case. Why he would do this, I cannot say; but I can tell you that I am almost positive that Tim is hiding something.”

The 6th seat dropped his head a bit with a hum. “Come to think of it…when I looked through the finance paperwork for yesterday, I noticed that Tim had used a fair amount of the squad’s mission budget yesterday at what seems to be a book store, and a women’s clothing store.” He said with his chin in hand.

The Captain rose a brow. “Women’s clothing? And why would he use the mission budget for something like women’s clothes?” he asked skeptically.

Minato glanced back at the furry Captain. “Well, he hasn’t exactly been paid yet, so you can’t really blame his for using some of it to cover personal expenses until he does. We would simply transfer some of his personal funds to cover the costs when he does. But buying women’s clothes ‘is’ a bit odd. I doubt…Susan…can use them, considering her situation.”

Sajin shook his head. “No, she can’t. It could be that he bought them for miss Ogawa, or possibly miss Sano.”

“Possible, but then again Lieutenant Matsumoto is there. It’s entirely possible she swindled him into buying something for her.” He then gave a deadpanned expression. “Wouldn’t be the first time she’s done it.” He remarked in a low voice.

The Captain scoffed lightly at that. “That is very unlikely. Captain Hitsugaya would never allow it, and you know it. For now, just keep what we discussed in your mind. And be sure to keep an eye on how he uses the mission budget for the next few weeks. I trust Tim, but I’m getting an odd feeling about that report, and why he would hide something without at least sending a hell butterfly to tell me what is going on.”

Minato stood up and gave the Captain a firm look. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, Captain.” He said with a smirk.

Sajin nodded, dismissing the man, and returned to the window. _‘What are you hiding Tim…and why…’_ he pondered, then turned back to his desk and returned to his paperwork as Minato left the office.

** Underground Training Area, Present **

A small cloud of dust and pebbles erupted from the ground where Timothy once stood, only a split second before. He had jumped back to land on the sloped side of a large boulder nearby and look back at his attacker.

“If you plan to hit me, you’re gonna have to be quicker than that, Ikkaku.” The Lieutenant taunted with a smirk.

The said man stood a few yards away with his released, pole-like zanpakutō dug into the ground, held with two hands as he returned the smirk. Lifting the weapon and giving it a quick twirl above his head before holding it with one hand behind his back, he proceeded to chuckle at the Lieutenant’s remark.

“You’ve gotten quite a bit better with your basic fighting skills, Tim.” he commented before vanishing in shunpo, only to reappear right in front of the younger man with his weapon held high above his head. “But you’ve still got a lot to learn!” he yelled as he swung down.

The bladed end of Hōzukimaru, Ikkaku’s zanpakutō, struck the side of the boulder where Timothy was at, breaking off a large chuck from the rockface and briefly obscuring his view. It proved to be just enough of an opportunity for Timothy.

At the last second, Timothy had slid down the side of the boulder, allowing the 3rd seat’s attack to land right above him and putting him in a position to attack from below while Ikkaku was recovering from the attack.

But fighting against a pole weapon that could break apart into three sections was proving to be a very difficult task for the Lieutenant. Ikkaku simply split the back end of Hōzukimaru and swung it around to catch his blade, halting the attack.

Ikkaku then split the front section, and with a swift twist of his body, sent the bladed end right towards Timothy’s face. But thanks to his quick reflexes, he managed to tilt his head to the side just quick enough to allow the weapon to pass overhead; close enough that Timothy could swear that Ikkaku just gave him a close shave.

Using the momentum of his head’s movement, Timothy twisted his body in an airborne cartwheel; sending his leg out at the other man’s shoulder. Ikkaku raised his arm up and stopped the younger man’s kick with his wrist.

He then pulled up on the mid-section of Hōzukimaru, pulling the bladed end up to slash across Timothy’s chest. But the man held his zanpakutō with the back against his chest, allowing the attack to hit and slide up the blade past his head.

As it did, Timothy pointed two fingers at the other man’s chest. “Hadō #1, Shō!” he chanted.

A small, but sudden burst of energy shot out from his fingertips and struck the man in his chest, propelling him back away from the Lieutenant. Recovering quickly, he then held out the same hand with his palm towards the 3rd seat.

Hadō #31, Shakkahō!” he chanted further, sending a red blast of fire energy at his opponent while he was still flying through the air.

Twisting his body in the air as he held the end section of Hōzukimaru, Ikkaku whirled the weapon around and allowed the bladed section to collide with the kidō before it could strike him; the spell exploding in midair and therefor concealing the man for an instant.

Timothy got into a onehanded ready stance as he waited for either the smoke to clear, or for the officer to make his move. It was the latter that occurred as Ikkaku charged right through the smoke right at the man, with a battle cry and a wide smile on his face.

“Bring it on, Tim!” he yelled, then swung Hōzukimaru, now reassembled into its pole form, with both hands in an uppercut.

The Lieutenant held his zanpakutō out and halted the attack, but the force of the long weapon sent him off his feet and back several yards while the vibrations from the hit sent a shock to his hand, stinging it.

Timothy managed to plant a hand on the ground, and use that to flip his body backwards to land on his feet again, now in a crouched position. When he looked up, he saw his opponent standing there with a hand on his hip and Hōzukimaru resting on his shoulder with a grin on his face.

“Good reflexes, just like the Captain said. You and Captain Zaraki may not see eye-to-eye, Tim; but you should feel honored that he respects you as a warrior. Afterall, there’s not that many alive who have gained that respect.” He informed in a surely tone.

The Lieutenant stood up, but remained in a ready stance as he returned the comment. “I guess that I would be lying if I said that I didn’t have my own respect towards the man. The only thing that saved him from that trap during the fight was his absurd amount of spiritual pressure.”

Ikkaku gave a light snicker. “Yeah, he’s a hell of a lot stronger than people tend to think. But you don’t seem to understand exactly what I’m saying, do you?”

Timothy moved his head to the side a little. “What are you getting at?” he inquired.

The officer snickered again. “You made the Captain take his patch off, and ‘that’ is no simple task. If he took it off for you, then that ‘clearly’ means that he respects you enough to show you his full power. And the fact you were even able to stand, let alone fight, while in the presence of that power, only speaks wonders for ya. You’ve definitely got ‘my’ respect, Tim. So how about we quit the foreplay, and ‘really’ get into this?” he taunted, earning a grin from the other man.

“About time you grew a spine.” The Lieutenant taunted back.

“I’m afraid you will have to wait.” A smaller, yet serious voice stated.

Both men looked to see Toshiro standing to the side with his arms crossed. “Sir?” Timothy half asked.

The short Captain turned to him. “I need to submit my report to the Head Captain, and last time, he requested that you be present for this one. I believe he would like to speak with you.”

Timothy’s face fell. “Oh great…wonder what he could want now.” He said in a moan.

Toshiro’s face turned stern. “Is there a problem?” he inquired.

The Lieutenant sighed and waved him off. “No sir, just that last time he and I didn’t exactly…end on friendly terms, so to say.”

The Captain smirked. “Well, considering your personality, that would not surprise me. Nonetheless, it is basically an order from the Head Captain, so you must attend.” He stated.

“So, we’re heading back to the soul society?” Timothy asked.

Toshiro shook his head gently. “That won’t be necessary. We have established video communications in miss Inoue’s apartment.”

Timothy rose a brow. “At Orihime’s place? Why there?” he asked in surprise.

“She gave us permission to use one of her spare rooms as a headquarters for our team. Now, if you have no further questions, the Head Captain is waiting.” He said as he turned.

The Lieutenant looked back at Ikkaku, who was still standing in the same stance as before. “This ain’t over, Ikkaku. I’ll be back later to give you your ass whooping.”

The man grinned. “I’ll be waiting.” He assured before giving a friendly nod, that Timothy returned.

** Orihime’s Apartment, 15 Minutes Later **

Timothy was getting an odd feeling as he and Toshiro climbed into the spare room of Orihime’s place through the window. The teen was currently in school, so the two officers were the only ones there.

“I kinda feel bad for going into Orihime’s place while she’s not here.” He commented.

“We have her permission to come and go as we need to, so you do not need to worry, Lieutenant.” The short man returned as the said man stood on the floor after entering the room.

The taller man turned to see a large screen-like object planted in the back of the room, along with a few pictures hanging on the walls and any furniture pushed to the side against the said wall. Toshiro walked across the room and came to a stop in front of the large screen, where it then turned on with a fuzzy appearance.

As Timothy came to stand beside the Captain, the picture cleared to show a man with what looked to be a number of small horns on his forehead.

“Ah, Captain Hitsugaya. Good to see you again. To the Head Captain’s office, I assume?” the man inquired.

“Yes, Akon. I need to deliver my report to him.” The short man answered.

‘Akon’ nodded. “Just one moment and I’ll connect you.” He informed, but it wasn’t even a second later when the screen switched out and the two officers were looking at the powerful form of Head Captain Yamamoto.

“Captain Hitsugaya…” the man said in his roaring, but somewhat calm voice. “…I assume that everything is normal in the world of the living?”

Toshiro nodded. “Yes, Head Captain. Except for a few random hollows, there has been nothing out of the ordinary. As you can see, I have brought Lieutenant Durn with me, by your request.” He reported.

The much older man turned to the very much younger one, causing him to flinch a bit under the man’s strong gaze.

“Thank you, Captain Hitsugaya. If you would please excuse us, I would like to have this discussion with the Lieutenant in private.” Yamamoto stated. Toshiro bowed, then turned and left the room through the window. A few seconds later, the old man began.

“Lieutenant Durn, I would like to speak with you regarding your zanpakutō, as well as the strange device you told Captain Hitsugaya about. Considering your…unique circumstance, I would like to ask if the device had any adverse effects against her.” Timothy hesitated at first, and Yamamoto noticed. “You do not need to worry about discussing this matter through this screen, Lieutenant. I can assure you that this communication is very well secure, and that you and I are the only ones that can hear this conversation.” He assured.

Timothy sighed, but nodded. He figured that someone was going to want to ask him more information regarding the false information he gave the short Captain to hide Nel’s existence. And to be honest, if it wasn’t for a genius idea from Urahara, he would have eventually been caught out in the lie.

Not only that, this idea would also allow him to tell those who knew about he and Kitsune’s previous situation that she was now a part of his inner world, and not stuck to residing inside an empty shell of a blade.

“To put it simply sir, very bad. That device that the Espada used had pretty much cut me and her off from each other. If it wasn’t for an…odd and crazy idea of Kisuke’s, I might have lost her forever.” He informed/lied.

The older man stared at him with a slightly opened eye. “Explain, if you will.”

“Again, to put it as simply as I can…and to save you from an hour-long lecture that the stupid man gave me…he had me introduce her into my inner world.” This statement caused the man to raise a brow. “Basically, she is my true zanpakutō now, sir. Our bond is now just the same as yours, Captain Hitsugaya’s, any soul reaper’s with their zanpakutō.”

Yamamoto hummed in thought. “I see. And this method of Kisuke Urahara’s corrected the problem caused by this device the Espada had?”

Timothy nodded, a bit relieved that the old man bought it. “From what we can see, yes.”

“That is very fortunate. Stepping away from the main topic for a moment, have there been any changes to your abilities since you incorporated her into your inner world?” Yamamoto inquired.

“Not that I’ve seen, sir. Everything seems to be the same as before, except for my Bankai.”

Yamamoto raised the same brow again. “So, you do indeed have a Bankai?”

Timothy nodded with a hum. “It turned out that Susan ‘was’ my Bankai, in a certain way. So, when I brought her into my inner world, my Bankai was ‘acquired’ at the same time. However, because my spiritual pressure was too low, I couldn’t handle it. Kit and Kisuke have been working with me to help me improve it. As it is right now, I can enter Bankai, and use my flames to move around, but that’s it. As for any special abilities or the such, she hasn’t told me yet.”

The old man rubbed his beard in thought. “I see. Regardless, I am pleased that you have managed to solve the problem the device caused. However, I do wonder what this means about you wanting to return her to her former state as a human soul.”

The Lieutenant closed his eyes. “It wasn’t possible, sir. What Aizen did to her, there was just no way to reverse it. Even Kisuke agreed with that. Placing her in my inner world was the only option left, it’s just that what the device did to us only sped things up on that matter. This is how it is now, and we have both accepted it.”

Yamamoto gave him a brief look of pity, but then turned serious again. “I am glad that you have managed to come to a conclusion on that matter, but now we must return to the matter at hand. Considering the circumstances of your situation at the time, what would you say the effect would be against a soul reaper with a real bond to their zanpakutō? And I would assume that Kisuke Urahara has come up with a theory of his own?”

The younger man nodded. “I can only give you my best guess, sir. I would have to say that the device can actually separate, or at the very least, ‘interrupt’ the bond between a soul reaper and his zanpakutō spirit. Kisuke came up with the same conclusion as I did, and he also believes that the effects of the device are not permanent; as long as the zanpakutō itself is not damaged while the effects are in place. Once the device is shut off, or the person leaves the area that it affects, the effects should go away, or wear off over time. Besides that, I can’t offer you anything else.”

The powerful man closed his eyes with a hum of thought. “This is very troublesome indeed. Thank you for your report, Lieutenant Durn.” He said, then the screen went dark.

Timothy stood there, staring at the screen as he crossed his arms with a sigh. Although he felt quite guilty for lying to the man like that, he couldn’t risk him finding out about Nel. But he could at least breath easy now that the man had what he wanted, and it really wasn’t that far from the truth.

“I assume you are finished speaking with the Head Captain?” Toshiro said, now crouching in the window sill.

The Lieutenant turned to him as he dropped his hands. “Yeah, he just wanted to hear about the device the Espada used on me from my own mouth is all. Along with a private matter.”

Toshiro nodded. “If you are referring to the matter of your wife’s soul, I am already aware of that.” He informed with a saddened expression.

Timothy’s eyes widened. “How did…”

“Urahara told me, along with…her.” He interrupted.

The Lieutenant growled in annoyance. “I wish he would learn to keep his mouth shut. And I am going to have a very long chat with that damn vixen.”

“You have nothing to worry about, Lieutenant. She was a part of your inner world, and thus your actual zanpakutō before my team and I arrived. So, as far as I am concerned, there is nothing to report. And it would not matter anyway, since the Head Captain is already aware of the situation and has seemed to have allowed it. I am merely telling you that I am aware of it so that you do not have to worry about trying to keep it from me any longer. The others are also aware, but have been instructed not to say anything.” He stated, then turned around to leap away.

He then paused and glanced back at the younger man. “And I would also advise that you tell your zanpakutō to mind what she says around me from now on. The next time that she decides to call me a ‘kid’ and make fun of my height, ‘you’ will be the one who gets punished. Am I understood, Lieutenant?”

Timothy could hear Kitsune snickering in his head as he gave him a deadpanned expression. “I would expect something like that from her. My apologies, Captain. Like I said, I’ll…talk with her.” He assured.

Toshiro nodded, then leapt away from the window sill. Timothy then moaned as he dropped his head back in distress.

“Why do ‘I’ have to be the one punished for that crazy vixen’s stupidity?” he whined.

**_“Oh, shut up! All I did was make one little remark to him and he lost it. It’s not ‘my’ fault he’s touchy as hell.”_** Kitsune stated.

He dropped his head and looked at his zanpakutō. “I would keep quiet right now, if I were you. We’re both lucky that the old man bought that story, or we would both, along with Nel, be in a huge world of shit right now.”

**_“For now. You do know that they could figure something out eventually, right?”_ **

“I know, but what else can we do at the moment?” he inquired.

**_“At the moment? Not really anything, except plan for possible outcomes. And there is something else you really need to consider as well, Tim.”_ **

He rose a brow. “And that is?”

**_“The fact that if you really intend to stay with Nel, like I have a feeling you will, you’ll have to consider the possibility that you would have to leave the soul society.”_ **

Timothy crossed his arms with a sigh. “Go ahead, let’s hear your opinion on this.” He said in a low and skeptical voice.

**_“There’s nothing else to it, Tim. It’s really just that simple. If you and Nel really care so much for each other, both of you are going to want to stay together. I’m not being perverted, or making any suggestive comments, it’s just the truth of the matter. And you know damn well that you just can’t have both her, and the soul society. So, to put it simple, you’re gonna have to make a choice between the two. And knowing you like I do, I know exactly which one you would choose.”_ **

He scoffed at her. “You do, huh?”

**_“Tim…I’m being serious right now. You seem too keep forgetting that I can hear every thought that goes through your mind. Hide it all you want to, but the simple fact is that you love her.”_ **

Timothy flinched. “What?” he asked in a shocked tone.

**_“You love her. You had the ‘exact’ same look on your face yesterday during dinner that you had with me while we were dating. Don’t try to deny it, cause if it didn’t work with me then, it sure as hell ain’t gonna work now when I can hear ‘everything’ you think.”_ **

He then slapped a hand to his face and dragged it down with a moan. “You can’t be serious right now…Am I really that obvious?”

**_“To me you are, and being able to hear your thoughts only serves to enforce it.”_** She affirmed with a snicker. **_“You need to stop worrying, Tim. If you want my opinion, I think you and Nel would be good for each other. You and I both had our problems, but we made it work between us. And you and Nel have problems of your own, mainly being what you two are, but I know that you two fools can work it out as well. But the fact is that you love her, and that is why I know for certain that you would choose her over the soul society.”_**

Timothy walked over to the window and leaned on the sill with his arms crossed. “So, what would you suggest I do, oh mighty wise one.” He mocked.

**_“Tsk…whatever, stupid. I can’t really suggest anything, except to be ready to leave if it comes down to it. There are so many outcomes that can happen, we would both lose count. But the fact is that they ‘will’ find out about her eventually. Could be a few days, a few years, even a few decades. And when they do, you need to be ready to make the decision that you think would be best. Other than that, I can’t give you much else. But like I said before, regardless of what you do, I ‘will’ stand by you.”_** She stated firmly.

This caused him to chuckle lightly. “Thanks. I guess you’re right…maybe I do love her, but I don’t want to say anything. With how little she knows about this stuff, telling her would likely scare her.”

**_“I won’t deny that, and that’s why ‘I’ haven’t said anything on that matter since that night. With how she responded to my comment when you weren’t there, if you told her that you loved her now, she would probably feel bad for not being able to fully understand and return those feelings. Just give her some time to get better acquainted with the romantic world, then you should tell her. And seeing how she sometimes looks at you, albeit with a bit of confusion, I would guess that she might love you too, Tim; even though she doesn’t know exactly what it is yet.”_ **

He sighed and rested his forehead in the palm of his hand. “I’m worried I might hurt her, Kit. I felt the same way with you back then.”

**_“Trust me…I know. And to be honest, it amused me to watch you step on your own toes trying to placate me.”_** She said, then laughed while he moaned. **_“I’m telling you Tim, let me sit down and have a talk with her.”_**

He scoffed loudly. “That would be a ‘big’ mistake.”

She rolled her eyes in his mind. **_“How many times do I have to say that I can be honest and sincere when I want to be?”_**

“Oh, I have no doubt that you can, but the problem is ‘getting’ you to be honest and sincere.” He returned.

**_“…Ok…I’ll give you that one. But the fact is that while I do love to have my fun, the last thing I would intentionally do is hurt you…or Nel for that matter. What happened that night was definitely not my intention. And you know that because I’ve said it several times by now.”_ **

Timothy scoffed again and shook his head. “Yeah…you have. Alright, if you think it will help her, and if you know for a fact that you can be serious while doing so, you can talk to her. But god help you if you make her upset again, Kit.”

**_“Scout’s honor.”_** She affirmed.

“You were never in the scouts, you idiot!”

**_“Oh…whatever! You know exactly what I meant, so stop trying to be an asshole!”_ **

“You’re’ the asshole, witch.” He corrected as he jumped onto the window sill to leave.

**_“I am not a fucking witch! You take it back right now!”_** she yelled, but he tuned her out as he leapt from the window to return to the shop; a wide grin on his face.

** Squad 5 Headquarters, 2 Hours Later **

Tetsuzaemon sat behind the Captain’s desk, Aizen’s former desk, with his head propped up with his left hand, while signing a form with the other. As usual, he was still working on some of the last bit of forms from the day before, and hadn’t even gotten a chance to look at the morning forms.

The squad’s 3rd seat was sitting at the Lieutenant’s desk, sifting through the late-night paperwork before handing it over to the gruff Lieutenant. It was almost noon now, and they were already so far behind that Tetsuzaemon was about to consider getting help from Izuru or Shūhei again.

There was then a knock on the door, where Tetsuzaemon sighed deeply and sat straight. “Come in.” he answered in a slightly depressed voice.

The door opened and Hinata, Issei, Kenta, and Yuka all walked in, giving the man a bow before Hinata greeted him.

“Morning, Lieutenant. We volunteered to transfer over here to give the squad some help, so we came to see you first.” She said cheerfully.

The man breathed a small sigh of relief. “Good, I could use all the help I can get.” He said, then turned to the 3rd seat. “Take em downstairs and get em assigned some rooms in the barracks.” He instructed, getting a nod from the man. As the man stood up, he returned his gaze to Hinata. “Miss Ogawa, come and have a seat. We have something to discuss before you leave.”

The woman nodded, where Yuka placed a hand on her shoulder. “I’ll put your stuff in your room.” She said, then after a nod and smile from the woman, left the office with the others.

Hinata walked forward and took a seat in front of the shaded Lieutenant. “I think I might know what this is about, sir.” she informed.

The man nodded. “Then I’ll spare you all the explanations and crap. The Captain told me to find the best position for you, and frankly, where I need you the most is here in the offices. For that reason, I’ll be assigning you as the squad’s 4th seat.”

Her eyes widened. “Sir…you can’t be serious! The Captain said the best position for ‘me’, not in the squad!”

He nodded. “As you can clearly see, the paperwork is starting to fall behind again. And besides sleeping and eating, I haven’t left this office once. I ‘need’ you here to help handle it. And I am not going to put you under those two buffoons that call themselves the 6th and 8th seats. The Captain told me about you, and your…personality, that would allow you to keep the others in line. But you don’t need to worry about training the squad, or other things like that. In fact, you’d be lucky if you ever got to leave the offices with how backed up we are.”

Hinata let out a loud breath as she massaged her forehead. “I should have never accepted.” She whined.

Tetsuzaemon then slammed a fist on the desk, shocking her and regaining her attention. “He also told me that you might act like a damn child.” He stated in an elevated voice. “I need squad members, not goddamned children. You told the Captain that you accepted, so quit your damn whining and take the damn job. This is the easiest way you could possibly learn how to be an officer, and you don’t even have to do strenuous tasks. All you gotta do is sit and help with paperwork, and you’re sitting there whining about it.”

She sighed and nodded. “My apologies, sir.” she said, then leaned forward in a bow. “Please forgive me.” She added, then sat straight.

The man nodded back. “As long as you understand, and agree to stop you whining, we’ll be straight. Now, go ahead and find out what room you’re in, and once you’re done putting your things away, get with the 3rd seat and start working on the morning paperwork.”

Hinata rose to her feet and gave him a bow. “Yes sir.” she said, earning a slight bow in return, then turned and left the office.

Once the door closed, Tetsuzaemon breathed out a low growl and returned to the form he was working on. “This is going to be a long day.” He stated, and signed the form before grabbing the next.

** Squad 5 Barracks, Present **

Kenta sighed heavily as he set a couple of his books down on top of the dresser in the room, then sighed again when he heard a knock on his door.

“It’s open.” He answered.

The door opened, and he turned to see Issei standing in the doorway. “You about done?” he asked calmly.

The man had been assigned the room next to his, and he was glad about that. Yuka, on the other hand, had been assigned to a room on the opposite side of the building, along with Hinata. So even though the friends were split up a bit, they at least had someone next to them as a bit of comfort.

“Yeah, almost. You seen Yuka or Hinata yet?” he asked.

“Not yet, but she did say that we would meet up here, since our rooms are pretty close to the common room.” Issei answered and sat down at the table.

Kenta pulled the bottle of sake out of his bag, along with two saucers, and pour them each a drink, causing the his friend to raise a brow.

“You’ve gotta be kidding me…It’s not even noon yet.” He pointed out.

The other man scoffed and handed him his drink. “One ain’t gonna kill us. And besides, I have a strong feeling that we’ll need it.”

Issei sighed and nodded. “I can’t argue that one.” He admitted, then took a sip.

The men then heard another knock, and turned to see Yuka standing there. “Hey guys.” She greeted.

“Hey…want one?” Kenta returned, holding up his saucer.

Her shoulders dropped. “Me, no. But I think you might want to have one ready for Hinata.” She stated as she, too, sat down.

Issei rose a brow. “Why?” he asked cautiously.

She looked at him with a bit of agitation. “Oh, I think I’ll let ‘her’ break the news to you.”

“What news?” another female voice said from the door.

Yuka turned back around to Hinata. “About your promotion.” She answered simply.

The woman’s face dropped. “Don’t remind me.” She moaned, then walked over to Kenta and snatched the saucer from his hand, downing its contents before handing it back and taking a seat at the table. “The Lieutenant assigned me as the squad’s 4th seat.” She informed, then dropped her head onto the table.

Everyone’s jaws dropped. “You’re shitting me!” Issei blurted out.

Yuka looked at him and shook her head slowly, where Kenta quickly refilled the saucer in his hand and set it down next to the near-dead woman. Hinata raised her head a bit and took a sip before letting out a long sigh.

“Trust me…he’s far more convincing than the Captain is. He says that he needs me more in the office than anywhere else, and I can honestly believe him. You saw that paperwork on the desk?” she inquired, getting nods from everyone. “Well, that was all from yesterday…afternoon.”

Their eyes widened. “Damn! This squad really ‘was’ hurting!” Kenta stated.

Hinata nodded. “Yeah, so unless it’s here, or in the offices, you guys won’t be seeing much on me for a while.” She said with a bit of sadness.

Kenta hummed in understanding. “Well, you did say that you’ve grown accustomed to paperwork.” He pointed out, getting another nod from her.

“Yeah, I actually don’t mind it now. I hated it at first, but that was because I was learning so much so fast. But still, with only the Lieutenant, the 3rd seat, and myself, the paperwork is going to be a bitch.” She stated.

Kenta chuckled at her language. It wasn’t uncommon for her to curse, but it was still funny when she did; mainly because of the ‘way’ she did it.

“Well, you know where I hide the sake; so, if you ever feel like you need one, help yourself.” He offered, then finished his drink.

Hinata chuckled back. “You might want to rethink that one, Kenta. You know I can drink, if I have the mind to.” She mocked, then finished hers as well.

His face dropped. “…Shit.”

Issei and Yuka laughed at his unfortunate ‘circumstance’. “Looks like you better find a new hiding spot, Kenta.” Yuka remarked.

“Shut up!” he shot back.

Hinata scoffed, then stood up. “Well, we should get going. I need to get started on that paperwork, before the Lieutenant has a stroke.”

Issei and Yuka both stood up, then all three friends bowed to her. “Yes maam!” they said in unison.

She flinched, then growled. “I’m going to kill you for that!” she hissed.

The three friends then quickly ran out of the room as Hinata leaped over the table, crawling along the ground until she could get her footing, then ran off after them.

“Get back here!” she yelled as she ran down the hallway; catching and tackling an unfortunate Kenta, who was at the back of the group, down to the floor.

It’s like the old saying goes, you don’t have to be the fastest person when running from a predator, only faster than the slowest one. Kenta, unfortunately, ‘was’ that slowest person.

“Mercy!” he yelled.

She rolled him over and put her face mere inches from his. “I’ll show you mercy!” she hissed at him, then grabbed his neck and started shaking the life from him.

“Noooo!”

** Squad 5 Headquarters, 20 Minutes Later **

Tetsuzaemon set the last form from the day before onto the completed stack and gave a relieved sigh with his head dropped back, before he heard a knock on the door.

“Come in.” he answered.

Hinata entered the office with a stack of papers in her arms…and multiple scratches and bruises on her face, arms, and legs. Tetsuzaemon looked at her and rose a brow.

“What the hell happened to you?” he asked in an elevated tone.

She stopped in front of the empty Lieutenant’s desk and turned her head towards him with a furious expression.

“If you ask me that again, you’ll find out very quickly, Lieutenant.” She hissed in anger, causing the man’s other brow to raise as well.

“Excuse me?” he asked in shock and disbelief.

She raised a brow as well. “Did I stutter? I said, don’t ask me again, Lieutenant.” She shot back.

The two of them stared at each other for a moment in complete silence. “Are you at least going to tell me ‘why’ it happened?” he pressed, still in shock from her tone with him.

Obviously, Minato was ‘not’ exaggerating when he told Sajin, who of course, told Tetsuzaemon, that Hinata’s temper was not something to take lightly.

“Let’s just say that Kenta and Issei won’t be making fun about me being the 4th seat again, and leave it at that.” She finally answered.

“And your other friend, Sano?” he inquired.

The woman growled loudly. “Damn bitch got away, after she fought back, as you can see. She’s a better fighter than I thought.”

Tetsuzaemon snorted lightly and shook his head in disbelief. “Ogawa, your first order of the day is to ‘not’ put anyone in the hospital.” He mocked.

Hinata growled more and shook her head. “No promises, Lieutenant.” She replied as she sat down behind the desk and began looking at the first form.

The man watched her for a moment, then sighed. “Tell me something, Ogawa…” he started, getting her attention as he crossed his arms in skepticism. “…how is it that you can so easily stand up for yourself when it comes to others, yet you shy away when you’re offered an officer’s position?” he asked in disbelief.

The woman’s shoulders dropped. “Please don’t make me explain this again, Lieutenant. I’ve already told the Captain twice, and saying it a third time is only going to make me hate this more.” She pleaded.

“Yeah, you told the ‘Captain’, now I want you to tell me. If you’re going to be working around me, I need to know what the hell is your problem. I think I have an idea what it’s about, but I’ll let you be the one to fill me in.”

She slapped her hands on the desk as she stood up, looking at the man with anger in her eyes. “It’s ‘my’ business, okay?! What?! You wanna hear that I feel like shit because two members were killed while under me?! Well, I do! That’s why I didn’t want this damn job in the first place! But here I am, feeling like I’ve been bullied into it!” she yelled at him. She then took a deep breath and lowered her voice a bit. “The only reason I accepted is because the Captain is adamant that this will help me. Because I trust him, like I trust you.”

Tetsuzaemon scoffed loudly at her. “Well that’s a load of crap. If you really trusted the Captain and I, then you wouldn’t feel like you’ve been ‘bullied’ into anything. I’m actually offended that you would think that way. Wake the hell up, Ogawa. If ‘anyone’ is doing the bullying to you, it’s ‘yourself’. Just because you’re a woman, doesn’t mean I won’t beat your senses back into you, just like I did Durn. That damn fool must have corrupted your damn ass.”

Hinata flinched, then growled again. “H…He did not! Don’t blame him because I’m feeling something that’s only natural!”

“Heh. Feeling like that ‘is’ natural, I’ll give you that. But you’re obviously at the point where you’re about to start tearing yourself apart because of it. Was there ‘anything’ you could have done back in the world of the living that would have changed the outcome?” he inquired.

She turned away. “No. The hollow was just too strong for us.”

“Then shut up about it.” He said, causing her to look at him with surprise. “If there was nothing else you could have done, then the answer is very simple; so simple, that even in your current state of mind you should be able to see it. You did all you could. You think you’re the only one who has lost friends, or comrades in combat? I’ve lost my fair share of members under my command, and I will admit that I felt the same way you do back then. But I had to see past that and get stronger, to make sure that I could do better next time. So, take my advice Ogawa, and instead of crying over their loss, take their loss as a damn hint to become a stronger and more effective leader. That way, the next time that you take charge, you won’t let it happen again.” He said firmly.

He then set his completed form aside and grabbed the next. “Now, if you’re done with your bitching, let’s get to work on trying to not let this damn paperwork bury us.” He said in his normal, gruff voice.

Hinata, dropped her head as a lone tear fell from her eye. She then wiped the tear away with the back of her hand and gave the man a gentle nod before sitting down.

“Yes sir. My apologies for my…language.” She offered, causing him to scoff.

“If you’re worried about your ‘language’ with me, you won’t find me offended. Personally, I’ve found that ‘colorful’ words are more effective than kind ones. As long as the job gets done, I don’t care what the hell you say, or how you say it. Although…” he paused to look at her. “…I strongly recommend that you keep your temper in check next time, Ogawa. Cause the next time, I won’t be so kind back. Is that understood?” he asked, giving her a serious stare.

She sat back down with a huff. “Yes sir.” she mumbled, then started looking at her first form.

“And before I forget…” he added without looking, getting her to glance back at him. He looked over to her with a smirk. “…Congratulations on your promotion.” He teased.

Hinata let out a loud moan as she dropped her head onto the desk with a thump. “Somehow…someway…Tim has managed to curse me.” She whined in a whisper.


	25. The Pressure Builds

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 25

**(The Pressure Builds)**

** Orihime’s Apartment, That Evening **

“I still think that’s stupid, Orihime.” Rangiku stated with a dismissing wave of her hand.

The two women were sitting down, facing each other, at the teen’s living room table; the remains of a small assortment of snacks and desserts sitting on top. Orihime was currently gathering up the now empty bowls they had used for ice cream to take them to the kitchen for washing.

“Algebra’s not that bad, Rangiku. I mean, it does get confusing sometimes with the y’s and x’s moving around, but once you figure out the pattern, it’s ok. Do they not use it in the soul society?” Orihime inquired as she stood up and began walking to the kitchen, bowls in hand.

Rangiku grabbed the cold items from the table and followed her to put them back in the fridge. “No, there’s really no need. The only things we use math and such for are paperwork and reports. It’s simple, two plus two is four, and so on. Why in the world would you need to add stupid letters to numbers? It just makes absolutely no sense, if you ask me.” She stated as she opened the fridge and started putting the food away.

Orihime touched a finger to her chin in thought. “It does sound silly, but it somehow all seems to come out in the end. And it is something that’s required for college.” She pondered aloud.

The larger woman stood straight and turned to her. “Thinking of going to college?” she inquired.

The teen hummed in thought. “I’ve been thinking about it for a while, and a degree would definitely help when I go to get a good job. But that’s still a few years away, so I’ve got plenty of time to still think it over.” She said as she started washing the dishes.

Rangiku closed the fridge door and leaned against it with her side, arms crossed. “Well, the only form of school we have is the Shin’ō Academy.”

The younger woman looked at her. “Is that the academy soul reapers go to?” she wondered.

“Yeah, it’s normally six years. Although, the Captain supposedly graduated much quicker than that. But they only teach you soul society laws, swordsmanship, kidō, and things like that. They do teach the basic schooling that you would get here, like simple math, English and such, but not that advanced stuff.” The Lieutenant answered.

They were interrupted by a knocking on the front door, where Orihime turned to her guest. “Would you mind getting that, Rangiku?” she asked with a smile.

The woman nodded with a smile of her own. “Sure thing, Orihime.” She said, then pushed herself from the fridge and started walking towards the door. “Coming!” she announced as she got to the door, opening it to reveal Timothy standing there with a small bag slung over his shoulder.

“Oh, hey Rangiku. Just the person I wanted to see.” He stated.

She rose a brow at him. “Tim? What brings you here?” she inquired.

Orihime leaned back away from the sink to look past the woman at him. “Hi Tim! How are you?” she greeted with a smile.

Timothy chuckled a bit. “I’m good, for the most part.” He answered, then turned back to the Lieutenant. “I was wondering if you would like to join me and the guys for a few drinks, Rangiku. Plus, I had a few things I wanted to discuss with you…if you don’t mind that is.” He offered with a bit of a skittish smile.

Rangiku touched a finger to her chin and hummed for a second, then turned over her shoulder to the teen in the kitchen.

“What do you think, Orihime? Should I humor him?” she asked with an amusing voice.

Orihime smiled and nodded. “Yeah. You two should go hang out. In the time that you’ve been here, I don’t think you two have spent any time together…except training.” She added.

“There was that day at the mall…” the busty woman reminded.

Timothy’s face dropped. “Please don’t bring that up…I’m still waiting for the ass chewing I’m bound to get from the Captain for spending so much of the squad mission budget on books and clothes.” He moaned.

Rangiku scoffed and waved him off. “Relax, Tim. Captain Komamura might get a little upset, but at least he’s not like ‘my’ Captain. Just the mention of clothes sets him off.” She remarked.

The younger man snorted. “I can’t really say that I would be surprised by that. So anyway, wanna go? Renji and Rukia said they’d be there.”

The woman hummed for a moment, then tossed her hand up. “Sure. Why not.” She said with a smile, then dropped her hand to her hip. “Where did you have in mind?”

Timothy waved his hand from side to side. “Ikkaku insisted going to where they’re staying. Neither of them want to deal with Kisuke or Yoruichi while drinking. And quite obviously, neither do I. If she’s that bad of a damn flirt while sober…” A chill then ran up and down his spine. “I don’t even want to ‘imagine’ what it would be like while she’s drunk.”

**_“…Oh god…I think I’m gonna have nightmares now…”_** Kitsune commented.

_“…You and me both…”_ he returned.

Rangiku threw her hand to the side. “Oh, come on Tim. She can’t be that bad.” She stated.

Timothy gave her a deadpanned expression. “I am going to pretend you did not just say that…” he mumbled under his breath. “Whatever, you ready to go?” he asked.

“Yeah, go have fun, Rangiku. You’ve got a spare key for when you come back.” Orihime pressured.

The busty Lieutenant sighed. “Alright. Let’s go then.” She said, then looked over her shoulder. “See you later, Orihime.” She finished, waving at the teen.

The girl waved back with a smile. “Don’t have too much fun, you two.” She said.

The two officers nodded, then left the room with Rangiku closing the door behind her. The duo walked down the open walkway until they came to the stairs to the ground floor and proceeded down them before the woman turned to her companion.

“So, what’s in the bag, Tim?” she inquired.

The man took the bag of his shoulder and handed it to the woman. “Our ‘entertainment’ for the night.” He answered with a chuckle.

Rangiku accepted the bag with a raised brow. “Oh?” she said, then looked inside to see over a half dozen bottles of various spirits.

Along with some saucers and shot glasses. Two of the bottles she recognized as a decent brand of sake. She looked back at him with a smirk.

“Planning on having a good time, eh Tim?” she questioned.

He chuckled again. “Maaaayyyybe.” He droned out with a smile. “Renji tells me that you can handle your own when it comes to drinking.” He stated, getting the woman’s full attention.

“Oh? Is that a challenge I sense in that statement?” she twisted.

Timothy glanced back with a grin. “Not really, but I would be lying if I said I wasn’t thinking I’m better than you.” He mocked.

The woman bust out in a laugh for a moment before answering. “Oh, I doubt that, Tim. But before we get into that, what was it you wanted to talk about?” she asked as they came to the ground floor.

He stopped, causing her to do the same, then sighed. “I wanted to apologize for my remark the other day.” He said, then turned to her as he rubbed the back of his head in shame. She rose a brow in slight confusion. “You kinda caught me on a bad morning, and I called you something that was very offensive. It was wrong, and I really didn’t mean it. So…I apologize for it.” He said in a low voice, then turned away a bit.

She smirked a bit, then scoffed. “Don’t worry about it, Tim.” she said as she lightly slapped his chest with the back of her hand. “It may have gotten to me at first, but once I thought about it, I realized you’re just one of those touchy people. I appreciate the gesture, but you really didn’t have to.” She insisted.

Timothy turned back to her with a serious face. “No, I do. I don’t really like to admit it, but I’ve been a bit of an ass towards you ever since we met. What’s worse, is that you’ve done nothing to me at all. Even if you don’t think it’s necessary, I would feel a whole lot better if I at least tell you that I’m sorry about it. So…” he paused and held a hand out to her. “…can we start over as friends?” he asked.

Rangiku snorted lightly and took his hand. “Of course.” She responded, shaking his hand once, then releasing it and planting her hands on her hips. “Now, can we get going? I think it’s about time I show you who the real drinking champ is.” She said with a cunning smirk.

He rolled his eyes with a scoff. “You soul reapers never learn.” He commented.

She rose a brow at that. “Oh? And what exactly are you talking about?” she inquired.

Timothy gave her the same smirk back. “That, again, you should never challenge a Texas man to a drinking competition.”

** Asano Residence, 20 Minutes Later **

“Where the hell is he?” Ikkaku growled as he sat on the living room floor with his back against the couch.

Yumichika, who was sitting on the couch above him, sighed with slight annoyance at his friend’s impatience. “He did say that he was going to ask Rangiku if she wanted to join us. Considering that she is staying at Orihime’s place, I’m sure you can imagine it might take a while.”

The 3rd seat scoffed at that. “Yeah, but he could have at least brought the drinks here first, then go get her. All we’ve got is this weak ass stuff that the humans dare to call a ‘beer’ that he asked us to pick up. What, is he trying to torture us?” he mocked.

“Oh, don’t be like that, sweetie. I’m sure he’ll be here soon.” The woman sitting right behind him…rubbing his bald head, said.

A vein on the man’s forehead pulsed as Yumichika snorted from trying not to laugh. “I’ve told you, don’t call me that. Damn woman.” He growled.

His friend turned to him with a smirk. “Oh, I don’t know, Ikkaku. I think it suits you rather well. Don’t you agree, miss Mizuho?” he inquired to the woman.

She looked at him and nodded. “I do. It’s just perfect for him.” She returned.

Ikkaku growled loudly and slapped her hand away as he stood up and pointed at his friend accusingly. “Don’t go siding with her! You’re supposed to be helping me with this!” he yelled.

The 5th seat brushed his hair from his face with a smile. “Oh, but I ‘am’ helping you, Ikkaku. Can’t you see that I’m trying to help you out with the lovely lady?” he teased.

The vein pulsed on the bald man’s head again. “I don’t want no help with her! She’s being a damn nuisance!” he said, then turned to point at Mizuho. “And you, stop rubbing my damn head! It’s annoying!” he stated.

The woman pressed her hands to her cheeks and blushed. “Oh, but sweetie, how else am I supposed to take care of you?” she asked as she shook her head.

Ikkaku growled yet again as he stomped on the floor and clenched his fists. “I don’t ‘want’ you to take care of me! I want you to leave me the hell alone!”

The conversation was interrupted by a knocking on the front door, where Ikkaku lowly growled and turned to it. “About damn time.”

“Coooome iiiinnn.” Mizuho said in a singsong voice.

The door opened where Timothy and Rangiku walked in. “Hey, sorry we took so long.” He said as he closed the door behind them.

Yumichika looked over his shoulder at him. “Well, you’re here now. So, what’s say we begin?” he pressed.

Timothy nodded as he walked past him to the table in front of the couch, setting the bag down and pulling out the numerous bottles inside. Mizuho and the two Squad 11 officers all rose their brows.

“Little much, don’t you think?” Ikkaku inquired.

The younger man looked at him, then the bottles for a second before returning to him. “Well, considering that it’s you, Yumichika, Rangiku, Renji, Rukia, and myself, I wanted to make sure that there’s plenty. By the way, where are Renji and Rukia?”

“They had to respond to a hollow attack a little while ago, so they will be a little late.” Yumichika answered as he started setting out saucers for everyone.

He was about to set one out for Timothy, but the man stopped him and pulled out one of the shot glasses.

“No sake for me. Only the good stuff tonight.” He said with a smirk, then reached over and opened on of the bottles of whiskey.

“How the hell can you drink that stuff?” Ikkaku wondered aloud.

“Pour one for me too, Tim.” Rangiku instructed as she sat down on the opposing couch.

Ikkaku turned to her with a skeptical look. “You too?” he asked in disbelief.

Timothy glared at him. “Oh, stop your bitching, Ikkaku. I got your damn sake, so stop complaining. You get the beer?” he asked in a moan.

The man nodded and pointed to a large case next to the couch Rangiku was sitting on. “Yeah. It’s over there, but don’t count on me drinking any of that crap. That stuff tastes like pond water.” He stated.

The young Lieutenant let out a depressing sigh as he filled another shot glass from a different bottle. He then held the glass out to Ikkaku, who looked at it skeptically.

“It’s tequila. Completely different from whiskey. Try it.” He offered.

Ikkaku took the glass and observed it for a moment before taking a sip. After he did, he rose a brow and looked at it again.

“Huh, not bad. Better than that other stuff you drink.” He stated, then finished the drink in one gulp.

Timothy then gave Rangiku her glass, who also chugged hers down before holding the glass out for another.

“So, Tim…” she started as he poured her another. “…when did you want to try outperforming me?” she inquired with a smirk.

The two lower officers looked at him with wide eyes. “You challenged Rangiku to drinking?” Ikkaku asked in surprise.

Timothy scoffed, then nodded.

“I must say that you are quite insane, Tim. You do realize that Rangiku is one of the best drinkers in the soul society…right?” Yumichika inquired.

The Lieutenant grinned, then looked at the woman. “So, how we doing this?” he asked.

She threw her hand away. “You’re the one who want’s to be foolish, so you set the rules.” She offered.

His grin grew even more, now exposing his teeth. “Ok then, how bout this…” he started, then turned to Yumichika. “Grab us a beer each, if you don’t mind.” He instructed, getting a nod back as he set down ten shot glasses in two rows of five.

Switching between different bottles, he filled each glass from both sides with different liquors. In the first, he poured whiskey, tequila in the second, vodka in the third, _‘Bacardi 151’_ in the fourth, and _‘Everclear’_ in the last.

Yumichika set down the two beers as they heard a knock on the front door. “It’s open.” Timothy announced.

Renji and Rukia entered the apartment and walked up to the table; both of them staring at the ‘loaded’ table with wide eyes.

“What the hell is going on here?” Renji asked.

Ikkaku turned to him with a smirk. “Tim thinks he can outdrink Rangiku.” He stated.

The two friends turned to the said man with jaws dropped. “Are you insane?!” Rukia yelled.

Timothy scoffed as he opened the two beers and set them at the end of the rows of glasses. “Just be quiet and watch.” He moaned.

Once he was done setting up, he sat down across from Rangiku and crossed his arms.

“Okay, rules are simple. Five shots and one beer. All you have to do is slam each one right after the other; then when you get to the end, you chug the beer as fast as you can. It’s not a race, but the key is to do it as fast as you possibly can.” He said, getting a nod. “Once you’re done, you just sit there and stare at each other.”

Everyone’s brows rose as they turned to him in confusion. “So…you just…stare at each other?” Renji inquired in disbelief.

Timothy nodded while keeping his stare at the woman in front of him. “Yup. That’s it. Drink, then stare. The one who can stare the longest without passing out, wins. Simple as that.”

Renji crossed his arms. “So, let me get this straight…you think that five shots and a beer is going to be enough to make Rangiku pass out?” he asked skeptically.

The younger Lieutenant chuckled. “What? Too much for you, Rangiku?” he taunted.

The woman then laughed…along with everyone else. “Please Tim, I’m offended that you think this will do me in. But I’ll humor you. So, whenever you’re ready.”

Inside his head, Kitsune was snickering. She knew ‘exactly’ what he was up to, and couldn’t wait to see the result.

“Alright then.” Timothy said, then placed his hands on his legs, where Rangiku did the same. “Tell us when, Rukia.” He instructed.

The short woman sighed heavily as she shook her head. “He’s done for.” She mumbled, then looked at them. “Ready?” she asked, getting nods back. “Begin.”

Both participants then started downing shot after shot, each one worse than the one before in taste and potency. In just under a few seconds, both of them had finished all of their glasses and were now working on their beers.

Being the experienced drinker she was, Rangiku managed to finish first, but only a brief second before Timothy. They both set the now empty cans down and leaned forward over the table a bit as the staring contest began.

The onlookers watched closely, waiting for whatever it was supposed to be to happen. But the problem was that nothing ‘was’ happening. The whole room was silent as the two Lieutenants just sat there, with only a couple feet between them, and stared at each other.

Almost a whole minute passed by, until, suddenly, Rangiku’s upper body gave out and her head slammed onto the table with a loud thud. Two things happened at that moment; everyone’s jaws hit the floor, and Timothy started snickering loudly.

“Gotcha!” he said in a low voice.

Renji slowly turned to him. “W…What the hell?!”

Rukia managed to recover from the shock, so she quickly walked over and nudged the woman in the shoulder. Besides a low, and very long moan, the woman did not respond. The shorter woman quickly turned to the winner.

“How the hell did you do that?! It was only six drinks?!” she demanded in a yell.

Timothy was now laughing loudly, along with Kitsune in his inner world who was rolling on the ground and clutching her sides. It took almost a whole minute before Timothy had calmed down enough to form language again.

He reached over and patted the unconscious woman on her head gently. “Sleep well, my apprentice.” He mocked with a grin.

Renji then walked over and grabbed him by the collar, pulling him up to his face. “Alright, enough. What the hell did you just do to her?” he demanded.

Timothy snickered again, then held up his hands calmly. “It’s simple. If there’s one thing I’ve learned in my younger days, it’s that you don’t mix too much alcohol. The first one was whiskey, then it was tequila, and then vodka. The fourth one was _‘Bacardi 151’_ , pretty potent stuff. And the last one was _‘Everclear’_. And that, my friend, is no joke. It’s basically straight alcohol. Then finally, there was that beer at the end. All the beer was for, was to mix up the liquor in the stomach more effectively.”

Renji loosened his grip on the man’s shirt, then he continued. “What happened just now, was that the ‘very’ sudden intake of all those different liquors caused her to have one hell of a head rush. So bad in fact, that it caused her to pass out. But don’t worry, she’ll be back up in a minute or two after her head clears up again.” He assured.

Ikkaku looked at the downed woman, then the empty glasses. “So how the hell are you not affected?” he inquired.

Timothy looked at him as Renji let him go. “I’ve gained a tolerance to it. I’ll admit that even ‘I’ got a little light headed near the end, but not bad enough to affect me that badly. You should have seen me the first time I tried it though; only lasted about five seconds.” He finished with a chuckle. “A friend of mine from college showed it to me. He called it the ‘Five count knock-out’.”

A loud moan from below caused everyone to turn to the woman as she slowly raised her head from the table and, just as slowly, looked around. After a few seconds, she pushed herself off the table and looked at everyone with a bit of confusion.

“Wha…what happened…” she asked in a low voice.

Everyone then turned back to Timothy with wide eyes. “Is she going to be ok?” Rukia asked with concern.

Timothy snorted, then nodded. “Yeah, just give her a minute to get her senses back.” He instructed.

Ikkaku walked over and set a hand on her shoulder, getting her attention. “Hey, you alright?” he asked.

She tilted her head. “I…think so. Did I…win?” she inquired.

His eyes widened. “Uh…no.” he informed hesitantly.

Timothy then crossed his arms. “I’m not stupid. I hate to admit it, but I would have to agree that your alcohol tolerance is probably better than mine. So, instead of going for ‘stamina’, I went for ‘endurance’. Rather than trying to beat you by drinking more than you over time, I tried beating you by drinking the most at once.”

Ikkaku looked at him. “You do realize that that’s not technically ‘winning’, right?” he informed.

The Lieutenant simply shrugged his shoulder. “Hey, she said ‘I’ set the rules. So I did, and she agreed to them. You all heard her. So that ‘does’ count as a win.” He corrected.

Rangiku glared at him. “That’s cheating!” she accused.

He returned the glare. “No, I made the rules plain and simple to understand. That’s how drinking works. You set a rule, and if you lose to the rule, you lose in general. We all know that. Like I said, and everyone here saw it, you agreed to the rules I set, and you lost.”

She growled at him. “Fine. I’ll let you have this one, but next time you won’t be so lucky.” She informed.

He grinned at her. “I look forward to it. Now, with that out of the way, how about we all sit down and enjoy some friendly drinks together. And because you were a good sport about it, I won’t tell anyone what happened tonight.”

She then turned a bit red from embarrassment. “I get you for that.” She threatened, then briefly filled a saucer and downed it. “This isn’t over, Tim.” she finished, then crossed her arms with a small huff.

Timothy grinned at her. “Looking forward to it, Rangiku. But seriously, you feeling alright?” he asked as he dropped the grin.

The woman turned away and waved him off. “Yeah, I’m fine.” She answered.

He chuckled at her, then turned to Mizuho when she stood up and stretched her arms above her head.

“Well, that was entertaining. You guys go ahead and have fun, I’m turning in for the night.” She stated, then dropped her arms and looked at Ikkaku with a smile. “Don’t stay up too late, sweetie.” She said with a wink.

The man growled and jerked his head to her. “I told you not to call me that! Damn you, woman!” he yelled.

Timothy rose a brow. “So…is she your girlfriend, Ikkaku?” he inquired.

The 3rd seat quickly turned to him. “No! / Yes.” He yelled and everyone else affirmed.

That vein pulsed on the bald man’s head yet again. “What the hell?!” He then pointed at Mizuho. “That damn woman is ‘not’ my damn girlfriend! So, shut up!”

The whole room burst out into a laughing fit while Mizuho walked up behind Ikkaku and grabbed him in a hug from behind, resting her chin on his shoulder.

“Come on, sweetie, there’s no need to hide it. I don’t mind them knowing about us.” She cooed.

Ikkaku flinched and looked over his shoulder at her. “These is no ‘us’! You’re just letting me and Yumichika stay here!” he insisted.

Timothy grinned at him. “Oh? So, does that mean that your rent consists of a little nighttime action?” he teased.

The man froze and Mizuho blushed as everyone else pretty much ended up on the floor laughing. Rukia however, just stood there shaking her head with a smile.

“W…What the hell?! I’m gonna kill you for that!” he growled, then stopped when the teen let him go. He turned to her to see her with her hands folded over her mouth and staring at the floor; her face beat red. “And what the hell is wrong with you?!” he demanded.

“I think you broke the poor girl, Tim.” Rangiku stated through a laugh.

The man shrugged a shoulder. “At least I broke her here and now, and not Ikkaku later.” He teased further, causing another ruckus of laughs.

Ikkaku grabbed the top of his head with a loud growl. “For God’s sakes! Knock it off!” he again yelled as he threw his hands to his sides.

“I’m….gonna…go to bed now.” Mizuho stated skittishly, then swiftly left the room.

As she walked past him, Timothy could that he saw a small smile on the woman’s face, causing him to grin. But that grin suddenly dropped and turned into a frown as his eyes widened when something dawned on him.

“Oh shit…” he said, causing everyone to stop laughing and look at him. He turned to them as well and slapped a hand to his face. “…I’ve been corrupted by Yoruichi.” He observed.

Kitsune snickered. **_“Welcome to the club, Tim. It’s a good thing I wasn’t out during all that, or the guy would have likely tried to strangle you.”_** She pointed out.

Timothy dropped his hand with a moan. “Somehow…I don’t doubt that.” He returned in a low voice.

“What’s that, Tim?” Rukia asked.

He looked at the short woman and waved her off. “Nothing, Kitsune is just being her usual self again.”

The woman nodded. “My sympathies.” She returned.

Timothy nodded back, then widened his eyes again as something else came to him. “That reminds me…” he started then turned back to the group with a serious face. “Captain Hitsugaya told me that you all are aware of my…little secret.”

Everyone’s faces went stern and they all nodded. “Yeah, we found out after your private training session with Urahara.” Ikkaku informed and sat down where Mizuho was before.

“Ok, so ‘why’ did he tell you?” Timothy pressed.

“That’s my fault.” Kitsune said as she materialized next to him.

He turned to her with a raised brow. “How?”

“It’s simple, really.” Renji started as he sat down in between Ikkaku and Rangiku. “We walked in while you were still unconscious to see her and Kisuke talking.” Timothy sighed and poured himself a drink as he nodded for the red-headed man to continue. The man grabbed himself a drink as well. “Even though it’s not that common, a zanpakutō spirit can still materialize without it’s owner’s permission. However, it’s impossible for the spirit to do so while the owner is asleep or unconscious.” He paused to take a sip, where Rukia jumped in.

“As you know, when a soul reaper is unconscious, they normally stay inside their inner world until they wake back up. Because of this, the spirit can’t leave the inner world. Obviously…” she stopped and looked at Kitsune. “…that was not the case. Kit here was outside of your inner world while you were unconscious. That’s what made us suspicious, then Kisuke and her explained your situation to us.” She then turned back to him with a face of pity. “I’m sorry you had to go through all that, Tim. Rest assured, Aizen ‘will’ pay for his crimes.”

Timothy sighed as he closed his eyes, then nodded. “Can you guys at least promise you won’t say anything? The last thing I need is people scrutinizing against me and her.” He pleaded.

Rangiku waved him off. “Your secret is safe with us, Tim.” she assured.

Ikkaku nodded. “Yeah, we won’t say nothing. So who else knows about her?”

The Lieutenant glanced at him. “Komamura, Tetsuzaemon, Kyōraku, Ukitake, Unohana, that Squad 12 Captain, and the Head Captain.” He named off with his fingers.

Everyone’s eyes went wide. “The Head Captain knows?!” Rukia asked in shock.

Timothy sighed again and nodded. “Yeah, he knows. He’s also the reason I’m a damn Lieutenant in the first place.”

“Wait a minute…” Yumichika spoke up. “The Head Captain ‘personally’ made you a Lieutenant?”

Another nod. “Yup. Still don’t like it, but whatever. From what Captain Komamura told me, he technically has the authority of Central 46 right now, so he can do that.”

Renji finished his drink and nodded. “Yeah, with Central 46 gone, the Head Captain is essentially the law of the soul society. Anything he says, goes.” He affirmed.

Timothy gave a heavy sigh and finished his drink as well. “Well, can we drop it for now? So how was your hollow hunt, Renji?” he asked as he poured another drink.

“Wasn’t much of a hunt, just another weak one.” He answered.

“Been a lot of calls since Ichigo went to that special training, or whatever. I wonder how he’s doing.” Rukia said in a low voice.

“Probably being a nuisance like always.” Timothy remarked, getting a snort from Renji.

“You too, huh?” he inquired.

Timothy smirked and nodded. “He ain’t that bad, he’s kinda like me; someone who hates bullshit.” He said, then took a drink.

Renji nodded. “Yeah. But, going back to our earlier discussion, do you really have a Bankai, or is it something else that you and Kit have…if you don’t mind me asking?” he questioned.

Kitsune, who had remained quiet for once, spoke up as she reached out for a drink of her own. “Before Tim had put me in his inner world, it was my power that he could use. But now, it is an authentic Bankai. But as it is right now, Tim still has a lot of work and training to do before he can fully control it.”

Rukia glanced at the spirit. “Kisuke did say that your Bankai required a lot of spiritual pressure to use.”

The spirit downed her drink, then nodded. “Yes, a lot more than your typical Bankai. As you know, with Bankais where the user simply wields the zanpakutō, the power of the Bankai flows through the blade. However, with Bankais that become a part of the user’s body, like in Tim’s case, the power flows through that person’s body. Yours is a perfect example, Renji. Your zanpakutō almost becomes a part of your body, so your spiritual pressure has to be a bit higher than average. And we can all feel it.”

The man nodded in understanding as she poured another drink and held it. “Yeah, that’s true. To be honest, I’m a little interested in seeing how I would stand against your abilities, Tim.” he stated and took a sip.

Kitsune chuckled. “No offense Renji, but the simple fact is that you would stand no chance against my abilities.” The spirit stated. “I’m not saying you’re not a good fighter, or that your Bankai ain’t any good, I’m just saying that with the style your zanpakutō is used, you wouldn’t be able to keep up.” She concluded and finished her drink.

Renji glared at her. “Hey!”

Rukia glanced at him. “Actually, I would have to agree with her, Renji. Zabimaru just isn’t suited to fight a zanpakutō like Tim’s.” she pointed out, getting the man’s attention.

“Traitor.” He moaned.

Timothy then held up a hand. “She may be right Renji, but there is a weakness that Kit has.” He started, regaining everyone’s attention before dropping his hand back down. “While in Shikai, all I can do is move from one spot to another. The ability can’t cause any direct damage, meaning that I have to do it myself. That’s where the weakness is; I have to expose myself in order to attack. Anyone with decent reflexes can block my attacks, and if they’re fast enough, can turn around and nail me before I can vanish. Zaraki proved that one.”

Kitsune nodded. “Yes, it’s only while he’s in Bankai that my flames can be used as a weapon. At that point, any contact with any of the flames will set you ablaze. Tim can also spawn a whole lot more of them; meaning, that if he catches you in an open area, there’s nowhere you can go that he can’t. Another weakness is the timing. Both my Shikai, and Bankai are heavily reliant on Tim’s timing. If it’s off by only a little, it’ll mess him up badly.”

Ikkaku poured another drink and held it to his face. “I got it…so you’re saying that if he losses focus, it’ll be a bad day for him.” He observed.

Timothy and Kitsune both nodded. “Essentially, yes.” He affirmed.

The conversation was interrupted by the sudden beeping of a numerous cell phones. Rukia and Yumichika pulled theirs out and flipped them open, each pressing a button and looking at their screens.

“It would seem that we have another hollow alert.” The 5th seat advised.

Rukia nodded. “Yeah, it’s about a quarter mile from here, near the park.” She added.

Timothy held up a hand. “I’ll get this one, I’m gonna call it a night anyway. Kisuke had some early morning training for me, so I’ll need to get some sleep.” He said, then stood up. “We should do this again soon. It was fun.” He furthered, earning a nod from Kitsune.

“Yeah, making fun of Ikkaku and his girlfriend is very entertaining.” She added with a grin at the said man.

Ikkaku shot to his feet and growled with balled fists. “She’s not my damn girlfriend!” he yelled.

Timothy held a finger to his mouth and shushed him. “Be quiet, your girlfriend’s sleeping.”

Everyone snickered while Ikkaku growled louder. “You’re a dead man! Just wait till our next match, Tim!” he said, now shaking his fist at him.

The Lieutenant simply waved him off and started for the door as Kitsune faded back into his inner world.

“See ya’ll later.” He said with a wave over his shoulder.

“Yeah, see ya Tim.” Renji called back as he poured another drink.

Rukia watched as the man left the apartment and closed the door behind him. She continued to watch the door for a moment longer before she crossed her arms and sighed.

“I have to admit…” she started in a low voice, getting Rangiku’s attention before looking at the woman. “I’m actually very impressed with the way Tim reacts around Kit…considering that she’s his former wife.” She stated with a serious face.

The rest of the group turned to her while Rangiku glanced at the door. “Yeah, so am I. I actually feel really bad for him.” She admitted.

Yumichika nodded. “Yes, it’s quiet distressing thinking about it. But at least she is still around and not lost to him for good.”

Ikkaku looked at his friend. “Yeah, you got a point there. Anyway, these drinks aren’t gonna finish themselves, so let’s get to it.” He half demanded, then finished his drink before reaching to refill it.

Rukia then looked at her friend. “Renji, can I talk with you for a minute?” she asked.

The man nodded, then finished his own drink; setting the saucer down before standing up to follow the woman out of the room. The two of them left the apartment where Rukia came to a stop in the hallway while Renji closed the door behind him.

“What’s up Ruks?” he asked as he crossed his arms.

She crossed her arms as well with a serious glare. “I didn’t want to bring this up in front of Tim, but we need to figure something out about Nel.”

He rose a brow. “What about her?” he asked cautiously.

“You know it won’t be long before the Captain finds out about her. Afterall, we did find out about Kit by accident, and that’s all it takes for the same to happen with her. I want your opinion Renji, what do you think Captain Hitsugaya would do if he found out about her?” she stated firmly.

Renji sighed as he dropped one hand to his hip, and rubbed the back of his head with the other. “I’ve really got no idea, Rukia. I mean…if Captain Hitsugaya took a moment to let Tim explain the situation to him, he might work with him on it. But that’s the thing, I seriously doubt he would take that time.”

Rukia shook her head in agreeance. “I don’t think he would either…and that’s the problem.”

“What do you mean?” he inquired.

She sighed heavily. “What I mean, is that if Captain Hitsugaya straight out attacks Nel as an enemy, which he is likely to do, you know that Tim would end up fighting back. Granted, he wouldn’t get too serious about it, and would only try to prevent any harm from coming to her, but you know full well how Captain Hitsugaya would react to that.”

He let out a deep breath. “Yeah…I do. So, what are you thinking Rukia?”

“I don’t know what to think…or do. I’m just trying to solve a problem before it becomes a catastrophe. Nel seems like a nice person, and if we can just get Captain Hitsugaya to see that, it might not be so bad when he finds out.” She proposed.

Renji nodded. “I agree. But the problem is, how do we do that?”

She shook her head with closed eyes. “I’m not sure, Renji. I’m hoping you might have something.”

He scoffed at her. “I’ve got nothing. I’ll keep an open mind about it, but right now, I’ve got no idea on what to do about this. Maybe we should talk to Tim and see what he comes up with.”

Rukia shook her head again. “I doubt he would agree with it. But you’re right, we’ll need to keep an open mind on this and try to figure something out.”

Renji gave a heavy sigh. “I hate to ask Rukia, but if Tim and Captain Hitsugaya do end up fighting each other, who would you side with?”

She widened her eyes at him. “Renji?!”

“I mean it Rukia. You know damn well that you would have to choose between Tim and following the orders of the soul society. Tim would be viewed as a traitor, and if you sided with him, so would you.” He pointed out.

The woman lowered her head a bit. “I know…I really don’t know who I would side with. Tim means well, but he’s facing serious circumstances. It’s like you said; if I side with him, we’ll both end up being labeled as traitors. But if I side with Captain Hitsugaya…” she paused.

The man nodded. “Then you’ll be abandoning a friend.” He finished.

“Yeah.” The woman affirmed.

Renji crossed his arms again as he closed his eyes and tilted his head. “I wonder if Kisuke might be able to come up with something.”

The woman rolled her eyes at him. “I have no doubt that he would, but I can almost be certain that none of us, especially Tim, will like it. I’ll give him credit that he does got the job done, but all of us can agree that his…methods…are very questionable.” She pointed.

He then sweat dropped. “Yeah…you got a point. Now that I think about, I don’t think I would like what he would come up with.” He gave a heavy sigh. “But like you said, he ‘does’ get the job done. None of us may like the way he gets it done, but until we can come up with something, he’s the only option we got.” He stated reluctantly.

Rukia started rubbing her temples in annoyance. “So, we’re both agreed that we keep Tim out of this?” she inquired.

“I don’t wanna keep something like this from him, knowing how he would likely react if he found out; but it’s way better than what could happen if we just let it sit as is.” He admitted.

She dropped her hand and nodded. “Agreed. Alright, we’ll avoid telling Tim about this…at least for now. I think we should talk with Kisuke sometime in the next couple of days. The sooner, the better.”

Renji gestured with his thumb to the door behind him. “What about Rangiku and the others? Rangiku’s spent some time with her, hasn’t she?”

Rukia looked at the door and rose a brow. “That’s true…and from what she told me, the two of them did seem to get along.” She then glanced at him. “But we both know that she would never go against her own Captain. She would probably plead her case, but in the end, she would still side with Captain Hitsugaya. She’s more loyal to him than anyone else in the soul society.”

The man nodded. “Yeah, but she would at least be able to help keep him calm long enough for the needed explanation. I say that we get her in on this, maybe even include her in the conversation with Kisuke.”

“That’s risky. You know she wouldn’t keep something like this from the Captain…at least not for long. It’s best if we keep this to where we can break the news to him at the right time. As far as Ikkaku and Yumichika, I really have no idea what they would do. I don’t think they would outright help us, but I can’t really say they would jump to their feet to tell the Captain. I’m thinking they just might remain neutral with this and see where it goes.” She stated lowly.

Renji started scratching the top of his head as he nodded. “Yeah, I think I would have to agree with that.” He thought the matter over for a second, then sighed. “Alright, how about we hear what Kisuke has to say and what ‘brilliant’ idea he comes up with, then we can decide whether we include Rangiku or not?” he suggested.

Rukia nodded. “Sounds good to me, Renji. We’ll have to catch Kisuke at a time where he’s not training Tim, and we’re not busy with something else. But I still think we should talk with him sometime within the next few days.”

He nodded back. “Agreed. But keep this in mind Rukia…” he paused and held a finger up. “…I don’t exactly trust the woman yet. I’m only helping you guys because I trust you and Tim. Don’t think I won’t I won’t go after her myself if she proves wrong. I’ll always side with you Rukia, but that doesn’t mean I won’t do the right thing.” He assured.

The woman nodded firmly. “I understand, Renji. You know I wouldn’t ask you to do something that was completely unethical. Thanks for your help.”

The man rested a hand on her shoulder and grinned. “Happy to help. Now let’s get back inside, before Ikkaku and Rangiku drink it all.”

Rukia scoffed lightly. “I still can’t believe Tim tricked her like that. Him and Kit are both conniving foxes.”

Her friend laughed aloud as he opened the door. “I can’t argue that one.” He stated as the two of them walked back inside the apartment.

But they quickly stopped and widened their eyes when they saw Ikkaku sitting on the couch, just barely, and leaning side to side a bit; his eyelids starting to droop down as Yumichika stared at him with disbelief.

When they turned to Rangiku, they could see that, although nowhere near as bad as Ikkaku, she was also flowing side to side and skillfully managing not to spill the drink in her hand. The woman turned over her shoulder to them and smiled.

“Hey guys, that was a long talk. You missed all the fun.” She commented.

Rukia turned to the only sober person in the group. “What happened?” she inquired in surprise.

Yumichika sighed heavily. “Rangiku managed to, once again, goad Ikkaku into a little competition. I must say that it is so unsightly, seeing him fall for her taunts over and over again. I am beginning to wonder if Ikkaku will ever learn his lesson.” He answered, then gently ran a hand over his hair to force it back down perfectly.

“But…we were only gone for like…five minutes.” Renji stated.

“And yet to seem to forget that five minutes is a long time when it comes to drinking with Rangiku.” The 5th seat pointed out.

Rukia rolled her eyes to her friend. “He does have a point, Renji. In fact, it wouldn’t surprise me much if this all started only ‘two’ minutes ago.”

Renji sweat dropped at the, correctly placed, comment. “You know what Rukia…I don’t think that it would surprise me either.”

** Underground Training Area, The Next Morning **

Nel slowly peeked an eye around the corner of the boulder she was hiding behind, a small grin coming to her face when she saw that Timothy’s back was currently to her. From what she could tell, it didn’t seem like he had noticed her yet.

Today, she had come down to the training area about ten minutes earlier than she normally did, meaning that the chances of her getting the drop on him were very high this time. After being ‘caught’ eight times in a row, which still baffled her on how he did it, it was about time to break her losing streak.

But at the moment, she faced a bit of a problem. The area where Timothy was currently working was wide open, and left her with almost nothing to use to get closer to him. In fact, the boulder she was currently hiding behind was the closest one to him, and even it was still a good fifty to sixty feet away from him.

She could try to use sonído to instantly appear next to him, but the problem with that idea was that the instant she left her gigai, he would know she was there; and with him currently in his Shikai, he would use his flames to vanish before she even arrived at the location. So that one was out of the park.

Her Super Acceleration would get her there quick enough before he could react in time, but a single mistake in using the right amount force to propel her there could cause her to accidentally run into him. That wouldn’t be a problem for her, but it would definitely cause him a good amount of damage. So that was a ‘no’ as well.

This left her with only two options; either wait until his training just happens to bring him closer, or find a way to make him come closer. Either option put her at risk of being discovered, and she had very little time left before he would start expecting her.

Whatever she was going to do, she needed to do it soon.

“Bit early, aren’t you?” a voice inquired from behind her.

“Eep!” she yelled as she jumped from her position behind the large rockface. She then quickly turned to the person with her hand clutched to her chest. “Damn it, Tim! That’s not fair! I’m stuck in this stupid gigai, while you have your stupid flames! And how did you know I was here?!” she stated with her face now red from embarrassment and anger.

Timothy laughed loudly and sealed his zanpakutō. “I didn’t, Kit did. I’ll admit that I didn’t see you come down the ladder, but she did, and she told me.” He informed.

Nel stomped her foot on the ground. “Damn you, Kit! Stop helping him! I would have had him this time if it wasn’t for you!” she accused.

Said spirit then materialized next to her partner with a wide grin on her face. “And where would the fun in that be? Come on Nel, do you really expect me to let my own partner down?” she inquired as she crossed her arms.

The teal-haired woman growled at the pair. “I hate you.” She hissed at the spirit.

Kitsune shrugged a shoulder. “That’s fine, you’ll like me again one day. But, better luck next time, Nel. You know you could always just leave the gigai and try to catch him.” She pointed out.

Nel growled again. “No, I can’t. Kisuke stated, adamantly I might add, that I should never leave my gigai; unless it’s an emergency.” She then folded her arms loosely. “And I hate it. I feel so weak and pathetic in this stupid body. And it’s getting tiring wearing it all the time. It feels so…restricting.”

Timothy sighed and nodded before sitting down on the side of the boulder. “Yeah, I know what you mean. I get to get out of mine everyday when I’m training, but I don’t think you come out of yours once since those Espada attacked.”

The woman shook her head. “No, I’ve been in this thing ever since then. It wouldn’t be so bad if it felt…a guess a little roomier.” She returned, then sat down next to him while Kitsune simply sat down on the ground in front of them with her legs crossed.

“With your chest as big as it is Nel, I can’t even begin to imagine what you would look like if Kisuke made you a gigai that was more ‘roomier’.” The spirit teased with a grin, making both Timothy and Nel turn a bright red.

Timothy quickly turned to her and grabbed her by her long ear, the spirit wincing in pain. “Don’t you ‘dare’ start with your stupid games this morning, vixen!” he hissed.

“Ow! Alright! Now let go of my ear, idiot!” she yelled back.

The Lieutenant gave it one last tug to emphasize his point, then let her go. Kitsune started rubbing and massaging it to relieve the pain as she glared at her partner. After a moment of silence, Kitsune sighed and turned back to Nel.

“Anyway, I feel for you Nel, I really do.” The spirit said, then leaned back and propped herself up with her hands behind her. “Besides that, you been doing alright?”

Nel leaned her back against the boulder with a heavy sigh, her redness fading slowly. “I guess so.” She half answered.

Timothy turned to her with a raised brow. “Why don’t I believe that, Nel? Has something been bugging you?” he asked with concern.

The woman closed her eyes and sighed again. “Yeah…but don’t worry about it. It’s just something personal.” She assured.

Kitsune gave her a worried look. “Nel…you know that you can talk to me and Tim, right? I might tease you here and there, but I’ll never judge you. And neither would Tim. Why don’t you tell us what’s wrong?” she pressed.

Nel leaned forward, resting her elbows on her thighs and bracing her head up with her hands on the sides. She then took a deep breath before letting it out slowly.

“It’s…It has to do…with Tim.” she admitted.

The man rose a brow. “Me? What did I do?” he asked in surprise.

She quickly lifted her head and waved him off with both hands. “Oh no, it’s not something ‘you’ did Tim! It’s…” she stopped, then dropped her hands and turned her head a bit. “…something ‘I’ did.” She corrected in a low voice.

Kitsune looked at Tim in confusion, who returned the look, then back to her with a tilted head. “Ok…then what did ‘you’ do then?”

Nel dropped her head lower, not answering the question; so Timothy reached out and placed a hand on her shoulder gently. The action made her glance back at him to see a small smile on his face.

“Hey…Kit already told you that we wouldn’t judge you, Nel. We want to hear what’s wrong, but we don’t wanna pressure you either. If it’s something that personal, then you don’t have to tell us.” He soothed.

She balled her fists, gripping the fabric of her pant legs in them tightly. “It’s not that, Tim. You and Kit have each other, but now I don’t have anyone.”

He cocked his head in confusion. “What do you mean you don’t have anyone? You’ve got me and Kit right here.” He pointed out.

Nel shook her head. “That’s not what I mean. What I mean is…” she stopped and lowered her head again. “I’ve lost Gamuza.” She said at last.

Timothy and Kitsune’s eyes widened. “What the hell do you mean you’ve lost Gamuza?! I thought you managed to get her back!” Kitsune said firmly.

The woman nodded slightly. “I did…and she’s still there…inside my inner world. But…” She sniffed and turned to the spirit. “I gave her up.” She said with tears in her eyes, shocking the pair.

The Lieutenant removed his hand from her shoulder. “Wait a minute…you ‘gave her up’? What exactly are you talking about?” he inquired; then something hit him, and his face went stern. “Hold on…I’m gonna take a wild guess here and say that you and her had another argument about me, right?” he asked seriously.

Nel shied away a bit, but nodded. “Yes. She’s still very adamant about killing you, and that I couldn’t possibly…have feelings for you.”

He stared at her for a moment, then sighed heavily and began rubbing his face in annoyance. Kitsune kept switching her glances between him and Nel, until she sighed.

“What exactly does this mean for you, Nel? What exactly did you do?” she pressed.

The Arrancar looked at her in sadness. “I…I told Gamuza…that we were done.”

Timothy stopped his rubbing and side glanced her with wide eyes. “Wait…you ‘purposely’ left her? As in…you abandoned your own hollow spirit?” he questioned in worry.

The woman dropped her head again and nodded slowly. “Yes. I told her that…as long as she wants to kill you…that while she has hatred towards you…that I wanted nothing to do with her. I told her…that we were done with each other.”

The three of them sat there in silence, with Timothy and Kitsune staring at Nel in complete shock and worry. Neither of them could believe that the woman, who was so distressed when she thought she lost Gamuza and had fought so hard to get her back, would just willing give her up again because of him.

Timothy turned back forward and lowered his head. “Why Nel…” he asked in a low voice, getting her attention. “…why would you do that for me? Gamuza is not just some random person, or an object to possess…she is a part of you…your soul. So, tell me…” He paused and turned his eyes to her sternly. “Why would you do that for me? I know you have feelings for me and all, and in all honesty, I’m glad; but to completely abandon something…someone who is ‘literally’ a part of your own soul, do you really think your feelings for me are more important than that?”

Nel turned her head away with her lips twitching. She remained there for a moment, until she felt a hand rest on hers on her leg. She turned back to the owner of the hand to see Timothy with a tear in his eye.

“Nel, answer me. Do you really see me as more important than you own hollow spirit?” he pressed harder.

Kitsune leaned forward off her arms. “Nel, this is important, so please tell us.” She pleaded in a kind, yet still very concerned voice.

The woman lowered her head, then nodded. “You are important to me Tim…Gamuza is never going to give up. I can tell that she is always going to hate you, and I’m afraid that, one day, she’ll find a way to kill you.” She said, then looked at him with tears in her eyes. “And I don’t want that to happen. I don’t know what it is…but I feel that I just can’t lose you, Tim. I know that my feelings for you are a part of it, I’m fully aware of that. But…I just…” Her voice then gave out, so she dropped her head again.

Her shoulders then started twitching as she began to break down. Timothy noticed this, so he did the best thing he could think of that would help; he reached out and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her head to his chest as he began stroking her hair.

She returned the gesture, wrapping her own arms around him in return as her last bit of willpower broke away. She started crying lightly into his chest as he kept on with his gesture on the top of her head.

“It’s ok, Nel. I’m sorry that you’re going through that.” He soothed, then rested his cheek on the top of her head with a sigh.

Kitsune however, was watching the whole ordeal with shock and remembrance. She could remember, from when they were alive, every single time that ‘she’ had been in that exact position that the Arrancar was now in.

She honestly couldn’t count the number of times that she had been there in his arms, being soothed by him after something had happened, or she had done something wrong. But even though she couldn’t count them, she very clearly remembered how it felt; and deep down inside, she honestly missed the feeling it gave her.

She then looked at her partner with pained, yet knowing eyes, a small and kind smile creeping on her face. He turned his eyes to her as well, giving her an inaudible stare that told her that it would be wise not to say anything regarding him and Nel’s current situation.

The spirt gave him a slight nod, then stood up and swiftly stepped away; leaving the two of them alone. Timothy watched as she did before sighing and carefully pushing Nel back from him by her shoulders.

Cupping her chin, he lifted her head to force her to look at him. “Listen Nel…I appreciate going through something that severe for me, but the fact of the matter is that Gamuza is still a part of you. I understand you want to protect me from her, but you can’t just cut off a part of yourself to do so. Instead, you and her need to find some way to come to an understanding. If I could help you, I would; but this is something that only you can do. So, talk to her, and try to find someway that you two can still work together without her having to kill me.”

Nel pulled her head away. “I can’t…It doesn’t matter what I do or say Tim…she will never accept you.” She then looked back at him with a half serious face. “And I’ll tell you the same thing I told her, that I don’t regret my decision, Tim. I don’t want to be without Gamuza, because, like you said, she is a part of me. But you are more important to me than she is. So, if she can’t accept you, then I can’t accept her. That’s just how it is, Tim.” she stated firmly.

Timothy dropped his hand and sighed. “You’re sure that there’s absolutely no way that she could even consider a compromise?” he pressed.

She lowered her head a bit, then shook it lightly. “I seriously doubt it, Tim. Unlike me, who is pretty much half human and half hollow, with human feelings and thoughts, she is nothing but pure hollow. She is basically my instincts with a physical form. So, it is in her to hate you, to basically hate everything. As I said, I don’t like having to discard Gamuza, but I do not regret it. I’ve made my decision Tim, and I’m only asking that you will please accept it, and not hate me for it.”

He sat there calmly, staring at her for a moment, before finally grabbing the sides of her head gently and pulling her to him to lightly kiss her on the forehead. The action surprised her, but only for a second until he pulled her closer and wrapped his arms around her.

“I don’t think I could hate you, Nel. I definitely don’t like the idea of you discarding Gamuza, but I don’t hate you for it. It’s your soul, your being. If you honestly believe that this is the only option, then I’ll accept it. But please don’t think that I would hate you for it.” He said in a low voice.

She then wrapped her arms around him as well, and nodded into his chest. “Thank you, Tim.” she returned.

“Hey, lovebirds.” A voice called out from behind him. He turned around to see Kitsune standing there with a hand on her hip and gesturing to the ladder with the other. “Sorry to jump in, but the ‘kid’ and the others are here. They just walked in.” she informed.

He rose a brow at her as he suddenly felt their spiritual pressures as well. “They’re a little early today. We haven’t even had breakfast yet.” He stated, releasing Nel.

Kitsune nodded. “I know. So how about we go get something to eat before he decides breakfast’s not important?” she offered.

Nel held up a hand. “I’m actually not hungry this morning. You two go ahead, I’ll stay down here for a little while.”

Timothy nodded, then stood up as the spirit turned to him. “I’ll stay down here too, Tim. Nel and I need to catch up on some things.” She stated.

His face dropped. “Why don’t I trust you?” he moaned.

She then walked up and lightly smacked him against the head. “I’m not gonna do anything, stupid. Besides, we already ‘agreed’ that I wouldn’t tease her anymore.”

The Lieutenant’s eyes widened a bit. “I’m surprised you willingly remembered that. Alright…but you better be nice. And Nel…” He paused and glanced at her. “…make sure to let me know if she acts…like her normal self.” He instructed.

Nel chuckled lightly. “Don’t be so harsh on her, Tim. She said she wouldn’t do anything, and I trust her. So, should you, seeing as she’s ‘your’ partner.”

He rose a disbelieving brow at her. “You try spending twelve years with that vixen in your head, then say that you trust her. I doubt that would be possible.” He mocked.

Kitsune smacked him again, but harder. “Stop being an ass, Tim! Now shut up and go eat!” she demanded as she pointed towards the ladder.

“Yes mommy.” He moaned, then started walking away.

She then crossed her arms with a grin. “That’s right, do as your ‘mommy’ says. That’s a good boy.” She teased.

He stopped, then turned his head to her in anger. “I hate you.” He hissed.

The spirit shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly. “But you love me as well. Now shoo, and let us girls have our talk.” She said with a dismissing wave of her hand.

Timothy growled, but finally turned back around and continued walking away. The spirit watched and waited for a few moments until she was sure that he was gone and not simply hiding to listen in on their conversation.

Once she was content that he was gone, she finally turned to the other woman. “So Nel…” she started, getting her attention. “…just between us, so that you don’t worry Tim, what does this mean for you? I mean…discarding your own hollow spirit?” she inquired with a serious look.

Nel’s face dropped. “It’s simple Kit, it means that I can no longer use my hollow abilities; for the exception of Cero, sonído, and the like. I can still use Cero Doble, but besides that, nothing else. It also means that I can’t use my Resurrección. Essentially…I’m useless.” She admitted as she lowered her head.

Kitsune looked at her for a second before sighing and walking over to sit next to her on the boulder. She then returned to looking at the woman to see a sorrowful look on her face, and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.

“What Tim said was completely true, Nel.” She said, causing her to glance at the spirit. “Tim could never hate you. He might get mad if things don’t go right, and to be blunt, he may even get mad at you sometimes. Hell, he gets mad at me on a daily basis.” She stated with a grin, then morphed it into a kind smile. “He may get mad at you, but he will never outright hate you. It’s just not in his nature. In fact, in the almost thirty years that I’ve known him, I’ve only ever seen him hate one person…and I’m sure you know who that is, Nel.”

Nel nodded firmly. “Aizen.” She answered, getting a confirming nod from Kitsune.

“That…monster…is the only being I have ever seen him hate. But even now, although he very strongly detests him, Tim doesn’t outright hate Aizen anymore. So, it goes back to what he told you, to never think that he would hate you for something, Nel.” She then patted the woman’s shoulder twice before resting her hand in her lap. “Actually, his feelings for you are a bit deeper than you think.” She added.

The Arrancar looked at her in confusion. “What do you mean, Kit?” she inquired.

Kitsune rolled her eyes to her with a small smile. “It’s simple. But before I tell you anything, I just want to put it out there that the conversation we’re about to have is a serious one, and not one of my ‘games’, if you want to call em that.” She stated firmly.

Nel then sat straight and sighed before nodding. “I’m listening.” Said affirmed in a low voice, a bit hesitant to hear what the spirit had to say.

The spirit turned here stare to the rocky ceiling with a sigh of her own. “I’m not gonna lead you around in circles Nel, so I’ll just simply say it as it is.” She started, then looked back at the woman. “Although he isn’t ready to admit it yet, and is even having a hard time believing it, Tim’s in love with you.” She said flatly.

The other woman’s eyes went wide as her cheeks turned pink. “W…What?” she stuttered.

“He’s in love with you.” Kitsune said again flatly, causing the woman to lean back a bit in surprise. “Like I said, he hasn’t fully accepted that he does yet, and it will probably be a while before he admits it to you, but deep down he does love you.”

Nel started scratching her cheek in thought, eyes still a bit wide. “Um…I don’t really know that much about ‘love’ and that stuff…but…isn’t that…a little fast? I mean…” She then turned away, cheeks now red, and moaned lightly. “I can’t…exactly say that…I mind, it actually…sort of makes me happy…to hear that. But…” She stopped, then glanced at the spirit. “…we’ve only known each other for…three weeks? At best? So…I don’t know, but…it somehow feels like, whatever this is, is moving a bit too quickly.” She pointed out.

Kitsune nodded. “Maybe a bit, but we’ve already had this conversation once. Each couple moves at their own pace, Nel. Besides, Tim already told you, and I agree, that the two of you would move at ‘your’ pace. I know Tim, and he’s not going to do anything, or say anything until he knows that you’re ready to proceed. I don’t remember, but did I tell you how long it took for him to build up the courage to kiss me?” she asked, getting a head shake in return. She then held up four fingers. “Four months. It took him four months to finally kiss me, and I had to instigate it. Tim’s too much of a damn gentleman to make any moves, or whatever.”

She then snickered and placed a hand on her shoulder. “In fact, ‘you’re’ the one who would probably have to start everything. I mean shit, I nearly dropped dead from shock when he kissed you in the store. I can normally read what Tim’s about to do, or what he’s thinking; but I honestly ‘never’ expected that one.”

Nel looked towards the ladder and sighed heavily. “What do I do, Kit? You say that Tim will wait for me, but I don’t know how to go on. I want to return his feelings…at least, I think I do…but I don’t want to do the wrong thing and hurt him. To be honest…before I came here from Hueco Mundo, not once has ‘love’, or romantic feelings ever crossed my mind.”

“Nel.” Kitsune interrupted, getting the woman to look at her. “Can I ask you something? No joking, teasing, or anything like that…it’s a genuine question that I really want to know the answer to.” She asked with a perfectly straight face.

The woman nodded. “Yes.”

The spirit stared at her for a second before starting. “Answer truthfully Nel…or at least the best way that you can. And I promise that whatever you say ‘will’ stay between us. So, tell me…what exactly do you feel towards Tim? And I mean on a personal level.” She inquired.

Nel lowered her head to the floor and sighed. “I don’t really know how to explain it, Kit. You already know that I have feelings for him, and I know it too. But…”

The woman paused, causing Kitsune to nod in understanding. “But they feel really deep?” she offered, getting a nod back. “You feel like you…’need’ him?” The woman clasped her hands together tightly, and nodded again.

“Yes. I feel like I can’t stand being away from him. I know I’ve already said this, but it’s really the only way I can think of to explain it.” She admitted.

Kitsune placed a hand on the woman’s back and started rubbing gently. “It’s fine, Nel. I think I know what you’re trying to say. I’m being dead serious when I say this, but I think it’s possible that you might have the exact same feelings for Tim as he does for you.” She observed.

Nel’s head swiftly turned to her in surprise. “Wait…are you saying that…I might ‘love’ him?!” she pressed.

The spirit sighed, but nodded gently. “It’s very difficult to tell with you Nel, simply because of your…lack of knowledge in things regarding romance and such. But…from what little I can see, I would have to say that it’s possible.” She affirmed.

The Arrancar returned her head to the front and down as she clutched the sides with her hands, tightly grabbing her hair between her fingers. She then sniffed as tears began forming in her eyes, causing the spirit next to her to continue rubbing her back.

“Why did I have to be a hollow? Why did everything have to be taken from me? I know I used to be human at one time, long ago…but why did I have to become the monster I am? The others…they can’t see what we are, because being a hollow is all we know. But…now that I know that there’s so much missing from our souls, I hate being what I am. I hate knowing that I should be feeling something, but don’t know what it is. I just want this emptiness to go away.” She admitted in a breaking voice.

**_“…So…you want it all to go away, do you?”_** a familiar and slightly demonic voice said inside her head.

Nel gasped as she raised her head with wide eyes, surprising Kitsune. “Nel…you ok?” she cautiously asked.

_“…What do you want…Gamuza?”_ she responded inwardly.

The hollow spirit scoffed. **_“Simple…to give you ‘just’ what you asked for.”_** She returned.

Before the woman could ask, or even think about what the spirit said, her whole body pulsed with intense pain and pressure, causing her to fall forward onto her hands and knees. Kitsune was on her own knees and next to the woman in an instant with concerned eyes as she rested her hands on the woman’s shoulders.

“Nel! What’s wrong?!” she asked in a bit of panic.

Nel pulled her fingers in, scooping up dirt as she gritted her teeth to withstand the immense pressure on her body. But she was brought down to her elbows as another harsh wave of pressure was forced upon her.

Kitsune was now very worried about her friend. Something was apparently causing her a great deal of pain, but she honestly couldn’t think of what it could be. The woman was perfectly fine not five seconds ago, and now, here she is, down on the ground and barely able to stay up on her hands and knees.

“Nel! Talk to me! What’s going on?!” she yelled as she gently shook the woman’s shoulders, tears beginning to form in her own eyes.

The woman flinched in pain as she balled her fists tightly. _“Gamuza…what…what are you…doing?!”_ she yelled to the spirit.

**_“Just giving you a hand with giving you what you asked for.”_** She replied. **_“You want it all to end? Well fine, I’ll end it for you. I’ll pull you in here, take over your mind and body, then bury you deep within your own soul. That way, you’ll never have to worry about being a hollow, or not knowing what those…feelings…are ever again. I’ll kill you, and become the hollow you should have been. But before I do, I’m going to make you watch, as I kill that spirit next to you, and her damn partner.”_** She hissed, then pulled on the woman’s mind harder.

Nel’s eyes widened in horror, then in agony as she felt her own consciousness being pulled away and deep inside her. She dropped her head to the ground and clutched it with both hands as a small whine of pain escaped her throat.

“K…Kit…” she tried to choke out. “G…Get a…away from…from me!” she managed to get out.

The spirit tilted her head in confusion as tears ran down her cheeks. “What?” she asked in surprise.

Nel then threw her arm out, hitting the spirit in the chest and forcing her back a few feet and onto the ground. She then very slowly, and painfully, got back up to her feet and took a step away from the spirit, still holding the sides of her head tightly.

The situation then got worse when she suddenly felt the pressure starting to force her spiritual body out of the gigai. And with how hard Gamuza was pulling on her mind, she knew that as soon as she left the faux body, she wouldn’t be able to hold the spirit back any longer.

“Kit! G…Go g…get Tim!” she yelled.

But before the spirit could move to get up, Nel’s spiritual body was suddenly forced from her gigai; her Arrancar form now fully present in front of the zanpakutō spirit. The instant it did, the whole room was flooded with an immense, and unstable spiritual pressure that the people upstairs could not have possibly missed.

It wasn’t but two seconds later when Timothy flashed into existence right next to Kitsune, who was still on the ground in complete shock. He looked at Nel with wide eyes, then to her in fury.

“What the hell did you do?!” he yelled, his fists balled.

Kitsune didn’t even bother to look at him. “I…I didn’t do anything! She just…she just dropped to the ground in pain, and now she’s like this! This wasn’t me! I swear to God it wasn’t me!” she almost yelled back.

Timothy quickly turned back to Nel and began to walk towards her. But he just as quickly stopped when she threw a hand out to force him back.

“S…Stay away…Tim! It’s…Gam…Gamuza! She’s…” She was unable to finish, as she suddenly drew her zanpakutō and charged at him; the blade held high to cut down across his chest.

Thanks to his reflexes, that had vastly improved over the past two weeks of intense training with Urahara, he had managed, albeit barely, to draw his own zanpakutō and block her attack; a mere inch from his chest.

His eyes widened even further when he saw that her eyes, that were normally a hazel color, were now a deep, golden yellow. But while the sudden change in eye color surprised him, the look of sheer hatred and killing intent within them nearly shocked him into fear.

“Nel! What are you doing?!” he yelled at her as he tried to hold her back.

She gritted her teeth as a lone tear ran down her cheek. “Tim…run…” she just barely managed to get out, then her eyes narrowed.

“Yes…run.” She said further, but this time, in a very malicious manner. “Run away…fucking soul reaper!” she hissed further, causing his eyes to turn to saucers.

“G…Gamuza?!” he guessed in complete shock, causing Kitsune’s eyes to go wider as well.

‘Gamuza’ grinned madly. “We finally meet…you damn brat!” she greeted as she pushed into him harder. “You’ve cause me a whole lot of fucking pain, and grief ever since that damned night! Nelliel should have just let that pathetic Adjuchas kill you, then she wouldn’t have started following you like a lost kitten. She wouldn’t have developed these ‘feelings’ for you, and I wouldn’t have to resort to this!” she yelled as she gave him a swift kick to the side, sending him into the boulder they were sitting at earlier.

“Nel! Stop! This isn’t you! Don’t let her do this!” Kitsune, now on her feet, yelled.”

‘Gamuza’ turned and quickly charged at the spirit.

Although she could still surround herself with her fox fire, it did nothing to protect her against direct attacks. And she couldn’t use any of her abilities while she was materialized like she was; and frankly, neither could Timothy.

Kitsune managed at the last second to duck and roll out of the way before Gamuza was able to cut her down. The blade simply passed through the now empty air and struck the ground with enough force to cut into the rocky ground a few inches.

The possessed woman turned to her prey. “Run while you can, spirit! Your death will come quickly, either way! Yours, and that pathetic excuse of a soul reaper you call a partner!” She growled, then lifted her blade and prepared another charge. “Both of you will die here, and I’m going to make sure that damn Nelliel sees it all!” she yelled, then charged again at the now recovering spirit.

But before the blade could make contact with her, it was stopped with the loud clanging sound of another blade. Gamuza turned a bit to see Timothy, who had jumped in front of the attack and parried with his own zanpakutō.

“Stop this, Gamuza! We are ‘not’ your enemies! What have we ever done to you?!” he growled as he struggled to hold back his attacker’s blade.

Gamuza rose a brow. “What have you done to me? Absolutely nothing! You are a soul reaper, an enemy of the hollows! Nelliel might be a blind, naïve, and foolish woman, but I am ‘none’ of those things! I am a hollow! And I will kill you here and now!” she threatened, then released her off-hand to hold two fingers towards his chest.

Timothy’s eyes widened as Gamuza began to charge a Cero at the tips of her fingers, only a foot from his chest.

“Cero.” She called.

But the brief instant before she released the attack, Timothy quickly leaned back and swung his foot up, catching the woman’s outstretched hand, and tossing it towards the ceiling. The Cero shot out from her fingers, and sailed through the air until it collided with the rocky ceiling high above their heads.

Timothy quickly grabbed Kitsune by the scruff of her neck and flashed away several feet with her in tow. As soon as he came to a stop, he released her, where she quickly vanished back into his inner world.

He then turned back to Nel/Gamuza and got into a ready stance. “You ok?” he asked the spirit.

**_“Yeah…I’m fine. Tim…what’s wrong with her? How did Gamuza take over her body? I didn’t think that was possible.”_** She inquired with worry.

The man gritted his teeth as Gamuza turned towards him and got ready for another charge.

“I don’t know…but I’m more concerned about where Nel is now. If Gamuza has taken over her body, it could mean that Nel’s been forced into her own inner world…” He clenched his teeth harder. “…or worse.”

**_“I don’t think she’s killed her, Tim. At least, not yet. But I’m willing to bet everything that it won’t be long before she does. That hollow spirit is beyond mad.”_** She pointed out.

Before Timothy could respond, he was assaulted by another charge from Gamuza, followed by a flurry of rapid slashing attacks. He did his best to hold the crazed spirit off, but she was absolutely relentless.

What made the whole situation worse, was that even though he was fighting Gamuza, it was ‘Nel’s’ body that she was using. While the spirit was dead set and determined to actually kill him and had no restrictions, he had absolutely no intention to cause Nel’s body any physical harm; meaning that the only thing he could do was defend himself.

“Gamuza…you need to stop this bullshit! Regardless of what you might think, I am ‘really’ not your enemy!” he insisted.

The spirit kept up with her assault. “I could care less what a pathetic brat like you thinks. Why don’t you just give up and die? There’s nothing you can do to me without directly affecting Nelliel as well, and you know it.” She stated, then delivered a kick towards his head.

Bracing his hand against the side of his blade, he held it up to block the kick. But the spirit had obviously placed a great deal of power into it, and Timothy was unable to hold the block; his hand and blade being forced into his head and pushing him off his feet.

His body flew to the side a few yards before he landed again, performing a quick roll to the side to recover into a crouch. He looked up at the spirit to see her yet again charging at him, and now less than ten feet away.

Before he could react, he was again set off his feet by another swift kick; this time to his chest. Due to the angle where the kick had contacted him, he was sent up into the air several feet and over a boulder.

Gamuza stood straight and watched as the man’s body disappeared from view before dropping her head and shaking it slowly.

“Un-fucking-believable. To think that you could have possibly had any feelings towards such a weak and pathetic creature. You are a disgrace, Nelliel. I should have done this a long time ago.” She said in a low voice.

**_“You…leave him…alone!”_** Nel responded in her own mind.

Gamuza rose a brow in surprise. “So…you’re awake are you? That’s good.” She said, then looked to where Timothy’s body had gone. “That means you can watch as your plaything dies. And don’t you worry, Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck, your time is coming as well. Once I’m done with him, I’ll come in there and deal with you next. You had your damn chance to just walk away. If you had done so, he would have likely lived. But because you were so damn insistent to stay beside him, now you can watch him die.” She finished, then vanished with a burst of sonído.

** Nearby, 3 Minutes Earlier **

Captain Hitsugaya, along with the rest of the team, flashed into place a short distance away from where they had felt the immense spiritual pressure only seconds ago. All of them, for the exception of Renji and Rukia who only had their hands resting on their hilts, had their zanpakutōs drawn and stood ready to engage the unknown target.

They had come to the shop early that day, so that Toshiro could discuss a few things with Urahara, and to possibly catch some breakfast. Everything was going fine, until the entire room pulsed with that intense spiritual pressure.

Before anyone could react, Timothy was already gone in a flash, followed closely by Renji and Rukia. Once they had gotten over the initial shock of realizing where the pressure was coming from, the short Captain and the rest of the group were right behind them.

But what they saw when they arrived at the location of the pressure, shocked and baffled them. For a short distance away, Timothy was being heavily assaulted by a teal-haired woman. If that wasn’t enough, the woman looked strangely familiar to all of them.

“What is going on here?” Toshiro wondered aloud as he held his zanpakutō to his side.

Rangiku walked up next to him and tilted her head. “I don’t know Captain, but…that woman looks a lot like…” she paused.

Ikkaku rose a brow. “Yeah…that looks like Urahara’s assistant. Nel, wasn’t it?” he inquired.

Yumichika nodded. “Yes, I believe it was.”

It was at that time that the woman gave Timothy a kick to his head and sent him to the side, causing the woman to turn as well; giving the entire group a clear view of her face, along with a white, boney object on the top of her head.

The Captain’s eyes went wide. “She’s an Arrancar!” he stated in shock, causing everyone else to gasp.

“An Arrancar?! That can’t be!” Rangiku said in disbelief.

“It can.” A voice said from behind.

The group turned around to see Renji and Rukia with sorrowful looks on their faces. Toshiro’s eyes widened further for an instant, then narrowed in anger.

“You knew?!” he accused.

Renji folded his arms as he dropped his head and nodded. “Yes sir. We were planning on telling you, but we were waiting for the right time.” He informed.

Rukia nodded as well. “Captain Hitsugaya, Nel’s not what you think she is. She may be an Arrancar, but she is not the enemy.” She insisted.

Toshiro growled at the pair. “I’ll deal with you two later. For now, let’s get rid of her.” He ordered.

He turned to leap forward towards the woman, but was stopped when the long end of a cane was held out in front of him and against his chest.

“I’m afraid I can’t allow that, Captain Hitsugaya.” An all too familiar voice stated calmly, yet sternly.

The white-haired man looked at the form of Kisuke standing next to him, holding his cane out to the side and stopping him. He narrowed his eyes at the man in annoyance and disbelief.

“Urahara…Why am I not surprised you knew about this as well? Perhaps you can explain to me why there is an Arrancar in your basement, and why you thought it necessary to even hide her in the first place.” He hissed in a low and commanding voice.

Kisuke placed a hand on top of his hat and tilted it down to shield his eyes a bit. “My apologies for keeping something like this from you, Captain Hitsugaya. But Tim had firmly instructed that miss Nel was to be kept hidden and safe. Rest assured, I’m sure he’d be happy to explain everything once this is over. But I will tell you this, you should listen to miss Kuchiki when she says that miss Nel is not who you think she is.” He advised.

The short woman looked at him with a bit of worry. “What is going on with her, Kisuke? Why is she out of her gigai? Or more importantly, why is she going after Tim like that?” she inquired with a serious face.

The man turned his head to her as he pulled out his fan and started waving it at himself. “I cannot say for certain, miss Rukia. All I have is a hypothesis.”

Renji scoffed at him. “Why am I not surprised?” he moaned.

“Enough of this!” Toshiro almost yelled, then gave the shop owner a firm stare. “None of your games, Urahara! Now tell us just what the hell is going on here! If you and Kuchiki say that she is not a bad person, then why is she attacking Lieutenant Durn?!” he demanded.

Kisuke stopped his fan and glanced at the short Captain. “As I said, this is only a hypothesis; but I believe it’s possible that her hollow spirit, Gamuza, has somehow managed to assume control of her mind and body.” He informed, causing everyone’s eyes to widen.

“Wait a minute…are you saying that Arrancars have their own spirits as well?!” Rangiku asked in shock, getting a nod from him.

“And you’re saying that…spirit…has taken over her body?” Ikkaku asked further with a raised brow.

Kisuke nodded again. “Yes, it would seem that that’s the case here. To make a long story short, miss Nel and the spirit of her hollow powers, called Gamuza, have been in…severe disagreements lately. The two main reasons behind these disagreements, are miss Nel’s defection from Aizen, and Gamuza’s adamant intention to kill Tim. I believe that what you are seeing here, is the result of Gamuza attempting to take over miss Nel’s soul.”

Rukia held up a hand. “Wait a minute…are you telling us that she’s just like Ichigo, where his inner hollow keeps trying to take over?” she asked.

The man moved his fan to the side a bit. “I don’t think that’s the case here, miss Kuchiki. Unlike Ichigo, who is a living human with soul reaper powers and an inner hollow, miss Nel is an ‘actual’ hollow, with authentic hollow powers of her own. This is only a theory, as I don’t have the information necessary to research it, but when Aizen had used the Hōgyoku to turn miss Nel into an Arrancar, it actually didn’t ‘turn’ her into anything.”

He paused to snap his fan shut and point it at her. “The primary difference between a soul reaper and upper-class hollows, such as Adjuchas and Vasto Lorde, is that while a soul reaper’s powers are split into the soul reaper himself and his zanpakutō, an Adjuchas or Vasto Lorde’s powers are ‘not’ split into separate entities. Their hollow powers are literally a part of them. With me so far?” he asked, getting nods from everyone.

He then held his fan next to his face. “Now, when Aizen used the Hōgyoku on these Adjuchas and Vasto Lorde, we all believed that he had created a new, and far more powerful class of hollows. However, I believe that this is not entirely true. I believe that, while exposure to the Hōgyoku ‘did’ vastly improve the Arrancar’s powers, it also split them.” He then pointed to where ‘Nel’ was, simply standing there and looking in the direction of where see had kicked Timothy only a few seconds ago.

“The person you see there, is only a half of the original hollow before Aizen used the Hōgyoku. When he used it on miss Nel, it had effectively split her into two separate entities; Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck, and Gamuza. Miss Nel is the original, and dominant personality with a body, while Gamuza is the entity known as her hollow powers. Basically, you could say that Gamuza is all hollow, while miss Nel is only ‘half’ hollow, her other half being human.” He informed.

Toshiro rose a brow. “Hold on, are you telling me that she is half hollow and half human?” he questioned in disbelief.

Kisuke nodded. “Again, all of this is only a theory, but a very strong one. But yes, I believe that miss Nel, although she, as well as Tim, are unaware of it, is indeed half human; with a human’s personality, thoughts, and feelings.”

The Captain sighed heavily in annoyance and lowered his head. “So, let me get this straight…Lieutenant Durn has been protecting and hiding an Arrancar, in ‘your’ basement, and you believe that she is half human? And you said that she had ‘defected’ from Aizen; so, what proof do you have that this isn’t some ploy of his so that she can hit us later?”

The shop owner turned to the busty Lieutenant next to him. “Lieutenant Matsumoto, you and miss Inoue spent some time with her not too long ago. You even took her shopping that day, if I’m not mistaken.” He reminded, getting a nod from her. “Well, care to tell us what your thoughts about her are, considering you actually started getting close to her?” he pressed.

Toshiro looked at her with shock. “You have got to be kidding me! You took that Arrancar out shopping?!” he yelled.

The woman held her hands up in surrender. “Well, I didn’t know what she was at the time. And besides, she’s really not a bad person, from what I saw. I actually think that she might not be our enemy, Captain.” She returned.

The man narrowed his gaze at her for a moment, then turned to Renji and Rukia. “And what about you two? How long have you two known about who she really is?” he demanded.

Renji dropped his hands to his sides. “Tim told us about her a few days ago, Captain. He begged us not to say anything, and we told him we wouldn’t. If you want my opinion, I don’t think she’s an enemy either. And neither does Rukia.” He stated, the woman nodding in confirmation.

Toshiro finally turned to Ikkaku and Yumichika, who simply shrugged their shoulders. “Don’t look at us, Captain. We don’t know her enough to say one thing or the other.” The 3rd seat pointed out.

The Captain then looked back at Kisuke. “How long has she been here, Urahara?”

The man unfolded his fan and continued to wave it. “Tim found her the day he fought those two Adjuchas you sent him here for. In fact, she actually saved his life. That Adjuchas would have killed him if not for miss Nel. But, I’ll leave those details to Tim. For now, we need to stay out of the way and let him deal with this situation. Gamuza has easily noticed us by now, and is fully aware that if we intervene, she will be defeated.”

He snapped his fan shut again. “She’s intentionally disregarding us right now because she is focused on killing Tim. She is in a mindset right now that she does not care if she lives or dies, as long as she kills Tim.”

Rukia stepped forward in concern. “But, if she dies, Nel dies too, right?”

Kisuke nodded. “Yes. In fact, I believe that is her intention as well; to kill miss Nel in her own mind and completely take over as a hollow with a new personality. Right now, Tim will try to do everything he can to avoid causing her harm, and try to talk Gamuza down. Considering the unique situation between the two of them, this is something that Tim needs to do on his own; so we cannot interfere. Doing so would only cause Gamuza to become desperate, and would likely do whatever it took to ensure that she kills Tim before she dies. As long as it’s only her and Tim involved, I doubt she’ll make any drastic moves.” He advised, then looked back to see Gamuza vanish using sonído.

“Whatever happens, Tim must be the one to see this through.” He concluded as he resumed fanning himself.


	26. Gamuza's Wrath

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 26

**(Gamuza’s Wrath)**

** Underground Training Area, Present **

Timothy landed on the ground with a loud crash, rolling and tumbling a few yards, until he finally came to a stop near a large boulder. He let out a few coughs to clear the dust from his lungs as he rolled to his side and began to push himself up.

**_“Tim…what are you going to do? There’s no way you can fight her without also hurting Nel as well.”_** Kitsune pointed out in a worried voice.

Using his zanpakutō as a prop, he pushed himself back up to his feet and coughed once more before looking back in the direction he flew from. He then coughed twice more and nodded.

“I know…I haven’t got the slightest idea on how to fight her. We need to figure out a way to stop her without causing any actual harm to her body.” He stated.

There was a dull buzzing sound as ‘Gamuza’ suddenly appeared right in front of him with her zanpakutō held to the side across her chest. He froze in a bit of panic as the woman swung out and across at him.

He quickly dropped back, the blade narrowly missing him as he fell onto his back, then kept moving in a backwards roll to returned to his feet a few feet away. Gamuza was quick to resume her assault as she darted towards him with her blade held out in a stabbing motion.

With a twist of his body, he allowed the blade, along with her, to pass by in front of him. But she swiftly stopped and twisted her own body as she swung up and across. Timothy managed to position his own blade in time to catch hers before it could make contact.

The two warriors were now face to face with each other; her with a killing intent etched into her eyes, and him with concern and fear. Concern because he was worried about what was happening to Nel during all this, and fear because he could actually see the upmost desire in her eyes to kill him.

“Gamuza, you need to stop this! Nel is a part of you, and you of her! And you know damn well she doesn’t want this!” he pleaded.

She narrowed her eyes at him in fury. “I already told you, soul reaper…I don’t care what that woman wants. I’m going to kill you, and nothing is going to stop me.” She returned, then thrusted her offhand out in a tight fist to catch him in the jaw.

The force of the hit forced the two warriors away from each other, but only for a brief second as Gamuza was once again right on top of him with her sword ready to strike. He managed to block her again, and swiftly gave her a kick to her stomach, forcing the woman back as he used shunpo to relocate a few yards away.

“I don’t want to do this Gamuza, but I can’t just stand here and let you keep beating on me like this.” He stated, then held his zanpakutō in front of him. “Tease, Moeru Kitsune.” He called out.

Within seconds, the entire field around them was littered with small flames as his zanpakutō transformed into its straight, and shortened form. The woman looked around at a few of the flames, then back to him with a raised brow.

“So, you finally want to get serious? Fine by me. It’s just going to make killing you a bit more difficult…and a whole lot more enjoyable.” She hissed, then charged at him again.

A brief instant before she made it to him, Timothy used one of his flames to vanish from sight. Having seen the way he fights before, Gamuza knew exactly what he was going to do. She quickly turned mid-step and swung behind her.

This time, the blade struck true, catching Timothy in the arm before he could react to his failed surprise attack. She maneuvered the blade mid-swing to make another cut across his neck, but he swiftly vanished again, reappearing a few yards to her left.

Gamuza quickly recovered from the failed attack and turned to him with a displeased scowl. “You love to draw your opponent in, then disappear and show back up right behind him to attack. Nel has seen the way you fight many times during your training with that damn shop keeper. And everything she sees, ‘I’ see. So, I know exactly how you fight, brat. You can’t fool me with your trickery, so don’t bother.” She stated with annoyance.

Timothy flinched a bit, then growled with similar annoyance. “Alright, how about this then?” he inquired.

A copy of him then appeared to her rear, and another one to her right. As she turned around to look at the clones, she saw that she was surrounded by at least eight of them from all sides. The spirit scoffed and glanced back at him with a displeased look.

“Really? I know for a fucking fact that I just said that I’ve seen all of your tricks, stupid soul reaper. You can’t possibly think that this stupid trick of yours will work on me. I know full well that while you are using this tactic, you can’t move from that spot. So that means…” she paused, then suddenly turned and swung behind her, catching him in the chest from his sternum to his left flank.

Luckily, he was still at a distance to where the attack couldn’t reach far enough to cut him deeply. He backed up a few steps, then vanished again as she glanced around to see that all of the clones were holding their chests in the exact same spot where she had just cut him.

“…that you’ll try to make me panic and worry about your clones, then attack me from behind again.” She finished.

Timothy hissed in pain as he stared at her in shock. “How did you…”

Gamuza tilted her head with a raised brow. “What? Know exactly when you were going to attack? Hah! That’s so simple, a damn baby could understand it. I may not be able to sense your spiritual pressure for that split second as you appear, but I don’t need to. I can sense your fear, soul reaper. Not your fear for me, I can easily see that you don’t fear me at all. No. I can sense your fear and hesitation of hurting me, and therefor hurting Nelliel. I can almost literally see it flowing from you like a fucking river. As long as you have that fear inside you, I will ‘always’ know exactly where you are.” She affirmed.

His body twitched at her words as he gritted his teeth. “I won’t let you hurt Nel, Gamuza. I ‘will’ find a way to force you back, and bring her back in control.” He hissed at her.

The woman then started laugh menacingly, before tossing a thumb behind her with a wide, and evil grin.

“I seriously doubt that matters anymore, soul reaper. Haven’t you noticed yet that we have company?” she inquired, causing Timothy to narrow his gaze in confusion; only for his eyes to widen a second later, making the spirit grin more. “I see you finally realized that your secret is out, stupid. That Captain and the other soul reapers have seen me, and are now fully aware of what Nelliel truly is.” She pointed out, then dropped her hand to her hip. “Even if, by some random miracle, that you manage to defeat me, and force me back into the depths of that bitch’s mind, how do you propose to fight off them as well?”

The woman chuckled darkly at him. “Face it, Timothy Durn, no matter what happens between us, Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck will still die here today. Even if I can’t kill you, you are now a traitor to them, and will be put to death, or imprisoned for the rest of your pathetic life.” She then threw her hand up, palm open. “I’d rather kill you myself, but I guess I’d be happy with that result as well.” She admitted, then dropped her hand to grab her zanpakutō. “The only choice you have left is to try and kill me. No matter what you do, I will never allow myself to be forced back to be that bitch’s slave while she acts like a weakling. In fact…”

She paused and held her zanpakutō out in front of her, holding the blade at the halfway point with her offhand. “…I think it’s about time I stop holding back, and give you the most painful experience you can imagine.” She finished, then smiled menacingly. “Praise…Gamuza.” She said in a low voice, causing Timothy’s eyes to go wide.

Her body was immediately enveloped in a mass of pink spirit energy with enough force that it threatened to push Timothy off his feet. He held an arm up to shield his face from the small rocks and debris that the whirlpool of energy was throwing around.

Timothy looked into the vortex with narrowed eyes as he tried to catch a glimpse of what was going on inside. But the energy was so dense, not to mention the cloud of debris around it, that he was unable to see, or even sense anything inside it.

**_“Tim…this must be that Resurrección that Kisuke had told us about.”_** Kitsune pointed out.

**_“That…it is…Prepare yourself…Timothy…For she…is now…more powerful…than you…can imagine.”_** ‘Johnny’ affirmed.

The man scoffed at them both. “Just great…so how the fuck am I supposed to help Nel out now?” he asked in annoyance.

Before either of the spirits could reply, the mass of energy in front of him began to dissipate. As his vision of the area began to clear, he could barely make out the form of a rather large and tall being inside.

His eyes narrowed a bit in order to try and get a clearer picture of the being inside, but when the mass of energy suddenly vanished, his eyes immediately went wide as saucers as he gazed upon the transformed being in front of him.

Although her upper body looked unchanged, except for the bits of white, boney armor on her shoulders, elbows, and hands, her lower body now resembled something similar to a tan furred centaur.

Her mask had also changed a bit, the ram’s horns on the top of her mask now elongated to about a foot long that curved around behind her head, with slim side pieces that ran down the sides of her face.

And in her hand, instead of a zanpakutō, was a long, five to six-foot-long, silver lance that she held at her side. With everything considered, she now looked very closely like a medieval knight. And although her new form instilled a bit of fear into him, he couldn’t help but be amazed at the new form.

**_“That’s…amazing!”_** Kitsune commented.

Timothy swallowed the lump in his throat, then nodded. “Yeah…I agree.”

He then took a step back as Gamuza brought her lance up to her shoulder, giving him the notion that she was about to throw it at him. The woman then narrowed her gaze at him dangerously.

“I was hoping to make you suffer a painful death while making her watch. But the longer I’m in this form, the quicker she dies.” She informed, causing Timothy to widen his eyes.

“Gamuza! Please! I’m begging you to stop this crap! Why can’t you see that I’m really not your enemy?!” he yelled at her.

She rose a brow at him. “You think I’m going through all this ‘just’ because you’re my enemy? How stupid can a soul reaper possibly be? I’m not doing this only because you’re my enemy, I’m doing this because you took her away from me!” she yelled, then charged forward at an unimaginable speed.

Timothy gasped as she covered nearly fifty feet of distance in an instant, now right in front of him and thrusting her lance forward at him with hateful eyes. Him already being in a ready stance when she attacked was the only thing that had saved him.

All he needed to do was twist his hand a bit and his blade was in front of the attack. But he clearly had not expected the monstrous amount of force behind the attack as he was instantly lifted off his feet and sent flying backwards.

He gave out a loud grunt as his body collided with the large boulder near twenty yards from where he was before; creating a small crater in the shape of his body. He grunted again as he slowly pulled himself out of the hole and looked back at the half woman with a closed eye; a small trickle of blood running down his face.

Gamuza simply stood there watching him while holding her lance out to her side. But his other eye widened when she brought the lance back up to her shoulder, ready to throw. He stood on the sloped edge of the boulder and got ready to defend himself.

The woman narrowed her gaze again. “Lanzador Verde.” She said, then threw the lance with massive force.

**_“Move!”_** ‘Johnny’ yelled in his mind.

The sudden, and very unexpected tone from the normally quiet and calm spirit shocked Timothy enough to bring him back to his senses; just quick enough for him to lean forward and leap from the boulder towards the ground.

The lance passed by him only inches from his body as it sailed right into the spot where he was just a split second ago. The boulder exploded from the force of the impact, the shockwave from the explosion propelling Timothy mid-jump into the ground with a crash.

Timothy coughed a few times as the lance pulled itself from the ground where it had finally come to a stop, and flew straight back from it came from; right back into Gamuza’s hand to be held at her shoulder again.

She then charged forward towards the spot where Timothy had landed while holding her lance in a position to jab at him again. But just as she was about to commence the strike, a rope of yellow energy shot out from the small dust cloud that Timothy’s collision with the ground caused.

Before she could react, the energy rope wrapped around her front legs, binding them tightly, and causing her to trip forward. The high speed at which she was traveling gave her body enough momentum that when her upper body planted onto the ground, her lower body vaulting over her upper portion and into the air.

Gamuza flew through the air a few yards before coming back down to the ground and rolling along her sides; her lance now lying on the ground several feet away where she had originally fell face first.

Timothy was there in an instant, flashing into place right next to it and planting his foot on top to prevent her from reacquiring it. He turned to where she had finally stopped rolling to see her getting back up to her feet, breaking the kidō as she did.

The spirit glared at him with fury. “Damn you, soul reaper! That was a dirty trick!” she accused.

He rose a brow at her in disbelief. “You’re literally holding Nel’s body hostage and using it to fight me, knowing I can’t really fight back, and you call ‘my’ attack dirty? Talk about double standards. So how do you plan to fight me now, Gamuza? You ain’t got your lance, or whatever anymore.” He pointed out.

Gamuza tilted her head. “You honestly think that because you have your foot on my lance that I can’t get it back?” she inquired, then raised her hand next to her head; her palm open in a gesture to grab something. “You are gravely mistaken, stupid soul reaper.” She stated.

His eyes widened before looking down to see the lance glow pink, then shatter into billions of particles of energy. The particles then shot back towards Gamuza’s open hand to gather and reform back into the lance from before; now being held firmly in her hand.

Timothy looked back at the spirit with a deadpanned expression. “…Cheater.” he moaned.

Gamuza shifted her hold on the lance to hold it at her side and back a bit, ready to jab at him. She then raised her body up to where she was now standing on her hind legs and narrowed her gaze at him dangerously.

“Justa Subsónica.” She said in a low voice.

Timothy gasped as her body dropped back down and leaped forward at an unimaginable speed. As she did, the air where she had stood exploded in a large shockwave as the air around them shook with the loud sound of an explosion.

He had no time to even consider moving out of the way as the tip of her lance, now surrounded by a mass of spirit energy, that formed a very thick and pointed wall in front of her, collided with his unguarded chest.

The unhalted lunge actually picked him up off his feet and carried him along with her as she pushed him across the field at her subsonic speed. But when she suddenly came to an instant, and on point stop, his body kept going and flew through the air.

His body impacted, and sailed right through not one, or two, but four consecutive boulders, turning them into shrapnel as it did, until he finally came to a stop when his body crashed into the side wall of the edge of the training area.

While his body was still stuck inside the body-sized crater it had created on the wall, Gamuza raised her offhand up and pointed her palm towards him. A mass of energy gathered in the palm of her hand as she bared her teeth.

“Cero.” She whispered.

The mass of energy then shot forth from her hand in a large beam that sailed straight towards Timothy.

Timothy painfully raised his own hand up with his palm toward the incoming attack. “Hadō #63, Raikōhō!” he chanted.

A large bolt of lightning-like energy shot out from his hand and collided with the oncoming Cero, causing both attacks to explode in midair. A buzzing sound filled the air as Gamuza used sonído to reappear right in front of Timothy; her lance held back to stab him.

She yelled out as she thrusted forward, but the lance only struck earth as Timothy flashed away at the last second; now standing on top of a boulder with the two fingers of his sword arm pointed right at her.

“Bakudō #63, Sajō Sabaku!” he yelled.

Gamuza turned towards him just as a yellow, chain-like energy flew towards her and began wrapping itself around her body. It pulled taut, restricting her movements, and preventing her from continuing to stand in the air.

Her body fell from the sky and she grunted in pain as her body landed on the ground hard. Timothy then flashed down to her a few yards away as she began to fight against the kidō; yelling and growling in anger as she did.

He watched with a saddened look as she struggled violently against her bonds, a lone tear running down his cheek. He knew what he had to do now, and he was reluctant to do it; but he now realized that he simply had no choice.

In just ten minutes of fighting, his body was already completely battered and bruised. That last attack had left him with two large gashes on his legs, along with a gash on the back of his head that was bleeding steadily, a chunk of skin was missing from his left forearm, and he could guess that at least half of his ribs were broken from where the lance had hit him.

**_“Tim…she’s going to kill you if you hold back any longer…”_** Kitsune stated in a broken voice. **_“I hate this just as much as you do…but you need to stop her.”_** She instructed.

**_“Yes…We cannot…be sure…that defeating her…will kill…Nelliel…You must…stop her.”_** ‘Johnny’ affirmed.

Timothy closed his eyes in sorrow as Gamuza began to break the kidō binding her apart. “I don’t know what to do…I can’t fight her like this. I’m…I’m afraid…I’ll kill Nel. I can’t do it.” He admitted in a whisper.

**_“If what Gamuza said is true, and Nel can see everything that’s going on, do you honestly believe she would want to see you die, Tim? Do you really think that alone wouldn’t kill her? It’s simple Tim…if you hold out on Gamuza any longer, you ‘will’ die. And if you die, we essentially ‘all’ die, and Gamuza will win. Do not let that demon win, Tim. You know full well that Nel would rather have you kill her unintentionally, than to see Gamuza kill you.”_** She firmly stated.

He opened his eyes back to see Gamuza nearly loose as she yelled in anger. “But how can I fight her? She knows my tactics, how I fight. And she’s just too fast.” He pointed out.

**_“Use…Bankai.”_** ‘Johnny’ answered, causing Timothy to widen his eyes.

**_“Yes Tim, use my Bankai on her. You still have a lot of training you need for to master it, but you should be strong enough to at least stop Gamuza. Nel has never seen you training with your Bankai before, so that means that Gamuza hasn’t either. But if you do, you ‘need’ to move quickly. Your body is already badly damaged, so you won’t be able to keep the Bankai up for long.”_** She advised.

Timothy gripped his sword tighter as he clenched his teeth. “Is there nothing else I can do?” he pleaded.

**_“As it stands…there is…nothing…you can do…Use…your Bankai…and defeat…Gamuza…There is…a chance…that you…may force her…to submit…and return…her body…to Nelliel.”_** ‘Johnny’ offered.

He watched as Gamuza broke through the last of her bonds, grabbing her lance before standing back up to glare at him with upmost hatred. She then gripped her lance so tightly in rage that her shoulders began shaking.

“I am done fucking around with you, damn soul reaper! I had hoped that my Justa Subsónica would have killed you, but I hate to admit that you’re more sturdy than I thought. Nelliel’s time is almost up, so if I want her to see your demise, I need to end this now! So just stand right there and let me finish this as quickly as possible!” she hissed, then rose her lance to her face; ready to throw.

Timothy lowered his head as he closed his eyes. “I’m so sorry Nel.” He whispered.

Gamuza rose a brow at him. “Sorry? For what? That you failed her? That you led her to the situation she’s in now? That ‘you’ caused her death? Ha! You should be sorry, you fucking soul reaper! I gave that damn bitch so many chances to come to her senses, but no! She just ‘had’ to choose you! You! Over ‘me’! Your damned, foolish promise of ‘protection’, and your stupid feelings towards her has led her to her death! Made her weak enough that I had to take over! So yes, you ‘should’ be sorry for what you’ve done to her! I have no doubt with how weak and pathetic she’s become that ‘she’ll’ forgive you, but I won’t! I will kill you for what you’ve done to us! For what you are ‘doing’ to us!” she proclaimed.

“That’s not what I’m sorry for, Gamuza.” He stated.

She tilted her head at him in a bit of confusion. “Oh really…then please, kindly tell me just what else you could possibly be sorry to her for!” she growled.

Timothy looked back at her as he raised his zanpakutō sideways in front of him; grabbing the blade at the hilt with his offhand. The spirit’s eyes widened a bit as she realized what he was about to do.

“I’m sorry…for being the one to have to kill her.” he corrected. “Bankai.” He commanded, then twisted his hands apart and snapped the blade off at the hilt. “Furasshu hi Kitsune Hime.” He finished.

Gamuza watched as the two halves of his zanpakutō began to glow red, then orange as they melted in his hands. With seconds, the halves then reformed around his hands and forearms and slowly solidified into a pair a gauntlets that covered them.

Once they had finished their transformation, the armored gloves slowly cooled down until they gave off a silvery sheen. The blades however, the six-inch-long, single blades on each hand, glowed a dull orange color as they remained red-hot; emitting steam as the moisture in the air near them was vaporized.

A flame then erupted from the gauntlets and began encasing his body in a roaring inferno as the field was once again covered with numerous small flames; at least three times more than he had produced before.

As Gamuza turned to one of the flames, she noticed that they were now moving around at a fairly decent pace. Timothy turned the same flame she was observing and scoffed lightly.

“I guess all that stupid training with Kisuke paid off. It seems that I can move them around much faster now. Good for me…” He paused and glanced back at the spirit. “…but terrible for you, Gamuza.” He warned.

Gamuza looked back at him unamused. “You think I’m worried about your stupid flames now that you’ve released your Bankai? I am well aware of what would happen if I was to touch one of those flames. I suddenly catch fire, right?” she mocked.

Timothy scoffed again as he lowered his head. “That’s right…I forgot that Nel told me Aizen had showed the Espada footage of me using my abilities. I guess you’re right…” he started, then looked back at her. “But you shouldn’t be worried about what my flames can do, Gamuza.” He stated.

She narrowed her gaze at him cautiously. “What are you getting at, brat?” she questioned firmly.

He then held out a hand towards a small group of flames to his right with an open palm. Her eyes widened as the flames suddenly shrank, then flew at a high speed towards his open hand; vanishing mere inches from it as the small fox emblem on his wrist began to glow a very dull red.

Closing his fist, he then got into a boxer’s ready stance with the hand he used to capture the flames held back a bit and ready for a punch. Gamuza got into a stance of her own as she got ready for him to charge at her.

“You should be worried about what I can do ‘with’ these flames.” He finished, then thrusted his right fist forward.

Gamuza moved her lance to block his charge, but it never came. The man never moved from that spot. Instead, what ‘actually’ happened shocked her, enough that she couldn’t react in time.

As his fist shot forward, a large flame shot out from the blade and sailed right at her. The flame hit her lance, but the fireball exploded when it did and showered her with a myriad of tiny embers; each one instantly burning her skin and fur where they had contacted. Fortunately, the tiny flames didn’t stay lit and quickly went out right after the initial burn.

She sonídoed back several yards and glared at him evilly as she growled. “What the hell was that?!” she demanded.

Timothy recovered from his thrust and got back into a ready position. “Hinotama Surasuto. My gauntlets allow me to, for lack of a more appropriate term, ‘collect’ any flames I currently have on the field into them. Then, by encasing those flames with some of my spirit energy, I can turn them into projectiles that explode upon impact. As you’ve just seen yourself, those explosions create dozens upon dozens of tiny embers that instantly burn whatever they touch. They don’t burn you constantly like the other flames do, but the sheer number of them is way more than enough to cause some significant damage…especially if you were to take one head-on!” he yelled as he thrusted his fist again, sending another flame in her direction.

Gamuza scoffed at the attack, then simply used sonído to transition several feet to the right of the attack’s trajectory. But her eyes went wide with a slight gasp before she turned around to see Timothy standing behind her and already sending a fireball towards her.

She used sonído again a split second before the flaming missile hit her, and instead allowing it to hit the ground just past where she was. She reappeared a short distance away, only to gasp again as she realized that three of his flames were there waiting for her.

One of them made contact with her hind quarters on the left side, setting the fur ablaze, before she leaped forward and away from the offensive objects. She turned her upper body around and used her free hand to pat the flames out on her rear.

Once the fire was out, she turned back around to see Timothy standing on the sloped side of a large boulder and staring at her with a solemn face. She growled loudly as she clenched her fists tightly in fury.

“Damn you! Quit your damn playing around, soul reaper! You do realize that any damage you cause me, you cause to Nelliel, right?!” she yelled.

He closed his eyes and allowed a stray tear to run down his cheek again. “I’m aware…and I pray to God that Nel will forgive me for causing her so much pain. But…” He opened his eyes again, then reached out and began collecting more flames into his gauntlet. “…as much as it pains the fuck out of me, I would much rather see her in pain, and be the cause of that pain, than let you kill her all because of how blind and selfish you are, Gamuza.” He stated as he closed his fist after collecting close to a half dozen flames.

“I don’t want to do this…but it’s very obvious that I really don’t have a choice otherwise. I told Nel that I would protect her, and if what you said was true, that Nel is essentially already dead, then I have failed her. I failed both of you. You hurt something that I cared very deeply for, and because of that, I am going to kill you, Gamuza.” He then got into his ready stance and glared at her. “Nel…if you can hear me…I am so sorry that I failed you, and I hope you can forgive me for this.” He said in a saddened voice.

He then vanished using a flame to reappear to the spirit’s left side, thrusting his fist out, then the other, and then the first one again in rapid succession; sending three fireballs hurling towards the angered spirit.

Gamuza danced from one side to the other as the projectiles sailed past her, before darting forward with her lance held out to stab Timothy through. But he didn’t even bother to move, instead choosing to hold his hands up.

He somehow managed to catch the lance near the tip in his closed grips, his body being pushed back with his feet being dragged against the ground as he pushed back against the attack. In all, her attack had managed to push him back nearly fifty feet before the two of them came to a stop.

The spirit looked at him with wide eyes, shocked beyond belief that he had managed to ‘catch’ her lance in his hands and stop her charge. Her eyes then turned to where he had a hold of her lance to see his gauntlet starting to glow red as it heated up, causing the end of her lance to do the same.

She scowled at him as she quickly yanked her weapon from his grip, managing to successfully do so, then used sonído to get some distance. When she reappeared, she took another look at her lance to see that the end where he was previously holding it was slightly deformed and bent.

Gamuza gritted her teeth harder, then death glared him. “You fucking fool! How dare you do that to my lance! I will make sure you pay for this!” she yelled, then leaped into the air at him.

Holding her lance back, she dove right at him and thrusted her lance forward. Timothy flashed away the second before the attack hit, the lance impacting the ground and causing a small explosion where it hit from the force.

He was behind her yet again with his left hand pushing forward to punch her exposed flank. But she simply turned her body a bit and gave him a swift double kick with her hind legs, her hooves hitting the fist.

The force from the two opposing forces created a small explosion in the air between them, throwing him back a few yards and pushing her forward the same distance; her nearly tripping over her own feet as she came to a stop.

She then reared up, twisting her body at full height, then dropped back down. “Lanzador Verde!” she yelled, then threw her lance as her front feet came back down to the ground.

The extra momentum from her upper body’s forward movement projected the long weapon at an even faster, and more deadly speed than the first time. Using the last bit of flames he had stored up to surround his fist, he forced his fist forward at the lance, catching it on the side of the tip and deflecting it to the left.

The lance sailed past him and crashed into a small, nearby mountain, creating yet another large crater where it landed. But the object swiftly pulled itself free and flew right back into Gamuza’s hand as she charged at him again.

He quickly rolled out of the way as she darted right past him, running on for several feet and colliding with the mountain from before. Timothy expertly swung around and back to his feet as he held a hand out with his fingers open and pointed at her.

“A king that reigns upon a shattered throne, the queen who sheds a shower of tears!” he began.

Gamuza pulled her lance from the rocky surface and jerked her head to him. “I don’t fucking think so!” she yelled, then reared her body back and twisted around. “Justa Subsónica!” she yelled further, dropping her body and darting forward; creating a sonic boom behind her as she was instantly traveling faster than sound.

Timothy’s eyes shot wide open, and moved his hand to the side just enough to allow the tip of her lance to impact his open palm. Clearly not expecting the attack, he was once again launched from his feet and sent flying back.

His body flew several yards away, but was luckily unobstructed as he came crashing back down to the ground; rolling head over heel a few yards more to stop in a kneeling position. He quickly spawned a few flames near him, then held out his gauntlet to collect them inside.

But Gamuza was on him again in an instant and already reared up with her lance ready to jab down at him, not giving him enough time to complete the collection before she dropped back down and shot her lance forward.

He managed to hold his other arm up and block the attack, but he was forced right back down into the ground as the force threatened to crush him right there. She then pulled her lance back and began stomping him further into the ground, one foot after the other.

Timothy grunted in pain each time that her hooves made contact with his unprotected chest, being stomped nearly a dozen times before he gathered the strength to thrust his fist out at her exposed underbelly.

The fireball shot out and struck her in the lower body’s stomach, exploding near her hind legs, and throwing her to the side and off of him. He coughed a few times, wincing in pain each time as his chest throbbed from the constant beating he just received.

He growled in further pain as he rolled over and began pushing himself out of the hole that his body dug out. He very nearly fell back into the hole as he stumbled back up to his feet and turned his body to where Gamuza was doing the same.

Timothy flinched in sadness when he saw the damage that he had just caused to Nel’s body. Her lower body’s entire underbelly was completely bare of any fur, and he could clearly see the charred skin. The inner thighs of her hind legs in a similar situation, and were actually bleeding at a steady rate as the skin had burned and cracked open.

Gamuza hissed in pain as she stumbled when she took a few steps forward. “Damn you…fucking soul reaper! You’re dead!” she hissed.

The spirit then held the lance in front of her, bringing her offhand towards the tip and running her palm against the sharp end to cut a shallow gash in her hand. Timothy’s eyes widened with shock as she held out her, now bleeding, hand out with her palm facing him.

A large, and monstrously powerful mass of energy began gathering in her hand; growing larger and larger with each passing second. In only a few seconds, the mass of energy was now roughly the size of a soccer ball.

“Even with how open this little training place of yours is, it’s still quite confining for something like this. I honestly didn’t plan to use this, as the blast could very well kill me as well, especially with the condition you put me in. But as long as you die, I honestly don’t care.” She informed.

Timothy lowered his gaze and sighed. “I just don’t understand, Gamuza.” He stated.

The woman growled a bit. “Understand what?” she questioned.

He kept his sorrowful stare at her as he answered. “Why you’re doing this.” He said, then held his hand out towards her. “You say that I’m the cause of her ‘weakness’, but I honestly can’t see how that is. Ever since Nel came here, she’s done nothing but try to better herself. Maybe not in the way of combat, granted; but she has fought endlessly to better herself as a person.” He then dropped his hand to his side.

“I just can’t understand why you find that so offensive, Gamuza. I mean…I understand that you view me as an enemy simply because of what you and I are, I really do. But you said that’s not the only reason for all of this bullshit, and I can clearly see that it’s not. You keep claiming that I am nothing but a hindrance to Nel, that ‘I’ am the one who caused her to be turned against by Aizen.”

Gamuza growled. “That’s because it ‘is’ you who caused it! If it wasn’t for that bitch feeling so pathetically sorry for your stupid ass after what Aizen did to you and that thing you once called a ‘wife’, then she would still be there at his side! Serving him loyally! You turned her against him! I’ll grant you that you didn’t purposely do it, but you kept her from realizing the error of her ways and returning to him to apologize for her actions! It was all because of you that her loyalty was questioned! That ‘I’ was questioned! Whatever happens to her, happens to ‘me’! So, when Aizen turned on her because she felt sorry for you, he also turned on ‘me’! Me! Who did nothing! This is all your fault! What Aizen did to me was ‘your’ fault!” she accused.

Timothy sighed and shook his head. “No Gamuza, Aizen turned on you because you simply didn’t fit in his disgusting plans. He simply wanted nothing more from you, and chose to discard you. Nel saw that what he was doing was evil, and she finally realized that she was fighting for the wrong side. ‘She’ was the one with the courage and the heart to see that. ‘She’ is the strong one here. So, if anyone in regards to this matter is weak Gamuza, it’s you.” He returned.

The spirit’s eyes shot wide open. “What the fuck did you just say to me?!” she yelled.

He crossed his arms tightly. “You heard me, Gamuza. Nel is obviously the strong one here, but ‘you’ are the one holding her back.” He accused, causing her to clench her teeth tightly and growl in fury. “Like I said, over the past three weeks, Nel has done nothing but better herself. And just what, exactly, have ‘you’ done, besides bring her down, insult her, and threaten her? Absolutely nothing. You’ve done nothing but prove that ‘you’re’ the weak link in her life, Gamuza. And here I thought that you two were supposed to be a team. So, let me ask you Gamuza, was there ‘ever’ a time in your existence where you and Nel got along?” he inquired.

Gamuza’s fist shook in anger as she glared at him dangerously. “What the fuck does it matter to you, damn soul reaper? What? You wanna hear that me and Nelliel were ‘best buddies’? You wanna hear that I had actually cared for her? Well I ‘did’! I cared for her greatly!” she yelled aloud.

She then dissipated the mass of energy and dropped her hand to her side, along with her head. “Her and I used to have talks nearly every day, discussing simple things, even stupid things that made no damn sense. Nel and I were inseparable. Whenever she had a bad day, I was there to help her through it.” She said in a low, and strangely calm voice, before looking back at him and shocking him with tears in her eyes.

“Nel and I were like sisters, soul reaper. We depended on each other. But you just ‘had’ to come along, and ruin everything. Because of you, Aizen separated us. See basically abandoned me and left me for dead when she stopped thinking about me. And when we finally got back together, all she could possibly think about was you. It was as if she had no need for me anymore.” She said as the tears began running down her face. “And then she did the worst thing imaginable…she literally told me she wanted nothing to do with me, as long as I had my hatred for you. You. The one who caused all this. The one who ruined our lives.”

Gamuza raised her lance and got ready to throw it again. “I can never have Nel back while you’re alive, soul reaper. It’s quite evident that she will always choose you over me. So, killing you is the only way. But I know that by doing so, Nelliel will ‘always’ hate me. So, it’s very simple; if I can’t have her, then I’ll kill both of you and no one can have her.” She finished.

Timothy stared at her with pity as he sighed. “I see. I guess I misjudged you, Gamuza. Here I thought that you were nothing more than her hollow powers and instincts. Yet, the only thing I’m actually seeing right now, is another being who has had her life mercilessly taken away from her. I pity you, Gamuza.” He stated, causing her to raise a brow in surprise. “But not only because of that, but also because of how blind you really are.” He admitted.

She dropped her brow and narrowed her glare. “Again, you state that ‘I’m’ the blind one here. Yet, you still fail to tell me how that’s the case. So tell me, soul reaper, how am ‘I’ the blind one?” she demanded in a low voice.

He sighed and shook his head. “I honestly can’t believe you still don’t see it, Gamuza. You were so blinded by your misplaced hatred towards me that you never realized that Nel has always, even after she realized she had feelings for me, valued you more than anything.”

“What are you talking about?” she asked in confusion.

He shook his head again. “I’m talking about how she never gave up on you, even after she, so called, ‘abandoned’ you for me. You can literally see and hear everything she does, yet you were so blind that you never truly saw just how badly it hurt her to have chosen to reject you. She is the former Quinto Espada, the fifth strongest hollow in Hueco Mundo, and you brought her to tears because ‘you’ are the one who’s changed, Gamuza. ‘You’ have changed, not her. You should have realized this since ‘you’re’ the one in her head. If you want to kill me Gamuza…”

Timothy held his arms out wide with a challenging glare. “…then go right ahead. Prove to everyone here that you are truly nothing more than a pathetic monster. But before you do, answer me this, Gamuza. In all the time that you have known me, have you ever, even just ‘once’, seen me hurt her, or belittle her? Have you ‘ever’ seen me do her wrong? And just what have ‘you’ done to help her? As I said, the only thing I’ve seen you do so far is try to tear her apart. How can you possibly stand there, and have the audacity to say that ‘I’ am the pathetic one, when you have yet to so much as say a single kind word to her?!” he yelled, then took a single step forward.

“So, go ahead and kill me! Prove to Nel that you are truly not worth being called her friend, her partner!” he finished.

Gamuza clutched her lance tighter as her arm muscles urged her, begged her to throw it. But as the seconds ticked by, the more her resolve began to break down. She honestly couldn’t believe that the man had the nerve to talk to her in that manner. She wanted so badly to throw that lance and finally end all the pain and suffering that he had supposedly caused her.

After what seemed to be an eternity of two warriors staring each other down passed, her grip on the lance finally loosened a bit as the last bit of resolve that she possessed began to crumble away. Her cheeks were now soaked as she closed her eyes and clenched her teeth even tighter.

Timothy glared at her firmly. “What’s wrong, Gamuza?! I’m right fucking here! If you think that I’m really nothing more than a hindrance to you, then throw the fucking lance and be done with it! Go ahead and end it!” he yelled.

Her eyes shot open, where she yelled back and threw the lance at him. The lance crashed into the ground and dug in deep, only a foot away in front of him, before she dropped her hands to her sides.

He dropped his arms as well as she began to openly sob in front of him. His attention was drawn down to the lance at his feet when it began to glow pink, and slowly disappear. When he looked back at the spirit, her entire lower body was glowing as well.

He watched as her equine lower body began to transform back into her normal, human-like, lower body; the woman dropping to her knees once finished. When he looked back down to where the lance was, he instead saw her sealed zanpakutō dug into the ground in the exact same spot the lance did.

The man let out a sigh before walking forward and kneeling down to pull the blade from the ground with his offhand. He then stood back up and continued walking towards the sobbing woman, who now had her head tilted back towards the ceiling.

His Bankai went back to its sealed state in his sword hand as he walked, returning the blade to its sheath a second later. He then came to a stop and kneeled down next to the woman before placing a comforting hand on her shoulder.

Gamuza turned her head to him with eyes that tried to project anger and fury, but failed to do so.

“What do you want…soul reaper?” she hissed through sobs.

He sighed and held up her blade to her. “I think you dropped this, Gamuza.” He stated in a half joking tone.

She looked at the blade for a second before snatching it from him. “Whatever…damn fool.” She mocked as she tried to shrug his hand off her.

“Gamuza…” he started, managing to get her attention. “…I may not have known Nel for that long…but I can easily tell that she will never, ‘never’ outright abandon you. You and her are two halves to a whole. You need her, and she needs you. Not only to survive, but also to live. I am definitely not happy with what you’ve done here Gamuza, but I don’t hate you. If I were to hate you, then I would also be hating Nel. And that is something I could never do.”

He dropped his head a bit and swallowed. “How can I…when I love her?” he admitted.

Gamuza’s eyes widened. “You what?” she asked in shock.

The man nodded firmly. “It’s hard to admit…but I do love her.” He said again.

“It’s true, Gamuza.” Kitsune affirmed as she materialized next to them. “Like you with Nel, I can see and hear everything he does. And, just like you and Nel, I can hear every thought that goes through his head. Tim is in love with Nel, and judging from the way she acts around him, it’s a safe bet that she loves him back; even though she may not clearly understand what it means yet.” She then crossed her arms. “And Tim’s definitely not lying when says that he doesn’t hate you, Gamuza. And to be honest, neither do I. Tim and I have both accepted that it’s unlikely that you’ll ever accept us as friends, but we still consider you a friend ‘because’ you’re a part of Nel.”

She then dropped her hands as she knelt down next to the woman and rested a hand on her other shoulder. “So, I’m begging you Gamuza, please don’t do this to Nel. If you truly care for her like you say you do, please let her come back.” She pleaded with tears in her own eyes.

Timothy looked back at the teal-haired woman and smiled a bit. “Yes…please let her back out, Gamuza. I am more than willing to find some way that we can at least come to an understanding between each other. But you have to be willing as well.”

Gamuza scoffed at him. “Why should I? What makes you think I want to come to a ‘compromise’ with you? I want nothing to do with you.” She informed.

He nodded gently. “I can understand why, but can you possibly look past the fact that I’m a soul reaper for five minutes and see that I’m actually trying to help? You want Nel to be happy, well so do I. So why can’t we at least try to work together to make her happy?” he questioned.

“Hah!” she bellowed as she tossed her head. “You, make her happy? By what? Making her believe that she can have a ‘happy life’ here? Don’t make me laugh, soul reaper.” She then glared at him again. “Your secret is out. That Captain knows about us now. Do you honestly think that he’ll let her live? And even if he did, what then? You and her live a dream life together? You plan to stay by her side for the rest of her long life?” she mocked.

“Yes.” Kitsune answered firmly and quickly, causing both of them to look at her as she gave the woman a firm, but calm stare. “Tim has already stated that he will stand by her, and I know that he fully intends to do so. Don’t play stupid, Gamuza; I know you heard every word he said to her regarding that. If you think he’ll go back on his promise because of the soul society, think again. I have put him through absolute hell in the many years we have known each other, and never, not even once, has he ever gone back on his promise. He promised to stay with me forever when he married me, and look where he is now. I was turned into a damn zanpakutō spirit by Aizen, and yet he’s still here, isn’t he?” she questioned.

“Because he has no choice.” The woman returned.

Kitsune rose a brow. “Really? I tried to disappear and leave him, to save him from the pain of what happened. But even after he found out, he still wanted me around. He even went through unimaginable pain when he put me in his inner world to stay with me. Because he promised to stay with me. He made that promise to Nel, and I can assure you Gamuza, that nothing will make him break that promise. So why don’t you at least give him the chance to prove it? Considering everything he’s risked so far, you owe him at least that much.” She pointed out.

Gamuza swiftly turned to the spirit. “I owe that brat nothing!” she assured with a glare. She held the glare for a moment, then dropped it and turned back to him. “But I will admit that you have gone through ‘some’ risk for her safety. So, I’ll at least give you the benefit of the doubt. I’ll release her soul reaper, but I promise you this.” She then held up a finger. “One fuck up, one little mistake, you so much as even ‘breath’ in a way that I think is risky to her life, and it’s over. And understand this…” She paused to drop her finger and narrow her firm gaze. “…I am not happy about these ‘feelings’ she has for you, so you do anything to hurt her emotionally, and it’s also over. Am I clear on that?” she hissed.

Timothy sighed, but nodded slightly. “So…there’s no way that you can accept me?” he pressed.

She scoffed at him and turned away. “Prove to me that you can guarantee her safety, and ‘then’ I might possibly trust you. But until that day, don’t fucking count on it.” She stated firmly.

He dropped his hand and held it out to her, getting her attention back. “I already promised Nel, but now I’m promising you; I’ll do whatever it takes to protect her, ‘and’ you.” He affirmed.

The woman looked at his hand, then back to him and nodded before accepting the hand. “I ‘will’ hold you to that promise, soul reaper.” She attested.

The moment she finished, her eyes rolled back into her head and her body began to fall back as she suddenly lost consciousness. Timothy and Kitsune quickly moved to catch her before she hit the ground, her head falling back.

“Gamuza? Nel?” he called out, not sure what just happened, or who was in control.

“It’s fine, Tim.” a voice stated behind him.

He and Kitsune turned to see Kisuke standing there, holding his fan to his face with calm eyes. “What do you mean it’s fine? Is she…”

The shop owner nodded gently. “I’m sure if you focus hard enough, you can sense miss Nel’s spiritual pressure in control, and not Gamuza’s. Miss Nel’s own mind is back in control, and Gamuza has returned to her inner world. I’m sure miss Nel’s mind was heavily strained from being pushed back like that while trying to survive. So, when Gamuza surrendered control back to miss Nel, her weakened state left her unconscious. She should be fine, Tim. She will just need a lot of rest. I’ll have Tessai take her up to her room, but I’m afraid you have a few people who would very much like your explanation about her.” He informed as he waved his fan slowly.

Timothy’s face dropped as he closed his eyes with a sigh. “Yeah…I bet.” He returned, then opened his eyes back to the man. “Please ask them to wait in the dining room, and ‘I’ll’ take Nel back up to her room. If the Captain doesn’t like it, then he can shove it.” He stated.

He then turned around, and with Kitsune’s help, picked Nel’s body up into his arms bridal style and stood up. The shop owner chuckled at the sight and lowered his fan a bit.

“Are you sure you want me to tell him that? I’m pretty sure Captain Hitsugaya wouldn’t like that too much.” He teased with a smile.

Timothy turned to him with a deadpanned stare. “It was rhetorical, you idiot. Just go tell them to wait upstairs and I’ll be there in a few minutes. And while you’re at it, and I really hate being such a bother to her, but do you think you could give Orihime a call? Tessai’s good at healing and all, but even with his healing, it’ll be at least a week before I can fight again.” He shot back.

Kisuke nodded, then watched as Timothy and the spirit next to him turned and started walking towards the ladder to the shop; carrying Nel in his arms while Kitsune followed. When the pair was out of sight, the man lowered his head and chuckled again.

“Well, now that you’ve dealt with one problem, let’s see how you handle the next one, Tim.” he said in a low voice, then turned and began walking back towards Toshiro and his group.

A few minutes later, Kitsune slid the door to Nel’s room open, allowing Timothy, with Nel in his arms, to walk in. With the spirit’s help, because of his injuries, he gently laid the woman down on her mat as Tessai walked into behind them.

The large man knelt down next to Timothy, uttering a small chat under his breath, and began to heal the woman’s badly burnt stomach. Timothy looked at the would solemnly, tears beginning to form in his eyes as he finally realized that ‘he’ was the cause of her serious wounds.

Kitsune turned to him and rest a hand on his shoulder. “You had no choice, Tim. If you let Gamuza keep going the way she was, she would’ve killed you.” She reassured.

Timothy dropped his head. “I know…but I still caused her a lot of pain.” He stated in a broken voice.

She gave his shoulder a gentle squeeze. “Tim, listen to me. There was nothing you could have done better, and you know it. At least we got her back, alive.” She pointed out.

He scoffed at her. “Yeah, and burned to a fucking crisp.” He hissed in anger.

“But ‘alive’.” She reaffirmed.

“Yeah, and now she’s going to hate me for what I did to her.” He growled.

The spirit removed her hand and slapped the back his head, causing the large man next to him to flinch in fear. Timothy turned to her after recovering to find her grabbing the front of his kosode and pulling his face to hers.

She glared at him with firm eyes. “Don’t you dare start your damn sulking now, Tim!” she hissed, then pointed at Nel’s unconscious form with her other hand. “You saved that woman’s life! Gamuza was trying to kill her, and you! You did what you had to, to stop Gamuza, and save Nel! Don’t you ever think that that woman would ever hate you for saving her life! Yeah, you ended up having to burn her badly, but you know damn well that’s a pitiful price to pay to save her life!”

Kitsune released him and dropped her hands, along with her stare. “Nel could never hate you, Tim. It’s just not in her to hate others. If you really knew her, then you would know this. Besides, hopefully Orihime should be on her way, and she can heal those burns right up. So yes, she might be in pain now, but that pain will go away. And do you really think Nel would want to see you like this?” she inquired.

Timothy turned to the woman and sighed. “No. I’m pretty sure she would feel just as guilty as I do.”

The spirit nodded. “That’s because she would feel guilty.”

Tessai turned his head towards the man. “I agree with miss Kit, Tim. Miss Nel would very likely feel responsible for you feeling this way. Everyone agrees that what happened was the best way it could have ended. And you do not need to worry, my kidō is alleviating some of the pain to make her more comfortable. The boss has already informed miss Inoue, and she should be here soon. So please, calm yourself.” He comforted.

The man sighed and nodded. “I still feel bad for doing it though.” He said, then began to stand up.

He almost managed to make it to his feet, until he suddenly became dizzy and began to fall back down. Luckily, Kitsune was there to catch him around the waist.

“You’re in bad shape too, Tim. You need to rest. The Captain can wait a while for his explanation.” She assured.

Timothy groaned in pain as he pulled his feet back under him and slowly stood back up. “You really think he’s going to patiently sit there and wait? We’re stupidly lucky that he hasn’t reported her yet. The quicker we tell him everything, the better our odds are that he doesn’t report her.” He pointed.

Tessai glance over his shoulder to them. “He is right, miss Kit. The boss is in there with them now, trying to keep the situation under control. I am aware that you are in a good deal of pain, and that you are both very tired, but I do not believe that this is something that can wait.” He affirmed.

Kitsune looked at him, then back to Timothy in concern. “I guess you’re right. At least let me help you.” She pleaded as she pulled his arm over her shoulder and helped support him.

Timothy grunted in pain, then nodded. “I think that would be a good idea. I at least still had some adrenaline running through me while I carried Nel up here, but now that it’s gone…” He chuckled lightly. “…I doubt I can stand for long.” He finished with a grin.

The spirit rolled her eyes with a scoff before grinning herself. “Idiot.” She said lowly.

He snorted back. “Vixen.” He returned, then began walking out of the room with Kitsune helping him to maintain balance.

He stopped at the door and turned back to the form of Nel resting on her mat with a saddened face. He took a deep breath as he closed his eyes, then turned and continued walking into the hallway.

As the pair came into the dining room, they looked to see Kisuke sitting down with his fan open and waving it at himself. When they turned, they also saw Toshiro glaring at them with his arms crossed and anger filled eyes.

Renji and Rukia were sitting against the wall next to the hallway with looks of concern on their faces. Rangiku was sitting next to her Captain, also with a look of concern; and Ikkaku and Yumichika sat between her and Rukia with curious stares.

“Well, now that you’ve taken care of the Arrancar, I think it’s time you start explaining everything, Lieutenant.” Toshiro growled impatiently.

Renji looked up at Timothy, then swiftly scooted over a bit so that the man could have the seat with the wall behind him to lean against for comfort. The younger man hissed in pain as Kitsune eased him down to sit where Renji was and leaned back against the wall with a relieved breath.

“Give me just a second, Captain. I’m not exactly in the best shape at the moment.” He pointed out, causing the short man’s temper to rise a bit.

“Normally, I would honor that request. But considering the circumstances, I don’t exactly have the time or patience to wait for you. I’m sure you can understand that your actions thus far are highly treasonous, and that you had better have a very good explanation as to why you are protecting that Arrancar.” The Captain warned.

Renji turned to the injured man. “Kisuke, Rukia, and I have already given the Captain the basic information, but we all thought it best if you do the full explanation.” He informed with crossed arms.

Timothy rolled his eyes to him and nodded. “Thanks.” He said, getting a nod back before turning to the Captain. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly before he began.

“It basically started when my team and I were sent here to deal with those hollows. The ones that killed Hetoku and the others.” He started.

Toshiro nodded firmly. “Yes, I am already aware of that. Urahara has also informed me that the Arrancar supposedly saved your life against the Adjuchas.”

Timothy nodded back. “Yes, ‘she’ did, Captain. Before I go any further, her name is Nel, not ‘Arrancar’. And before you decide to ask, yes, I consider her a friend. And yes, I trust her greatly.” He assured.

The Captain rose a brow at him. “A friend? You consider that…woman…a friend? Have you gone mad?” he inquired.

The Lieutenant’s gaze didn’t change. “Yes, I do. And no, I’m not ‘mad’. I will say that I am very clearly not in the mood to deal with any bullshit, Captain. So, if you want an explanation, I strongly advise we both keep calm and keep our insults to ourselves.” He warned back.

Everyone’s eyes went wide at the man’s tone with the Captain. “Tim!” Rukia yelled.

He turned his gaze to her. “You and Renji should both be aware that I don’t take to others berating me very kindly, Rukia.” He stated, then looked back at Toshiro. “I’d be more than happy to explain everything Captain, provided that you agree to keep calm and ‘allow’ me to explain ‘everything’, and not be quick to jump to conclusions.” He proposed sternly.

The Captain’s brows dropped as he narrowed his gaze. “I guess Captain Komamura’s statement about your temper was highly underrated, Lieutenant.” He commented.

Timothy scoffed lightly. “I guess I’ll take that as a complement. Either way, are you willing to be patient and let me explain the whole thing to you, ‘before’ you decide to jump up and deliver judgement?” he asked.

Toshiro glared at him observingly for a moment, but finally sighed in defeat and nodded. “Very well. Please continue, Lieutenant.”

The man nodded back and took another long and deep breath before slowly retelling the whole story in deep detail.

It was only ten minutes later, and he was nearly finished when the front door slid open. The group all turned to see Orihime closing the door behind her before swiftly walking up to the table.

She stopped and briefly looked at every gathered there, instantly becoming worried. She finally glanced over to Timothy with concern in her eyes, who then sighed and nodded.

“Yeah, they know, Orihime. Nel’s in her room, and badly hurt. Please…take care of her.” He pleaded.

She smiled sweetly and nodded. “Of course. I’ll get right to it, Tim. When I’m done with Nel, I’ll come back heal you up as well.” She assured.

Timothy smiled back and nodded. “Thanks, Orihime. But only after you’ve fixed her up.” He stated firmly.

Orihime nodded, then left for Nel’s room. Timothy then turned back to the Captain, who was watching him closely.

“Before you continue, allow me to see if I have this correctly.” He started, then crossed his arms firmly. “The Arrancar came here after being turned on by Aizen, saved you from the Adjuchas, saved you from the Espada, one of her former comrades, and was also the one who told you about this strange, zanpakutō sealing device that Aizen has?” he inquired.

Timothy sighed and nodded. “I apologize for not telling you Captain, but I had promised her that as long as she can get us to Aizen, I would do whatever it took to protect her. As time went on, I saw her for ‘who’ she truly was, and we became friends. It may not sound that simple to you Captain, but it ‘is’ just that simple.”

Toshiro narrowed his gaze. “I see. And perhaps you would be so kind as to explain exactly what happened downstairs when she, or her ‘hollow spirit’ attacked you?” he pressed.

The Lieutenant rose a brow. “Hasn’t Kisuke already told you the story on that?” he returned.

The shorter man side glanced the shop owner. “He did…” he affirmed, then looked back at him. “But I want your story.”

Timothy moaned lowly. “I don’t know how else to tell it to you other than what Kisuke said, Captain. Gamuza took over her mind and was trying to kill me. I had to fight back, and was, thankfully, lucky enough to talk her into giving control back to Nel. There’s nothing more to it than that, Captain. What else do you want me to say?”

Toshiro growled quietly. “I want you to give me the truth, Lieutenant.”

He growled back. “I ‘am’ telling the truth, Captain. Everything I just old you is exactly what happened. Seriously, what is it that is so hard to understand?” he asked in annoyance.

The shorter man glared at him. “Perhaps it’s the fact that you’ve been safeguarding an ‘Arrancar’! Are you so blind that you can’t see what you are doing?!” he shot back.

Timothy pulled out his hand and slammed a fist on the table, rattling the tea cups on top. “I’m’ Blind?! You’re the one who is so damn blinded by the stupid laws that you can’t see that Nel’s ‘not’ a bad person!” he yelled, startling everyone and surprising the white-haired Captain. Timothy then clenched his teeth tightly as he glared at the shorter man. “You should know Captain, you’ve been here for three damn weeks and seen her every freaking day. Rangiku and Orihime have both spent time with her, and both seemed to enjoy her company.”

The Captain side glanced the said Lieutenant, who turned away sheepishly. “And if you want to get technical, Captain…” he started, regaining the man’s attention. “…I studied that damn book up and down, and I don’t recall not one single law that stated ‘anything’ regarding ‘Arrancars’. So, that means that, if you are so keen to stick to the rules, you can’t touch her unless she does something wrong.” He stated with a sly grin.

Renji rose a brow at him, then turned to the Captain. “With all due respect Captain, he does have a point. There really aren’t any laws concerning Arrancars.” He affirmed.

Toshiro looked at him. “That is a technicality, and you know it, Lieutenant Abarai.” He growled.

Timothy slammed the table again, causing the Captain to glare at him as the man pointed at him. “That’ is bullshit! And ‘you’ know it!” he seethed.

The man glared dangerously at the Lieutenant. “I would choose your next words very carefully, ‘Lieutenant’. Not only are you under suspicion for treason at the moment, but you are also disrespecting a superior officer.” He warned in a firm tone.

The Lieutenant, grunting in pain as he did, then stood up using the wall for support. Everyone watched as he stood up to his full height and glared down at the Captain with dangerous eyes.

“I’m warning you Captain, I am the last person on this planet you want to threaten.” He stated, causing the entire table to stare at him in shock, with Renji and Rukia’s jaws down on the floor. “I stood up to Lieutenant Iba, Captain Komamura, and of all people, Captain Zaraki. Two of them I defeated, the last one I almost succeeded. If you think, for even a second, that I am intimidated by ‘you’, Captain Hitsugaya, think again.”

His glare narrowed into a deathly stare as he began to emanate his spiritual pressure into the room. It was still nowhere near a Captain’s level, but it was still potent enough. “And this is the only warning you will ever get; if you even consider trying to attack Nel…” He then rested a hand on the hilt of his sword. “…I’ll bury your ass in the fucking ground…or die trying.” He hissed.

Kitsune quickly stood up and placed a hand on his shoulder. “Don’t…touch me.” He stated in a dangerous tone, causing her to shirk her hand away.

Kisuke lowered his fan and looked at him with cautious eyes. “Tim, I believe Captain Hitsugaya has gotten your message, so if you don’t mind, would you please calm down?” he asked calmly.

Timothy turned his eyes to him. “Oh, I mad for sure, but I am calm. There’s only one person besides Kit who’s ever seen me when I wasn’t calm, and we both ended up in Squad 4 afterwards.” He remarked, then returned to Toshiro. “So, what’s it going to be, Captain? You plan on reporting Nel? Because I can tell you right now, that I’m siding with her. If the soul society wants to be heartless enough to punish someone who has done nothing wrong but suffer an unfortunate life, then I want no part of it.”

The two officers continued to stare each other down, neither of them letting up, until Rangiku turned to Toshiro.

“Captain, from the time that I’ve personally spent with her, I agree with Tim that she’s not a bad person. Can’t you at least give her a chance, and see it for yourself?” she pleaded.

Renji and Rukia both nodded. “Yes Captain, don’t judge her simply because of what she is. Look at Ichigo, he caused a lot of chaos when he went to the soul society to save me. And yet, now he’s viewed as a hero. Haven’t we learned not to be too quick to judge?” Rukia questioned.

Toshiro didn’t look away from the challenging stare of the man in front of him. “That was different.” He stated simply.

Renji rose a brow. “Different how, Captain? Because Ichigo’s a human and she’s an Arrancar? Sure, she may be different, but the situation really ain’t. Besides, she said she would help Tim get to Aizen, and as it stands, we could use all the help we can get.” He pointed out.

Kitsune was beginning to worry, knowing that, although he strongly preferred not fighting, that surely didn’t mean he wouldn’t if something he cared about was threatened. He had been that way ever since that one night, when Aizen had turned her into a spirit.

She quickly turned to the Captain with worried eyes. “Captain Hitsugaya, please think about this. There are ‘no’ laws that state you ‘have’ to report her. There are no laws that label her as an enemy.”

The man’s eyes turned to the spirit. “She is an Arrancar, a class of Menos. And a Menos ‘is’ an enemy.”

Kitsune swiftly shook her head. “No Captain. According to the laws, there are only ‘three’ classes of Menos: Gillian, Adjuchas, and Vasto Lorde. Arrancar does ‘not’ legally fall into that category. She may be of hollow ‘descent’, but as it is right this moment, she is ‘not’ an enemy of the soul society; ‘unless’ she has done something against the soul society. So, let me ask you this, have you personally ever seen Nel do anything against the soul society?”

The Captain narrowed his stare. “That is beside the point, she was with Aizen.” He stated firmly.

She rose a finger up. “Was’…’was’ with Aizen. Aizen turned on her, and she defected from him. And even when she was with Aizen, do you know of any instances where she had done something against us? You don’t, because she hasn’t done anything. So please, I’m asking you that you give her a chance to prove herself.” She begged further.

Toshiro stared at her for a second longer, then returned to his contest with Timothy. The two men continued looking at each other endlessly, Timothy’s grip on his zanpakutō getting tighter with each passing second.

Finally, the Captain dropped his stare and sighed heavily. “Fine.” He said in a low voice, then looked back at Timothy. “For right now, I will not report her.” He stated, causing Timothy to drop his glare as well and loosen his grip on his sword. “But keep this in mind, Lieutenant…” he started, then narrowed his gaze again. “The moment that she does anything against my team, or the soul society, she will be disposed of as a hollow, and you will be arrested for treason. Is that clear, Lieutenant Durn?” he inquired firmly.

The man dropped his hand to his side and nodded. “Very clear, Captain.” He affirmed.

“Also, I ‘will’ be having a discussion with Captain Komamura regarding your disrespect towards a superior officer.” Toshiro added.

Timothy scoffed. “Good luck with that, Captain. He’s very well aware of my ‘unique’ personality. It’s probably going to do nothing more than give him a headache.”

Toshiro growled at him. “I’m sure you have been the sole cause of all of his headaches recently.” He mocked.

The Lieutenant tilted his head with a deadpanned expression. “I don’t think I can really deny that one.” He moaned.

Kitsune then bowed lowly at Toshiro. “Thank you so much, Captain.” She said in a relieved voice.

The man looked at her. “Don’t thank me. It doesn’t mean I won’t report the whole thing if the soul society finds out about her. I am only postponing my report on her. Nothing more.”

Timothy nodded in understanding as the spirit rose. “And it still doesn’t mean I wont side with Nel if the soul society does try to do something against her. I stand firm on what I said, Captain. I’ll fight anyone who comes after her, or anyone I consider a friend.” He restated.

The Captain glared back at him and was about to say something, but was interrupted by the sound of Kisuke snapping his fan shut.

“Well, now that that’s taken care of, why don’t you go check on miss Nel, Tim? And while you’re at it, you can have miss Inoue fix you up as well.” he said in a cheery voice, causing a vein on the Captain’s head to start pulsing.

“You have the most inopportune timing, mister Urahara.” He stated in annoyance.

Timothy’s face dropped. “You have no flipping idea, Captain.” He moaned, then turned and left the room, followed by Kitsune.

“Hold on a moment, Kitsune.” Toshiro called, causing her and Timothy to both stop and look at him.

“Yes?” she returned.

“If you don’t mind, I would like to have a private discussion with you.” He informed.

Timothy looked at her with a bit of concern, but she simply held up a hand. “I’ll be fine, Tim. Quit worrying about everything under the damn sun.” she mocked with a grin.

He scoffed as he rolled his eyes at her. “Damn, stupid, annoying vixen.” He grumbled as he left for Nel’s room.

She turned back around to the shorter man as he stood up and crossed his arms. “Come with me.” He instructed, then turned and began walking towards the hatch to the training ground.

The spirit glanced at Renji and Rukia, who simply shrugged their shoulders, then looked back to see the Captain flash away into the basement. She gave a brief sigh before walking forward to follow the white-haired Captain.

It was only a couple minutes later until she was at the bottom of the ladder and looking around to see the man standing a short distance away. He rose a brow at her, obviously waiting for her to join him.

“Well, are you coming?” he questioned.

The woman slowly shook her head. “I’m about as far from Tim as I can go, Captain. Even this far is pushing it.” She informed.

He sighed with annoyance, but nodded. “Fine then.” He said, then flashed back to her before giving her a serious look. “I’ll get straight to the point, Kitsune.”

She held up a hand. “I’ve told you before, just call me Kit, Captain.”

Toshiro crossed his arms firmly. “Fine, ‘Kit’, I have something I want to ask you, and I hope for Lieutenant Durn’s sake that you tell me the truth.”

Kitsune sighed. “Go ahead.”

He then narrowed his gaze at her. “What is Lieutenant Durn’s relationship with…’Nel’?”

She rose a brow at him. “I’m sorry?” she said, beginning to fret.

“You heard me. Durn states that he is not a fool, well neither am I. I have seen the look he had in his eyes before. He is not only defending someone he deems as a friend, he is also protecting someone that he holds very dear to him. So, stop avoiding the question, and tell me the truth. Does Lieutenant Durn have a personal relationship with that woman?” he demanded.

Kitsune crossed her arms as she tilted her head, giving him a skeptical look. “Two questions, Captain. One, Tim gets that way with literally everyone he considers a friend, so what else do you have to go on to give you the notion that he cares that deeply for her? And two, even if he did, what concern is it of yours?” she inquired in a low tone.

Toshiro rose a brow back. “Excuse me?” he asked in surprise.

She moved her head back straight. “What does it matter to you whether he does or doesn’t care deeply for her, Captain? Tim may not care what others think about him, but ‘I’ do. Let me make something clear to you Captain; I had no problem with the way Tim reacted upstairs. In fact, I approve of it. The only reason I was trying so hard to keep him from losing his temper with you, was because I was trying to help Nel. I like you Captain. You know what needs to be done, and you get it done, while taking others into consideration. But don’t think that I won’t just as gladly fight you as Tim would if you threaten him again.”

He turned away from her with a huff. “I am beginning to wonder whose temper is worse; yours or his.”

The spirit chuckled at him with a small smile. “Easily mine. But Tim keeps me calm, and I keep him calm. But seriously Captain, what does it really matter if Tim has feelings for her or not? Do you really hate her that much?” she pressed, now with a saddened face.

The Captain glanced back at her. “No, I don’t hate her. I have no reason to hate her. But she is an Arrancar, and Durn would be foolish to consider having feelings for her.” He stated.

She closed her eyes and shook her head with a sigh. “I never figured you to be so biased, Captain.”

He rose a brow. “Biased? I’m stating things as they are, and you’re calling me biased?”

Kitsune opened an eye to him. “Yes Captain, biased.” She then opened her other eye to him. “You seem to think, just because she’s an Arrancar, that she’s the epitome of evil. Just how many times do Tim and I have to tell you that she has done nothing wrong? It is not her fault that she is what she is. You should know that, being a Captain. Hollows didn’t choose to become hollows. That was just how life decided to treat them.”

Toshiro growled lowly. “Yes, I am well aware of that.”

She then dropped her hands to her sides. “Then ‘why’ are you so adamant that she’s the bad guy here? She just wants to find happiness in her life again, Captain. She hates fighting, just like Tim does. She was tricked by Aizen to become an Arrancar, just as he tricked you and the other Captains and Lieutenants.”

He scowled at the reminder. “I can see your point, but that doesn’t change the fact that she is still an Arrancar.”

“Not by God damned choice!” she yelled as she stomped her foot firmly. “Damn it, Hitsugaya! It was ‘not’ her fault what happened! What if it was you in her position? Wouldn’t ‘you’ at least want a chance to change your life? I know for fact that you would. So why can’t you be the better person here and ‘give’ her that damn chance? I can understand fully why you feel the way you do towards regular hollows and Menos, because they are normally cruel and heartless. That is not Nel.” she asserted further with tears in her eyes.

She stared at him for a moment longer before taking a deep and calming breath, letting it out slowly. “Nel is a kind person, Captain. Ask your own Lieutenant, she can tell you that. What you, and the rest of the soul society fail to realize is that when she was turned into an Arrancar, she regained most of her human emotions. Kisuke explained this to you, didn’t he?” she inquired, getting a nod. “Then what is so hard to understand that she is basically human now? She is no different than you or Tim. It’s just that her powers are of a different origin.”

He sighed heavily. “I already told you that I wouldn’t report her for right now.”

Kitsune shook her head. “But you still won’t accept that she’s not the person you seem to think she is. Damn it Captain, Tim is scared to death that you’re going to turn around and say something; I can feel it all the way down here. He’s so afraid that he’s going to lose her, like he lost me.”

The Captain quickly glared at her. “So, he ‘does’ have deep feelings for her?” he demanded.

She slapped a hand to her face growled loudly. “Damn it! Me and my fucking mouth! And just why the hell do you care so damn badly about that?!”

He growled back and began rubbing his temple furiously. “Why the hell is all this happening?” he moaned.

The spirit then threw her hand out at him. “You’re the one who’s making a big deal about it! Everybody else that knows about it has absolutely no problem with it! You’re the ‘only’ one who’s having an issue with it!”

“Because you know full well what would happen if it was discovered he had feelings for an Arrancar!” he yelled back.

“Because you guys can’t seem to get it through your thick skulls that she is not like your typical hollows! She is a ‘normal’ person, with ‘normal’ feelings! Yes, Tim has feelings for her; and yes, he intends to follow those feelings, regardless of what others think about him! If you are so adamant that they shouldn’t be together, then ‘please’, by all means ‘try’ to stop him! But I should warn you Captain, that what he said upstairs about putting you in the ground was ‘not’ an idle threat! If you try to get in between the two of them, he ‘will’ make you regret life!” she hissed, then turned around and began climbing the ladder.

Toshiro watched with cautious eyes as he started thinking about what the spirit said. Although he didn’t really want to admit it, the spirit did have a point about how hollows didn’t have much of a choice in becoming hollows. That was just how life turned out.

But even though she didn’t choose to become a hollow, she was still just that, a hollow. It didn’t matter what class, or type, or whatever, a hollow was a hollow. He may not have had any personal grudges with them, but it was still his primary job, his primary ‘reason’ as a soul reaper; to purify them.

But there was also another valid point that the spirit made, one that Kisuke had actually confirmed; that the woman was actually half human, in a sense. Adjuchas and Vasto Lorde both regain ‘some’ emotion and humanity when they evolve; but besides her mask and powers, she was basically a full human.

This was obviously not a simple matter, and was something that he would have to take a great deal of time to look into. But the problem was ‘how’ to do so. He obviously couldn’t go to Captain Kurotsuchi, and for two reasons; one, it would basically give away Timothy’s secret when the Captain stated he wouldn’t say anything, and two…the man was mad.

Toshiro moaned loudly as he ran a hand down his face. “Why does everything have to be so damn complicated?” he inquired to himself, then flashed away.


	27. A Second Chance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 27

**(A Second Chance)**

** Urahara Shop, Present **

Upstairs, Timothy was laying down next to Nel while Orihime used her Shun Shun Rikka to heal the both of them. He was giving occasional grunts of pain as her healing powers slowly reversed the multiple broken ribs.

The teen looked at him with pity and concern. “Nel was badly burned Tim, but you should have had me heal you first. Your injuries are far worse than hers are.” She stated in a bit of panic.

He hissed again with a growl. “That may be Orihime, but ‘I’ was the one who burned her. If anything, I deserve what happened to me.” He responded.

The teen lowered her head a bit. “That’s…that’s not true, Tim. Mister Urahara told me what happened over the phone, and I really don’t think that it’s your fault. You…you did what you had to do to save Nel. I don’t think she would be mad at you for it.”

The man glanced at her as he let out a pained breath. “I honestly hope you’re right, Orihime. I feel guilty enough with just being the cause of her injuries.”

She lowered her head more. “Tim…is everything…going to be alright, now that Captain Hitsugaya knows about her?” she asked in worry.

Timothy sighed heavily as he closed his eyes. “He says he won’t say anything for now, but I honestly can’t say for how long. It seems like Rangiku is defending her the best she can without getting on the Captain’s bad side. Rukia and Renji are both trying to help as well. For now, she’s safe. But I really think it would be wise to start thinking of somewhere else to hide her.”

Orihime quickly looked at him in surprise. “You mean…make her leave?” she inquired.

He shook his head. “I don’t know, Orihime.” He answered in a heavy breath. “Right now, I’m just trying to consider possibilities.” He admitted.

They then heard the door to the room slide open, causing them to look and see Kitsune walking in with salty residue on her cheek fur from tears. She closed the door behind her and stood there with her head low.

Timothy rose a brow at her. “Kit? What’s wrong?” he asked in worry.

She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “He knows.” She answered.

His eyes widened a bit. “I hope you don’t mean what I’m thinking you mean.” He stated, earning a nod.

The spirit then looked up at him with sorrow in her eyes. “Yes. He knows about you and Nel.” She affirmed.

Timothy dropped his head back with a loud moan while Orihime’s eyes widened. “Wait…What ‘about’ Tim and Nel?” she inquired.

Kitsune looked at her, then back to Tim. “Tim and Nel both have feelings for each other.” She answered finally.

Orihime nodded. “I know. Remember, I actually…um, helped with that?” she pointed out.

The spirit shook her head and returned her glance to the teen. “Deep’ feelings, Orihime. As in ‘love’ each other.” She corrected.

The teen gasped quietly, then turned back to Timothy, who sighed and nodded with closed eyes. She then turned back to the spirit.

“But…what does that mean? If…Captain Hitsugaya knows…won’t Tim be…punished?” she inquired with worry, causing Timothy to look at her as well.

Kitsune walked up and knelt down next to the teen’s healing barrier with a deep breath. “He definitely wasn’t happy about it, I can easily say that much. As far as what he’ll do about it, I honestly have no idea. I basically ‘pleaded’ with him to just let them be. But he’s so damn bullheaded and determined to see Nel as nothing more than an average hollow, that I doubt he’ll stay quiet for long.” She said with a wave of her hand.

Timothy scoffed heavily. “Well, I think I made it blatantly obvious what will happen if he tries to hurt Nel.” He commented.

His partner glanced down at him. “Trust me, I ‘reiterated’ it to him as well that you meant exactly what you said. I like Captain Hitsugaya, Tim, and I really hate seeing him as a potential enemy right now.” She stated firmly.

They turned their heads to the door when they heard a low knock. “Who is it?” Timothy asked calmly.

“It’s Rukia…and Renji.” A female voice answered.

“Come in.” Kitsune returned.

The door slid open, then the two friends walked in with Renji closing the door behind them. They both walked up to them where Rukia knelt down and Renji sat with his legs crossed. Both of them had worried looks on their faces.

“We’re sorry things happened this way, Tim. And we wanted to tell you that…Renji and I were both planning to tell the Captain sometime soon anyway.” The shorter woman admitted.

Timothy grunted as he propped himself up on his arms with a raised brow. “You were planning on telling him? I thought you told me you wouldn’t.” he stated in annoyance.

Renji crossed his arms and looked at him nonchalantly. “It was only a matter of time until Captain Hitsugaya found out about her, Tim; as we just witnessed. We figured it would be best to break the news to him piece by piece, letting him see for himself that she’s really not the kind of person we believed her to be.”

Rukia nodded. “Please understand Tim, it was only to help Nel in the future.” She assured.

The younger man scoffed as he rolled his eyes. “Yeah, and now that he actually knows, we can see that it wouldn’t have mattered.” He commented.

“Don’t be so quick to judge Captain Hitsugaya, Tim. He can be quite impatient, and may judge others a bit too quickly, but give him time to watch and see who Nel is for himself.” Rukia advised.

Renji snorted at the man. “You standing up to him and threatening him like that sure as hell didn’t help things.” He pointed.

Timothy glared at him, earning a glare back from the red-headed man, before dropping his head back down with a light thump. He then took a deep breath and let it out with a low moan.

“Alright…I guess my temper got in the way again. I’ll apologize to him later, but it still got to me when he became so adamant that she was his enemy, when she is clearly not.” He admitted.

Kitsune looked down at him. “Trust me Tim, I understand fully how you feel. I shouldn’t have lost my temper with him either, so we both own him an apology. But right now, he is the one person we don’t want to piss off.”

Renji rose a brow at her. “So that’s why the Captain was so much more agitated when he came back upstairs. Let me guess…you threatened him as well?” he observed.

The spirit dropped her head in shame, earning a head shake from Rukia. “You two really are a lot of trouble. I’m really starting to feel sorry for Captain Komamura.”

The pair quickly turned to her. “Hey!” they almost yelled in unison, causing Orihime to chuckle a little.

“I’m so glad that Captain Hitsugaya is at least giving her a chance. I was so afraid that he would take her away to be killed.” She said with a smile.

Timothy looked at her and nodded, then turned back to Renji. “So, what happens now?” he inquired.

The short woman sighed heavily. “That’s why we’re here, Tim. We have to take Nel’s zanpakutō away from her.” She admitted hesitantly.

His eyes shot wide as he turned to her. “You have got to be kidding! After what just happened downstairs with Gamuza, you ‘really’ think she’s going to be pleased if we took her away from Nel?! She’s likely to take Nel’s body over again and ‘give’ the Captain a reason to kill her! That is, if ‘she’ doesn’t kill ‘him’!” he growled.

Renji quickly held his hands up to calm him down. “Hold up, Tim. We’re aware of that, and so is the Captain. But, until he can possibly consider trusting her, he doesn’t want her armed. Considering the circumstances, I’m sure ‘Gamuza’ will understand. Afterall, we’re not removing her from Nel’s inner world, we’re only taking away her ability to fight for the moment.”

Timothy shook his head. “I understand where he’s coming from, but I still think it’s one of the worst ideas imaginable. Either way, I strongly suggest you guys wait until Nel wakes up. That way, she’ll at least be here to talk Gamuza down if she gets too angry. I managed to just barely talk her down last time. But if she takes over again, I very highly doubt that I’ll be able to do it again.” He advised.

Rukia nodded. “I agree. After what we saw, the last thing we need is for her to take over again. We’ll tell the Captain that it would be best to wait until Nel wakes up, but either way, she is going to have to give her zanpakutō up. If anything, this will at least help to start building the Captain’s trust towards her.”

He nodded back. “I understand. Thanks for telling me, instead of just taking it. And again, sorry I lost it back there.” He said in a sad voice.

Renji waved him off. “Don’t worry about it. I think you shocked the Captain more than you did us. Although he might not be too happy with the fact that you basically disrespected him, I think it’s safe to say that you managed to gain some of ‘his’ respect in the process. It’s not every day that you come across someone who’s not afraid to stand up to a Captain.”

Rukia nodded, then sighed. “Well, we need to get going. We’ll let the Captain know that it’s best to wait until Nel wakes up before taking her zanpakutō, but I strongly advise you let us know the moment she wakes up, Tim.” she said as her and Renji stood up.

Timothy scoffed lightly. “I still think it’s a very bad idea, but I’ll be sure to let you know. And thanks for your help guys, I really appreciate it.”

The two friends grinned at him, then nodded. “Sure thing, Tim. Later.” Renji returned, then waved as the two of them left the room.

The Lieutenant took a deep breath and let it out as he laid back down. Kitsune then looked at him with concern.

“Tim.” she started.

“Hm?” he answered as he looked at her.

“I’m sorry…about the Captain finding out about you and Nel. It just…slipped out. I really didn’t mean to.” She said in a saddened voice.

He gently waved her off. “He would have found out soon anyway, Kit. Rangiku’s not stupid, and would have figured it out, then she would have blabbed it off, and he would have heard it. So, it’s probably best he heard it from you. Considering how angry with him I was at the time, I would have likely attacked him and ruined everything. So, don’t worry about it.”

“Tim.” Orihime started next.

He lowered his head to her. “Yeah?”

She smiled sweetly at him. “I’m glad you and Nel are working out so well. And I’m sorry that things have happened this way. She’s really nice, and she doesn’t deserve to be treated like a monster. I’m sure once Captain Hitsugaya sees her for who she really is, he’ll come to accept her. You just need to give him time is all.” He reassured.

Timothy smiled back and closed his eyes. “Thanks, Orihime. At the moment, that’s really all I ‘can’ do.” He returned.

The teen nodded with a hum of acknowledgment. “I’m almost done healing you guys, so you should probably get some rest, Tim.” she advised.

“I’ll get some rest later, Orihime. But right now, I think it would be best if I kept an eye on Nel. There’s no telling when she’ll wake up, and I would prefer if I was here when she does. She’ll likely be in a distraught state when she first wakes up, and it would help her greatly if she saw someone close to her first.” He pointed out.

Kitsune shook her head gently. “I can keep an eye on her, Tim. I’m not that tired right now, and you really do need to rest. You honestly have no idea how lucky you are that Gamuza didn’t kill you, and that your Bankai lasted long enough to end the fight. And that reminds me, you did a wonderful job with using your Bankai for the first time in combat, Tim. I honestly expected you to have a couple of failures with using its unique ability. Good job.” She offered with a smile.

He gave her a thumbs up as he returned the smile. “Thanks to you and Kisuke’s training.” He stated, then dropped his hand. “I really hate to admit it, but your training really helped. So out of curiosity, is that the strongest it can get?” he inquired.

She shook her head again. “No. Earlier, you were only using one flame at a time as projectiles. But, as your spiritual pressure gets stronger, you’ll be able to handle more than a single flame per shot. The more flames you use, the bigger the explosion, but also at the cost of projectile speed. The more you use, the slower it gets. Also, and I’m sorry I didn’t tell you this before Tim, but when you use a flame as a projectile, you are also sacrificing that flame; meaning that every time you use that technique, the less flames you’ll have to move around with. So, you’ll need to be considerate about the situation when you use it. As I’ve told you, when all of your flames are gone, your Bankai will disappear, along with your Shikai.” She informed in a cautious manner.

He nodded in understanding. “So, you’re saying that if I use all of my flames with that attack, I can’t use Shikai or Bankai anymore?”

“Not for a while you can’t. Unlike most Shikais and Bankais that’ll recover along with the user’s spirit energy, yours actually takes some time to recover on its own. Of course, the speed that it recovers at is dependent on your spirit energy. The more you have, the faster the flames will regenerate. But as you know, they can ‘only’ regenerate while sealed. As long as you don’t push it too far, you’ll be fine. You didn’t use but maybe a little over a dozen flames, so your Bankai should be fully recovered by tomorrow morning. If you had used all of them, it would have taken at least a week to recover.” She added.

“I’m finished.” Orihime stated as she dropped her barrier.

Timothy slowly pushed himself up, and was once again amazed by the young teen’s very impressive ability. He felt absolutely no pain where his wounds were, not even any soreness in the muscles.

He closed his eyes and shook his head with a kind smile. “I still can’t get over how amazing your powers are, Orihime. You really give Squad 4 a run for their money. Thank you.” He commented.

The teen held up her hands and waved him off timidly. “Oh no, it’s really not ‘that’ impressive!” she insisted.

Kitsune waved her off gently. “Don’t be like that, Orihime. You don’t need to be so embarrassed every time someone complements you on your abilities. You should be proud that you have such an amazing power. If Tim had gone to Squad 4, or any other hospital, he would have been out of action for a week, if not longer. Yet, you managed to fix him up in less than a half hour. So please don’t doubt yourself.” She comforted.

The girl dropped her hands and smiled. “Thank you, Kit. It’s really nice to hear that from you.” She stated.

Timothy nodded firmly at her. “It’s all true, Orihime. Really, I can’t thank you enough.” He assured.

Orihime nodded with a wide smile. “Thanks. I need to get going, I’m sure I’ll probably be in trouble when I get back to school.” She admitted with a hand behind her head.

His face then fell. “You didn’t have to leave class to fix us up, Orihime. We would have understood. Kisuke should have known better.” He moaned.

The teen quickly shook her head. “Oh no! I told mister Urahara that I was grateful he called me! Healing my friend’s injuries are far more important than school, Tim! I’m always happy to leave class to help!” she assured.

“Still, these injuries, although quite painful, were not life threatening. Tessai’s healing would have been enough at least until your classes were over.” He insisted.

Kitsune almost glared at him. “Tim, leave her alone. She did the right thing. She believes that your health was more important, so she came; and I agree with her. Besides, you don’t have the right to talk about missing classes when you were far worse in high school.” She mocked.

He glared back. “You were no better yourself, vixen. You were the one who kept jumping out the damn window to go window shopping for dresses.”

She growled at him. “I was sixteen! Everybody back then skipped class every now and then! So, don’t try to make me look like the bad guy here! At least I didn’t waste my time fishing at a lake that had ‘no’ fish in it!”

Timothy froze and began to sweat. “I told you to never speak of that! How were we supposed to know there were no damn fish in there?!”

The spirit held her chin in her hand with a hum. “Hm…maybe the fact that there was a ‘No Fishing’ sign posted there?! That should have been a dead giveaway!” she shot back.

“That doesn’t mean that there were no fish in the damn water!” he pointed out.

She narrowed her gaze at him. “It ‘does’ mean that you shouldn’t have been fishing there in the first damn place!” she stated firmly.

He growled and waved her off while Orihime laughed wildly. “Whatever, vixen. The point is, is that she shouldn’t make it a habit to leave class for every scratch I get. I’m not saying that I don’t appreciate it Orihime, but I definitely don’t want you getting into trouble because I was dumb enough to let myself get hurt. So please, only do it when I’m ‘actually’ at risk of dying?” he pleaded.

The teen calmed down a bit from her laughing and nodded. “I promise. But please don’t be afraid to call me if you really need my help, Tim.” she asserted.

The man nodded with a small smile. “I will. Again, thanks for the help, Orihime.” He said kindly.

She nodded with a hum and stood up before giving him a swift bow. “I’ll be leaving now. See you later Tim, Kit.” She said as she rose.

The pair waved at her as she turned and left the room. Dropping his hand, Timothy then stood up as well and started stretching out his arms, causing him to grunt lowly in relief as the tension in his arms gave away.

“I hope she wakes up soon.” Kitsune commented, now looking at Nel next to her.

Timothy dropped his hands to his side and looked at the woman as well. “So do I, Kit. But I’m ‘really’ hoping that what Gamuza did won’t have any adverse effects on her. She was trapped in her own mind for a long time, and there’s no telling what it could have done to her.” He stated.

Kitsune nodded slightly. “Yeah…You really should get some rest, Tim. I can stay here and keep an eye on her. I’m sure she’d be just as happy to see me as she would you.” She said, then tilted her head a bit. “Well…maybe not ‘as’ much, but I’m sure she would still be happy.” She corrected.

He shook his head. “No. I want to be here when she wakes up, Kit. I’ll sit down and lean against the wall to rest up a bit if it makes you feel better, but I’m staying here.” He stated firmly.

She sighed, but nodded. “Alright. I guess I’ll join you then.” She finished, then stood up and followed him to sit back down against the wall near the door.

He sat down with his legs crossed, while she had her legs extended out in front of her, her tail resting in her lap. He then looked down at her furry appendage for a moment before raising a brow and looking at her.

“You know, as odd as it sounds, I don’t think I’ve ever asked you what it feels like to have a tail.” He commented.

She rose a brow at him in surprise and confusion, then looked down at it. “Um…different…I guess. To be honest, I’ve actually never even thought about it. I mean, I can feel it and all, but the thought never really crossed my mind about how it feels. I guess…natural would be the best way to explain it.” She then looked back at him. “Why?” she inquired.

He simply shrugged a shoulder. “Just curious I guess. But then again, the tail isn’t really the only thing new about your body. You’ve also got your long nose, or mouth, whatever you wanna call it.”

Her face dropped. “It’s called a muzzle, Tim. Really?” she deadpanned.

The man held up his hands. “Alright, muzzle, I’m sorry.” He offered, then dropped his hands. “The point I guess I’m trying to make, is that I don’t really recall you ever having an issue adjusting to your new body.” He rephrased.

The spirit hummed. “I guess not. Like my tail, it all just felt natural to me. I can’t really explain it.”

He hummed back and turned towards Nel’s sleeping form. “I guess…even after twelve years…it’s still a bit weird to see you looking like that. Do you…ever miss your old body?” he inquired.

Kitsune glared at him with a growl. “Tim, I swear to God that if you start your damn sulking about this again, I am going to beat you senseless. We’ve been over this I don’t know how many times now.” She warned.

“That’s not exactly what I was asking, Kit.” He advised, still looking at Nel.

She rose a brow at him in curiosity. “Then what is it?” she pressed.

He turned to her with a saddened expression. “I never told you Kit, but lately…” He paused for a moment, then turned back to Nel. “I’ve somehow found myself…I really don’t know how to put it, but…happy…that we’re here now.” He admitted.

Her eyes widened in surprise. “What do you mean, Tim?” she asked in concern.

Timothy let out a deep breath. “What I’m saying, is that while I am sad about us dying and all, I’m not exactly…mad about it. I guess…I’ve come to accept my new life. In fact, as weird as it sounds…I prefer it over my old life.” He looked back at her with a softened gaze. “I know it’s not my fault what happened Kit, but…do you miss your old life? The way things used to be? Are you happy being what you are?” he asked calmly.

Her own gaze dropped before she turned to the sleeping woman in front of them. “I can’t really say that I don’t miss it Tim, because there are some things about being alive that I do miss. All our friends, family, just the living life in general. I would be lying if I said I don’t miss being alive. But there are so many more things about our new lives that I find enjoyable. Sure, being a spirit like this can be annoying at times; not being able to walk around freely like I used to and such. But I have to admit that…”

The spirit lowered her head a bit. “As weird and stupid that it might sound Tim, I actually like being what I am. I really enjoy being your partner. And…” She dropped her head lower as tears began to form in her eyes. “I’m ashamed to admit it…” she started, then looked back at him as the tears started running down her fur. “…but I feel…like our lives are better like this. You and I had so many problems during our marriage Tim. But we loved each other so much that we wanted nothing more than to spend the rest of our lives with each other.”

She turned back front and pulled her knees to her chest, resting her chin on them. “But ever since the truth came out, that I was technically not your wife anymore, and was instead your partner, I somehow felt…relieved. From the time we started dating, to that horrible night, I ‘always’ loved you, Tim. I feel so horrible for saying this…”

The spirit was stopped when he rested a hand on her shoulder. “Say what you need to, Kit. I can assure you, I’m not going to hold anything against you.” He reassured.

Kitsune nodded. “Our marriage didn’t feel right, Tim. I wanted it, more than anything I wanted it. But it honestly felt like it just wasn’t right. That we were not supposed to be together in that way.” She turned her head towards him and rested the side of it on her knees with a deep breath. “But the moment you allowed me to be a part of your inner world, everything somehow felt…perfect. I felt…content…and happy. It felt like…I was ‘supposed’ to be there. Like our entire marriage was just a useless act. And I feel so horrible for feeling and thinking like this. I feel like I’ve betrayed you, Tim. After everything you’ve done for me, I feel like I’m betraying you.” She admitted at last.

Timothy took a deep breath and sighed as he wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her into his side, resting his hand on top of her head. She leaned back into his chest and sniffed with her head down.

“Kit…you’re not betraying me. Our marriage was…rough…to say the least. We ‘both’ gave each other hell in our own ways during that time. I guess I should be honest myself and tell you that I know how you feel.” He stated.

She glanced at him curiously. “You mean you felt the same way?” she inquired.

He took another breath as he nodded. “It hurts to admit it, but yes. I never realized it until about two weeks ago, when you and Kisuke were talking about something, or whatever. But as I thought about it, I came to realize that our marriage didn’t feel right. I felt that we were supposed to be together, but also that marriage wasn’t the way. And that’s when I realized that…having you as a partner like this…felt so much better. And that was why it hurt me. I felt like I was being selfish by being happy to have you with me like this, and you being stuck as a spirit like this.”

The spirit hummed. “I see what you’re saying Tim, and I understand why you would feel like that. But to be honest, I really don’t mind being like this. Like I said, it’s annoying at times that I can’t go wherever I want, when I want; but besides that, as stupid as it sounds, I actually enjoy being a part of you like this. I finally feel like I belong somewhere.”

Timothy looked down at her. “So, are you saying that you prefer this life over the one we used to have?” he inquired quietly.

She rested her head on his chest and sighed deeply. “Yes. I feel like living like this, as your partner in life and combat, is better than the one I had when I was alive. I miss my friends and family, but I can honestly say that I feel far happier living like this, as your partner rather than your wife.”

He pulled her head in a bit tighter and nodded. “Somehow…I feel the same way, Kit. I guess…our lives as husband and wife…were never supposed to be.” He said in sadness.

Kitsune nodded. “I think so as well, Tim.” she confirmed, then pushed herself up and rest a hand on his shoulder while smiling at him. “So how about we restart our lives together as the way they were supposed to be, as partners?” she offered.

Timothy smiled back and nodded as he held out a hand. “Partners then.”

She took his hand and shook it before giving him a wide grin. “Guess that means I can take my teasing to a whole new level, huh?” she teased.

His face then dropped. “I hate you.” He moaned.

The spirit started snickering as she wiped the dried, salty residue from her tears out of her fur. “Well…you’re stuck with me now. So, you might as well get used to it.” She stated, then leaned back against the wall.

Timothy slapped a hand to his face and moaned. “Your teasing should ‘not’ be a part of this deal.” He commented.

Her grin grew wider before she leaned back against him and got close to his ear. “So, when’s you and Nel’s wedding, Tim?” she teased again.

His face grew bright red as he turned to her. “Damn you! You fucking, evil vixen!” he hissed in anger.

Kitsune then cackled under her breath evilly. “Oh yeah, this life is soooo much better.” She admitted.

Timothy moaned as he dropped his head back against the wall with a thump. “God, please have mercy on me…and kill me.” He pleaded into the air.

** Asano Residence, Present **

“So, let me get this straight…” Ikkaku started.

He and Yumichika, along with Renji and Rukia, all decided to go to where he and his friend used as a temporary residence while assigned to the team. He and Yumichika sat on one couch, while Renji and Rukia sat on the other across from them.

“…You two idiots knew about the Arrancar woman that Tim and Urahara were hiding, and you thought it would be a good idea not to tell the Captain?” he asked in disbelief.

Rukia rolled her eyes at him. “No, of course we didn’t think it was a good idea.” She corrected. “In fact, we wanted to tell the Captain about her, but we both promised Tim we wouldn’t say anything.” She stated.

“Yeah.” Renji followed. “We were actually planning on telling Captain Hitsugaya about her soon, knowing that he was going to find out before long anyway.” He added.

Yumichika sighed. “Regardless, you should have at least included Ikkaku and I in on the whole thing; that way, we could have helped you bring the news to him in a more fashionable manner.” He said informatively.

“Yeah, you guys should have known we would have given you a hand. I personally don’t care what she is, as long as she’s a good fighter.” He gave off a brief chuckle. “She sure gave Tim a run for his money.”

His friend side glanced him. “Need I remind you Ikkaku, that the being you saw fighting Tim was not actually the woman we are speaking of. ‘That’ was something else.” He reminded.

Rukia nodded firmly. “Yes. From what Kisuke said, the person Tim was fighting was actually the spirit of her hollow powers, Gamuza. Luckily, Tim was able to convince her to stop and return Nel’s body to her.”

Ikkaku waved her off. “It doesn’t matter who it was. From what I saw, she seems to pretty good in combat. I think my Captain would have fun fighting her.” He commented.

Renji turned to him with an unamused expression. “Don’t even think about it, Ikkaku. Not only would you get her killed, you would piss Tim off. And as I’m sure you can imagine from the way he stood up to Captain Hitsugaya, he would very likely make it his one goal in life to end you.” He pointed out.

The man chuckled darkly. “I’d welcome that. Besides, I’m not gonna say anything. Like I said, I don’t have a problem with her, and if the Captain said he ain’t gonna report her, then I ain’t gonna say anything either.”

Yumichika smiled a bit and nodded. “Yes. I believe that Tim may in fact be correct in his statement about her not being a bad person. From what I’ve seen, she seems to act just like we do in terms of personality. I think we should work harder to help the Captain see her for the person she is.”

The conversation was halted when the door to the apartment opened, where everybody turned to see Rangiku walking in with slumped shoulders, and a very distraught look on her face. The woman moaned loudly as she closed the door behind her.

Renji rose a brow at her. “Sounds like Captain Hitsugaya gave you an earful.” He commented. 

The woman walked past him to drop down on the couch next to Ikkaku, crossing her arms and giving off a loud and childish huff.

“The Captain’s being so mean! He kept yelling at me because I went shopping with Nel; when I had no idea what she is! And now he wants to talk with you two!” she complained, looking at Renji and Rukia.

The short woman moaned lowly. “You owe us for this, Tim.” she stated in a growl.

Renji nodded. “You’re damn right he does.” He added before standing up.

“Regretting helping him now, are we?” Ikkaku mocked.

The red-headed man tilted his head with closed eyes. “Not really. I knew I would get an ass chewing once the Captain found out about her; but now that that time has come, I am really not looking forward to it.” He corrected.

Yumichika smirked at him. “Yes, well, just be aware that you leave here with my condolences.” He teased.

Renji glared at him with clenched fists. “Shut up, Yumichika!” he yelled back.

Rangiku reached behind Ikkaku and slammed her fist down on top of the 5th seat’s head. “Yeah! Keep your mouth shut!” she added.

Yumichika placed a hand where she hit him and glared at her. “How dare you mess up my beautiful hair, you tramp!” he insulted.

Rukia and Renji’s jaws dropped. “Ok, this is where I move.” Ikkaku stated as he quickly got up.

And not a moment too soon, as the blonde-haired Lieutenant was instantly diving across the couch and landing on top of the, now unfortunate, 5th seat. The poor man was quickly smothered in endless punches and slaps from his attacker.

“What the hell did you just call me, Ayasegawa?!” she yelled as she continued to mark him with numerous bruises.

Renji, Rukia, and Ikkaku watched with wide eyes as the busty woman continued her onslaught that was very likely to send the poor man to his grave. Their heads all dropped as the two ‘warriors’ rolled off the couch and kept on with their assaults on the floor.

“I think it’s time for us to go, Renji.” Rukia stated, still in a bit of shock.

“Get off me, you ugly old hag!” Yumichika yelled as he pulled Rangiku’s hair back, forcing her head back with a yelp of pain.

“I think that would be a good idea, Ruks.” The dumbfounded Lieutenant returned.

“Ugly old hag?! I’m going to give you a haircut just like Ikkaku’s, you damn peacock!” she yelled back as she started pulling the man’s hair as well. ~~~~

“If it wasn’t for the fact I have to make sure they don’t tear the place down, I’d join ya.” Ikkaku stated with a bit of disappointment.

“You dare to mock my beautiful feathers?! For someone who possesses too much extra fat in her chest, you have some nerve to make fun of something so beautiful!”

Ikkaku’s eyes widened, while the jaws of the people next to him dropped to the floor. “I think it would be best if you ‘did’ come with us, Ikkaku.” Renji stated firmly, causing Rukia to nod very quickly.

“That does it!” Rangiku yelled as she wrapped her hands around the smaller man’s neck and started shaking him vigorously. “You’re going to die here, Yumichika!”

** Orihime’s Apartment, 10 Minutes Later **

Toshiro sat in the window sill of the spare bedroom that he and his team used for their commanded center. Orihime was still in school, and it would be another few hours before she came home. That was why he had decided to use the room to have his little ‘talks’ with his subordinates.

He heard the front door open, then close a few seconds later, causing him to let out a throaty growl before he lowered his head with closed eyes.

“It’s about time you two got here.” He commented as he lifted his head to the group in front of him.

He was surprised to see, not only Renji and Rukia like he had intended, but also Ikkaku, Yumichika, and Rangiku. Not only that, he had to raise a brow when he noticed that the last two had numerous cuts, scratches, and bruises all over their arms, legs, and faces.

“What the hell happened?!” he demanded in an annoyed tone.

Renji sweat dropped, then rolled his eyes towards the two. “It’s…best we don’t go into details, Captain.”

Toshiro dropped his brow and growled. “Why are they here? I asked for you and Kuchiki only.” He stated.

Rukia shook her head firmly. “Trust me Captain, it was necessary in order to prevent…unnecessary damage to a human’s residence.” She informed with a similar face as Renji’s.

The Captain slapped a hand to his face and pulled it down with a moan. “Why did I have to get stuck with a bunch of idiots?” he complained. He dropped his hand and crossed his arms as he stood from the sill and glared at them. “Whatever, just go in the other room and stay out of trouble.” He instructed.

The three officers nodded, then left the room with Ikkaku closing the door behind him. Toshiro stared at the two subordinates in front of him with anger.

“Now, you two have some explaining to do.” He informed in a commanding tone.

Rukia sighed and took a step forward. “It’s my fault, Captain. I found out about Nel some time ago and kept it a secret for Tim. He and I told Renji only a few days ago. Tim was afraid you would try to kill Nel right off the bat if you found out about her, and was honestly trying to find a way to break the news to you without causing an incident.” She informed.

Toshiro nodded in confirmation. “That still doesn’t explain why you thought it prudent to keep this information from your commanding officer.” He stated, then turned to Renji. “And you, Lieutenant Abarai, you should know better as a Lieutenant. I seriously doubt Captain Kuchiki would be pleased to know that his Lieutenant is keeping dangerous secrets from his commanding officer.” He warned.

Renji rose a brow. “What dangerous secrets, Captain? Tim and Kisuke both told you that Nel is not dangerous. And with all due respect, you can’t use what happened earlier as an example.” He pointed out.

The short Captain narrowed his gaze. “I disagree, Lieutenant. Regardless of ‘who’ was in control at the time, the woman is still dangerous. She nearly killed Lieutenant Durn, and you both know that.”

Rukia took another step forward and held out a hand. “Captain, didn’t you say you would hold off on judging Nel outright? Didn’t you say you would give her a chance to prove herself?” she pleaded.

The man looked at her with a firm face. “Yes, I did say I would hold off on judging her, but I want you two to understand the serious situation you are in. Lieutenant Durn is not the only one who would be in serious trouble if this doesn’t pan out. Both of you would also be punished for insubordination, because you ‘both’ knew about her, and neglected to tell me about it. To put this simply, both of your fates are in Lieutenant Durn’s hands. So, you had better hope that all of this works out, for your sake.” He warned further.

The two friends bowed low to him. “Yes sir.” they returned in unison before rising.

Toshiro nodded. “Good. And what about the woman’s zanpakutō?” he inquired.

Renji placed a hand behind his head and ruffled his hair a bit. “Well, the thing is Captain, considering what happened earlier, it’s very unwise to take her zanpakutō away from her…at least until she wakes up.” He stated.

The Captain moaned in annoyance. “I am aware of that. But nonetheless, I do not want that woman armed.”

The Lieutenant dropped his hand. “Captain, can’t it at least wait until she wakes up? The last thing we need is Gamuza getting pissed off again. Kisuke has a barrier up that prevents Nel from leaving, so it’s not like she can go anywhere anyway.” He pleaded.

Toshiro sighed heavily in defeat. “Fine. But the moment she wakes up, you ‘will’ take her zanpakutō. And that is not up for debate. Am I clear, Lieutenant Abarai, Kuchiki?”

They both nodded firmly. “Yes, Captain.” Rukia answered.

“Good. You are dismissed. And be sure to tell those two idiots in the other room that the next time they decide to try and kill each other, I’ll arrest them both.” He ordered.

Renji and Rukia both sweat dropped. “Uh…yes sir.” Renji returned, then left the room, followed closely by Rukia who closed the door behind them.

Toshiro stared at the door for a moment longer before taking his hand and rubbing his temple with an exasperated breath.

“I know that this is nothing more than a bad idea. That fool had better be right about that woman.” He said in a whisper.

The alarm on his soul pager then went off, telling him that there was a hollow alert somewhere close by. He let a sigh of relief as he fished into his pocket for his soul candy dispenser.

“Perfect timing. This is just what I need to get my mind of this nonsense.” He stated as he pulled the small device from his pocket.

He pressed his thumb to the top of it and ejected one of the mod souls inside into his mouth, swallowing it. His spiritual body ejected from his faux one, where he turned to it with a stern face.

“Make sure those fools don’t kill each other.” He instructed to the mod soul.

The soul nodded, then turned and left the room as he climbed onto the window sill and leaped into the air.

** Urahara Shop, That Evening **

The sun had just begun sinking below the horizon when Nel finally began to wake up. Her brows furrowed a bit before she slowly opened her eyes a little. She stared at the ceiling for a few seconds, until a small, but sharp pain in her head forced her to close them back.

Twisting to her side a bit, she started pushing herself up to a sitting position and started rubbing her temples to alleviate the pain a little. She took a relaxing breath as she felt the pain being soothed away steadily.

She suddenly remembered what happened earlier, causing her to gasp silently as her eyes shot open. She then quickly started looking around her to see that she was back in her room, and not only that, but that it was getting dark outside.

The woman turned to her left, and her eyes went a bit wider when she saw Kitsune sitting against the wall, and Timothy lying down sleeping with his head in her lap. She had her head leaned back and eyes closed as she massaged his head gently with her hand.

Nel swallowed, then twisted her body a bit to face them more. “Kit?” she called out.

The spirit’s eyes shot open and she jerked her head to the woman, then smiled calmly. Before Nel could say anything further, Kitsune held a finger to her mouth, telling her that she needed to talk quietly.

Nel nodded, then the spirit dropped her hand. “He’s been keeping an eye on you nonstop the whole day. He finally passed out about fifteen minutes ago. How you feeling?” she asked in a whisper.

The woman pulled a hand up and rubbed the side of her head. “My head hurts, and I’m a bit sore, but I guess I’m fine. Kit…what happened? After Gamuza…released my Resurrección, everything went dark. I don’t remember anything past that.” She asked in worry.

Kitsune’s face dropped, then she looked at her partner. “You promise not to hate him, Nel?” she inquired.

The teal-haired woman’s eyes widened a bit. “What? Why would I hate him, Kit? Tell me, what happened?” she pleaded.

The spirit glanced back at her in sadness. “He won’t admit it fully, but…Gamuza almost killed him, Nel.” She informed, causing the woman to gasp in shock. “I swear to you Nel, he tried to avoid fighting her as long as he could, but in the end, he had no choice. He had to use his Bankai against her.”

Nel dropped her head in shame as tears began to form in her eyes. “I’m so sorry…I put him through this.”

Kitsune gently shook her head. “No Nel, you didn’t. Gamuza did. She was doing everything she could to try and kill him. You tried your hardest to keep her from taking over, you warned us to get away from you to protect us. You did everything you could to stop all this, but Gamuza’s hatred towards Tim was too much for you to handle. None of this is your fault, Nel. I’ve already had to talk Tim out of that idea, please don’t make me do the same with you.” She begged.

The woman looked back at her in shock. “Tim…thinks that…all this was ‘his’ fault?!” she demanded.

The spirit nodded. “In part he did. He definitely felt responsible for all the wounds and burns you received. Even though Orihime’s healing left nothing behind, it still tore him up that he had to do that to you in the first place. But you don’t need to worry about that, I managed to convince him that it’s not his fault what happened. So, tell me, do you…feel any different than before what happened?” she questioned.

Nel sighed heavily, but shook her head slowly. “Besides a headache, I don’t feel any different from before.” She answered.

“And Gamuza?” Kitsune asked further.

The woman nodded. “She’s not talking right now, but I feel her inside me. I still can’t believe she was able to do that. I…I never thought it was possible. And now…” She dropped her head again and balled her fists. “Now I’m afraid…that Tim will want nothing to do with me. I let Gamuza take control…and hurt him.”

Kitsune balled her free fist tightly. “Please don’t say that, Nel. Tim is scared to death, but not because of what Gamuza did, but because he honestly began to think he had lost you. Nel…look at me.” She instructed, causing the woman to do so. “Whenever Tim is sad, or worried, it rains harder in his inner world. And when he made the decision that he would rather kill Gamuza, essentially killing you as well, just to prevent Gamuza from killing you herself, it basically turned his inner world into a swamp. It broke his heart that he had to be the one to potentially kill you, Nel. And it broke mine, too.”

She then looked back down at a sleeping Timothy in sadness. “You honestly have no idea how much he cares for you, Nel. He even stood up in front of Captain Hitsugaya, and openly threatened his life if he was to attack you.”

Nel’s eyes went wide as saucers. “He…He knows?!” she asked in fear.

The spirit glanced back at her and nodded. “Along with the rest of the team. Although he was very reluctant to do so, the Captain’s agreed not to say anything…at least for now anyway. Renji, Rukia, and Rangiku all managed to convince him to give you a chance to prove you’re not the bad monster he thinks you are. And I hate to tell you this Nel…but the Captain also knows about Tim’s feelings for you.”

The woman closed her eyes tightly in anger, pushing the tears in her eyes out and down her cheeks.

“How did he find out?” she inquired in a broken voice.

“The way Tim stood up to him gave it away. He asked me in private about it and…I kinda screwed up and admitted it without meaning to. I’m sorry, Nel.” The spirit said as she ducked her head in shame.

Nel shook her head softly. “It’s fine, Kit. I’m sure it was an accident. But…now I’m worried what it’ll do to Tim. I don’t want him to risk more than he already has for me.”

Kitsune stared at the woman intently. “Nel…didn’t Tim already tell you he loved you?” she asked, getting a reluctant nod back. “Well, you should know him well enough by now to know that he wouldn’t let things like the Captain knowing about his feelings for you get in the way. You know he could care less about what other people think about him. Do you doubt him?” she questioned.

The woman glared at her with firm eyes. “No!” she hissed a bit too loudly, causing the spirit to quickly raise a finger to her mouth again to silence her and making Nel slap a hand over her mouth. Nel took a calming breath before lowering her hand and sighing. “No, I do not doubt him, Kit. I know what others say about him doesn’t matter to Tim. But do you honestly think he would take the risk and not regret it later when the soul society hates him for it?” she pressed.

The spirit nodded her head firmly. “Yes Nel, I do. I know for a fact he would never regret his feelings for you, no matter what happened. And if you truly feel for him the way you say you do, then you wouldn’t regret it either. So don’t worry about how the Captain feels about you two being together, and worry only about you two.”

Nel sighed with closed eyes and nodded. “I do feel strongly about him, Kit. I really do.” She then opened her eyes and gave the spirit a firm stare. “But do you honestly think him and I can live together peacefully? I honestly don’t care about being hunted by the soul society, but I don’t want to put Tim through that hell because of me.” She admitted.

Kitsune snorted at her. “You think that will stop him? You should know that it wouldn’t. I love the fact that you are putting his safety and wellbeing before you, and I know he does too, but you’re only going to upset him by staying away from him because you’re worried he’ll regret being with you. He’ll never regret being with you Nel. God, you’re just as bullheaded as he is sometimes.” She said with a roll of the eyes.

The woman growled with narrowed eyes. “I am not!” she asserted.

The spirit rose a skeptical brow at her. “Really? I keep telling the both of you over and over to stop worrying, and yet both of you refuse to do so. This is the last time I’m going to say this Nel, so clean that crap outta your ears and listen closely. Tim loves you, and he will do ‘anything’ for you. He has risked everything for you, ‘because’ he loves you. He will ‘never’ regret being with you. After everything he’s done, it should have been painfully obvious. Don’t take this the wrong way Nel, but Tim is my partner and I have to put this out there. If you can’t get all this through your head, and see that he would truly do ‘anything’ for you, then maybe you don’t really deserve him.” She declared with a serious face.

Nel flinched in inner pain before she turned away and held her knees to her chest, her head now buried in them. Kitsune maintain her stare as the woman in front of her began to weep. A moment later, Nel held her legs tighter and sniffed.

“You’re right.” She admitted in a teary voice, then look back at the spirit with a flooded face. “I don’t deserve him. After everything he’s done…everything he’s said, I’m still questioning him. Questioning myself.” She held her knees even tighter as she gritted her teeth. “But I want to fix that. I want to be with him. So, I’m asking…please give me another chance.” She begged.

Kitsune scoffed and smiled. “You don’t need to ask Nel. As long as you realize that you need to trust that Tim knows what he’s doing, I’m all for you two being together. It may take me constantly bashing it into his head, but he trusts you. And don’t worry about the Captain, or anyone else knowing about you two. If the two of you truly want to be together, then nothing can stop you.” She comforted.

The woman smiled and nodded. “Thank you.” She said in a broken voice.

The spirit then grinned evilly, causing the Arrancar to start fretting, knowing that grin anywhere. “If you ‘really’ want to thank me, I’ve got a little task for you. One that very well may just help improve you two’s relationship.” She said in a dark tone.

Nel’s eyes went wide with fear as she swallowed hard. “Uh oh…” she whispered.

Timothy then stirred from his sleep, causing both women to look at him. “Morning sunshine.” Kitsune teased.

He moaned at her. “Oh, shut up. Damn vixen.” He scowled as he got up, stopping when he saw Nel now awake. “Nel! Are you alright?!” he asked in worry.

The woman was still a bit frozen in fear from the spirit’s earlier proposition, so she looked back at the spirit to see her voicelessly mouthing ‘We’ll talk later’ to her.

“Uh…” she tried, but choked up, causing the spirit to hold a finger up to her mouth, telling her not to say anything. “Uh, yeah…I’m fine, Tim. What about you?” she asked back, now sweating.

He rose a brow in confusion as to her odd behavior. “Uh…I’m fine. I got beat up pretty good, but otherwise I’m good.” He answered.

Kitsune lowered her hand. “Before I forget Nel, Captain Hitsugaya wants you to give up your zanpakutō.” She informed, trying to change the subject.

Her eyes widened a bit. “He what?”

Timothy sighed as he sat straight and nodded. “He states that he doesn’t want you armed, Nel. So he’s instructed that you have to give up your zanpakutō. Considering how the whole thing ‘should’ have gone, this is easily a small price to pay. I’m sure you know he’s not going to do anything to Gamuza, but he’s only concerned for his team’s safety. I’m sure you, and hopefully Gamuza, understand.”

**_“Understand my ass! Who the hell does that puny, white-haired brat think he is?! Telling you to give up my blade?!”_** the spirit seethed.

_“It doesn’t matter Gamuza, Tim’s right. We shouldn’t even be alive right now after what you did in front of the Captain, but he’s still going to give us a chance. Letting him hold onto your blade, at least just for a little while, will help us in the future.”_ Nel argued.

Gamuza scoffed heavily. **_“Whatever. I guess even I can’t really argue that one. But I swear to you, that brat had better make sure you get my blade back, or so help me, I’ll make his death a slow and painful one.”_** She warned.

Nel held a hand to the side of her head and started rubbing it. “She’s definitely ‘not’ happy about it Tim, but she does understand. As long as you can guarantee that I’ll get her back, I will give her to him.”

He nodded firmly. “I promise, you ‘will’ get Gamuza back, Nel. I swear it, to both of you.” He said with a serious face.

She nodded back. “Alright. But now that the Captain knows about me, what happens now?” she inquired.

Timothy gently waved her off. “Just act normal. Show him that you’re not here to hurt us or anything. It’ll take some time, but I’m almost sure he’ll come around and see you’re not a bad person, Nel. But, although he hasn’t said anything yet, I’m pretty sure he gonna want to keep you confined to the shop. If he brings it up, I’ll try to plead with him to give you at least a day here and there to walk around. Granted, you’ll obviously have to have someone with you. Other than that, I don’t think there’s any changes to your daily life here.” He informed.

Nel let out a brief sigh and nodded. “I’m worried, Tim. I’m afraid he might do something.” She admitted.

Kitsune snorted at her. “After Tim’s standoff with him, I seriously doubt he’ll do anything, Nel. Besides, Captain Hitsugaya is ‘not’ that kind of person. I promise, he’s not going to just up and attack you without a very good reason.” She comforted.

Timothy glanced at the spirit. “Nevertheless, we really need to start thinking about other ways to hide Nel. If Captain Hitsugaya informs the soul society about her, she definitely can’t stay here. I doubt she’ll even be able to stay in Karakura town.” He pointed out firmly.

A knock on the door drew everyone’s attention. “Come in.” Timothy answered in a low voice.

The door slid open, where Rangiku walked in and waved at him. “Hey guys.” She greeted with a smile.

The three friends all rose a brow at the numerous bruises on her body. “What happened to you, Rangiku?” Kitsune asked in a bit of shock.

The woman gave her a firm glare. “Yumichika’s funeral.” She stated in a hiss.

Timothy began sweating at her tone. “I don’t think I wanna know.” He admitted reluctantly.

The busty Lieutenant then looked at Nel, before sliding the door shut and planting a hand on her hip. Nel shirked a bit under the woman’s stare, and flinched when she suddenly started laughing.

“Oh, you don’t need to be so worried, Nel.” She stated with a wave of the hand. “I’m not really happy that you kept your true identity from me, but I really don’t see you as a threat. Definitely not as a ‘monster’.” She reassured.

Nel breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank you, Rangiku. But, are you really not afraid of me?” she inquired.

The Lieutenant shook her head. “Of course not. You seem just like an ordinary person to me. I may even have to take you shopping again.” She announced with glee.

Timothy and Kitsune both froze at the thought of seeing Nel wearing, not revealing, but still provocative, clothing again. Their eyes went wide as they unintentionally looked at the woman and imagined the woman in those clothes, a trickle of blood running from their noses.

Although she was currently materialized, Kitsune was still able to hear anything that her ‘roommate’ had to share. And what he said next was something that she and her partner were very happy to agree with.

**_“Do not…be present…for that.”_** ‘Johnny’ warned, earning a swift nod from the two.

Nel tilted her head at them, not sure why they suddenly started nodding. “Tim, are you two ok?” she inquired.

He quickly nodded again. “Yes! Just fine! Why, don’t I look fine?!” he shot out very quickly.

Rangiku smiled evilly at him with crossed arms. “What’s wrong, Tim? Don’t you ‘want’ to see Nel looking good in new clothes?” she questioned.

The pair froze again, knowing that the damned, busty Lieutenant just unknowingly backed the two of them into a corner. If Tim said no, it would definitely hurt Nel’s feelings and cause her to think she wasn’t pretty to him. But, if he agreed, they both knew that it would be a very, ‘very’ long and excruciating nightmare.

_‘Damn!’ / ‘Damn! / **‘Damn!’**_ all three of them thought in perfect unison.

He really had no choice, this was easily a ‘lesser of two evils’ situation; and making Nel happy was by far the least evil of them all.

“Of course! I’d love to see you try out some new outfits, Nel!” he answered…very reluctantly.

Then the best idea came to Kitsune’s head, the one idea that just ‘may’ save them both. She turned to the female Lieutenant and rose a brow.

“I don’t think Captain Hitsugaya would allow that, Rangiku.” She pointed out.

Timothy’s eyes shot open even wider as he glanced at the spirit next to him. He honestly couldn’t believe he had not thought of that unintentional ‘lifeline’ sooner. He and ‘Johnny’ both let out mental sighs of relief, knowing that there was ‘no way’ the Captain would ever allow it. There was a God afterall.

Rangiku waved her off nonchalantly. “Don’t worry about it, Kit. I had a little talk with him and suggested that if she’s going prove she’s not a monster, a good way would be to have her around humans. He agreed, so tomorrow, we’re going out and seeing ‘how you do’ around humans. Not only that, he wants you to come along so you can brief me on everything you know about her.” She informed.

…A God that outright hates them.

Kitsune’s face dropped as she began crying in her mind. Timothy turned his head to give the spirit a firm glare of death.

“I am going to kill you, vixen!” he hissed in a whisper.

She rolled her eyes back to him with sweat running down her fur. “That is if ‘Johnny’ don’t kill me first.” She commented.

**_“She speaks…the truth.”_** He said in a very dark and demonic voice; a voice that would have scared Timothy, had he not been too busy being furious with his partner.

_“You will wait your damn turn, ‘Johnny’!”_ he growled at the spirit.

**_“As long…as she…still lives…when you…are finished…I am…content…with waiting.”_** He informed.

Rangiku clapped her hands next to her head, holding them there as she spoke. “Well then, that settles it! Tomorrow, we’re going to get you some new things to wear, Nel!” she informed.

Both partners dropped their heads in epic defeat. “I want to die.” They moaned in unison.

Nel looked at the pair with worry. “Tim…are you sure you’re alright?” she pressed.

Timothy sighed heavily, then nodded. “Yeah Nel…I’m just peachy.” He stated in a moan.

Rangiku then touched a finger to her chin and hummed in thought. “I wonder if Yoruichi is doing anything. It’d be nice to have another opinion.” She commented.

The next sound that echoed through the room was the sound of two loud thumps as Timothy and Kitsune’s bodies fell away from each other and dropped to the floor. The thought of the most evil, and seductive person on the planet joining them and picking out clothes for Nel proved to be too much, and rendered them both unconscious.

Nel quickly jumped to her hands and knees with wide eyes. “Tim!” she yelled out in worry.

** Underground Training Area, Present **

Kisuke stood next to a large boulder at the very far end of the training grounds, his cane in his hand with a solemn look on his face, deep in thought. But his thoughts were interrupted by the sound of Yoruichi flashing into existence a short distance away.

“What the hell is going on, Kisuke? I leave for a few days, and you let everything fall apart.” She said as she stopped walking and crossed her arms with a serious expression.

The shop owner turned to her with his ‘innocent’ smile and placed a hand on top of his hat. “Why Yoruichi! Whatever could you mean?!” he asked in a ‘cheery’ voice.

The woman glared at her friend. “Don’t play dumb with me, Kisuke. I know something happened here today. And not only that, but Captain Hitsugaya somehow found out about Nel. So, stop with the games and tell me what’s going on.” She demanded.

The man’s ‘smile’ vanished as his face turned stern instantly. “Yes, Captain Hitsugaya and the others are aware of miss Nel’s true origin. For the moment, it would seem that Hitsugaya has agreed to postpone alerting the soul society about her. We’re very fortunate in that regards, at least for a while.” He informed.

Yoruichi nodded. “And the other thing that happened?” she questioned further.

Kisuke dropped his head. “It would seem that the spirit of miss Nel’s hollow powers has found a way to take over her consciousness.” He stated.

The woman’s eyes went wide. “That’s impossible! As if an Arrancar having their own hollow spirit inside wasn’t enough, now you’re saying that it’s possible for them to take over?!” she asked in shock.

Her friend lifted his head enough to look at her past the brim of his hat. “You’re right, it shouldn’t be possible. As you know, Ichigo is currently away, training to master control over his inner hollow. Although it’s still a part of his inner world, Ichigo’s inner hollow is not entirely a part of him. He is basically a human with hollow powers, and a spirit that governs those powers. Nel however, ‘is’ a hollow, with a hollow spirit that ‘is’ a part of her. Nel and Gamuza are essentially the same being, but split into two different entities. Nel’s mind ‘is’ Gamuza’s, and vice versa. Where Ichigo’s inner hollow can assume control of his mind and body, it’s not possible for a being to take over a mind that is already their own.” He educated.

Yoruichi tilted her head a bit. “So, if it’s not possible, then how the hell did Gamuza manage to do it?” she inquired.

He shrugged his shoulders a bit. “I can’t say. My only guess is that somehow Nel’s body and mind must be shifting from what it currently is, a hollow.” He offered.

She rose a brow. “Shifting? Into what? Are you trying to say that Nel’s mind and body are changing into something else?” she questioned harder.

Kisuke nodded. “Surely you must have noticed miss Nel’s steady change in personality. When she first arrived here, she was a calm and calculated warrior. But if you were to sit down and talk with her now, she talks and acts closer to that of a normal woman. Not only that, but she also possesses many emotions now that she certainly didn’t have when she first arrived.”

Yoruichi gave the man a firm stare. “What are you saying, Kisuke?” she asked in a low tone.

He raised his head a bit more to her. “I’ll need to do more research, but I believe it’s entirely possible that miss Nel is somehow becoming more human.” He informed cautiously.

The woman’s eyes shot wide. “Are you telling me that Nel is becoming a human?!” she demanded.

He shook his head slowly. “Not entirely. That, I know for certain, ‘is’ impossible. An Arrancar, from what we have seen, is basically a half and half mix of hollow and human, with the full hollow part of them sealed into a zanpakutō. But in Nel’s case, it seems that her human half is steadily becoming more dominant. That would explain how Gamuza was able to take over today. With the shift of her body and mind’s core composition going more towards that of a human’s, I believe that is what allowed Gamuza to try and assume dominance. As you are aware, the stronger of two entities will always gain superiority over the other. Gamuza’s ‘full hollow’ self, was trying to gain that dominance over miss Nel’s growing human side.” He clarified.

His friend shook her head with a sigh. “So, let me see if I have this straight, Kisuke; you’re saying that Nel’s mind and body are becoming more and more human as time goes by, and that, because of that, Gamuza was able to try and assume control over her?”

Kisuke nodded slowly. “Essentially, yes. As I said, more research is required in order to confirm whether or not this is truly the case.”

She sighed heavily and closed her eyes, worried about her new friend. “How could this have happened, Kisuke?” she inquired in a depressed voice.

The scientist lowered his head. “My only conclusion is that exposure to the Hōgyoku is the cause. If the Hōgyoku was able to turn miss Kit from a human soul into a zanpakutō spirit, it’s safe to say that allowing an Arrancar to become more human over time is entirely possible as well. This is not something I had originally thought possible with the Hōgyoku, so this is all new to me as well. For now…” He paused to look back at the woman. “…it’s in our best interest that we keep a very close eye on miss Nel. We need to be wary of any other possibilities that could result from her mind and body’s transition. Gamuza’s attempt to take control may not be the worst we can expect.” He warned.

Yoruichi gave the man a firm stare. “Kisuke…this isn’t another one of your experiments, this is a living, breathing being we’re talking about here. And not only that, but that being is a friend of ours, and someone that Tim, another close friend of ours, holds very dear.” She cautioned.

Kisuke grinned at his friend. “So, you knew about that, did you?” he teased.

The woman narrowed her gaze at him. “Of course I did. Don’t forget that ‘I’ was the one who started getting those two together. And don’t change the subject, Kisuke. You know full well that Tim will lose it if something was to happen to her. That woman has managed to dig her way into all of our hearts, and we would all suffer if something happened to her. So, you’d best keep that in mind when you decide to do your ‘research’ on her.” She warned further.

The man smiled at her. “Showing little faith in me, are we?” he teased again.

Yoruichi briefly flashed over to him and delivered a swift ‘chop’ to the top of his head. The man dropped down while clutching his head with a pitiful moan.

“Stop being such an idiot, Kisuke. I’m serious here. I’m sure you’re just as worried about what this could do to her as I am.” She growled in annoyance.

He lifted his head to her with a frown. “Of course, Yoruichi. How could you think I wouldn’t be?” he whined.

The woman narrowed her gaze at him with an annoyed, throaty growl, causing him to quickly wave his hands at her in a placating manner.

“Alright alright! I’ll be careful while looking into this! Just calm down!” he pleaded.

She nodded firmly at him. “You better, Kisuke, or Tim’s the one who would obviously be the most furious. And I think it would be wise not to mention any of this to either of them. Knowing him, he’s likely to get all depressed again.”

The man stood up as he rubbed his head through his hat. “I agree. Telling either of them would only serve to make the situation worse. Especially considering that Gamuza would very likely be furious about it. I’ll let you know if I find anything else out. For now, I think it would be best to focus more on keeping Captain Hitsugaya content with her. We were very fortunate that he agreed not to report her.”

The woman nodded again. “That’s true. I’ll do what I can to help the situation regarding that, while you focus on finding out more about Nel’s dilemma. Hopefully, we can solve both problems quickly.” She proposed.

“Agreed. If this does get out though, it’d be best if you went to the soul society to help keep this from turning into false rumors.” He advised.

She turned away and sighed. “Yeah, it would. But I’m not sure how much good it would do. I’m sure I could get Kyōraku and Ukitake to help, and I might even be able to get Komamura as well. He’s Tim’s Captain, and is not the kind of person to judge others too quickly. Unohana would definitely help.” She named off with her fingers.

He gave her a solemn look. “You know that won’t be nearly enough.” He commented.

The woman glanced back at him. “It’s better than nothing, Kisuke. So, let’s hope it don’t come to that.”

Kisuke nodded firmly and returned his hand to his hat. “We should return upstairs. Miss Nel woke up not too long ago, and I’m sure she’d like at least a brief understanding as to what happened.” he advised calmly.

“Don’t tell her too much, Kisuke.” She cautioned.

He nodded again, before the two friends vanished in shunpo. When they reappeared back upstairs, they found Rangiku sitting at the table with Nel, Timothy, and Kitsune; the latter two with very distressed looks on their faces.

The female Lieutenant widened her eyes a bit in glee when she saw the golden-eyed woman standing there and looking at the two partners with a raised brow.

“Oh, Yoruichi! You got a minute?!” she asked with a happy demeaner.

The woman smiled and nodded. “Sure. What’s up?” she asked back, causing Timothy and Kitsune to moan loudly.

Rangiku smiled back with a hint of a grin. “I wanted to take Nel shopping tomorrow, and I was hoping you might want to come and help us pick out some outfits.” She offered.

Yoruichi looked back at the very distraught forms of Timothy and Kitsune before giving her trademark, suggestive grin. She still owed Timothy a bit for his comments the other night, so this was the perfect opportunity to get him back…’legally’.

“I’d love to.” She answered.

Timothy’s head then dropped onto the table while Kitsune started to whine under her breath. “Please…whatever God exists…please…kill us now.” She begged into the air in a low voice.

Yoruichi’s grin quickly grew into a very wide, and toothy one. “I saw a few outfits the other day while walking around that I think would look ‘perfect’ on Nel.” She teased further, causing Timothy to lift, then drop his head again twice more.

“I just want to die…” he moaned.

Nel turned to him with a small frown. “If…it really bothers you Tim…we don’t have to go.” she offered.

He quickly shot up and waved her off with wide eyes at the sound of her saddened voice. “No! I said it’s fine, Nel! I just…had a few things to do is all!” he lied, trying to keep her happy.

Yoruichi simply couldn’t believe how owned the poor man was. But at the same time, she couldn’t help but admire how much suffering he was willing to go through for the woman next to him. She was actually starting to feel a bit jealous.

But jealousy could wait. Right now, this was too golden of an opportunity for the woman to have some fun with the three of them.

“Come on Tim, I’m sure Nel would gladly appreciate you complementing her on how good she’d look in the clothes I’ve got in mind.” She teased.

Timothy glared at the woman. “I don’t even want to ‘begin’ to imagine the kind of ‘clothes’ you would pick out, damn demon!” he hissed, earning a quick nod from Kitsune.

“I agree! I’m still haunted by your little show the other day!” she added.

Yoruichi glanced at the spirit, thinking of all the possible ways she could tease her with the way she just opened herself.

“My Kit, I had no idea you swung that way.” She mocked.

The spirit’s eyes shot wide open as Timothy and Nel’s jaws dropped and Rangiku burst out into a fit of laughter. Even through all the fur on the woman’s face, the golden-eyed woman could easily see the tomato-red blush plastered on the spirit’s face.

“I…I do not! That’s not funny, Yoruichi! I am ‘not’ into women! Stop telling everyone your damn lies!” she yelled as she propped herself on the table, glaring at the woman.

Yoruichi rose a brow and crossed her arms. “Oh? Then why did my ‘little show’ get you all worked up? Come on, Kit. You can be honest with me. It’s not bad to admire another woman…at least not in today’s society.” She informed.

The spirit slapped her hands on the table again. “I am not interested in women!” she asserted in a growl.

Nel looked at her with calming face. “She’s only teasing you, Kit. You know that.” She stated.

The seductress then glanced at the teal-haired woman. “And what about you, Nel? You seemed to enjoy it just as much as Kit did.”

The woman’s face went red as well before she glared at her. “No, I didn’t! It was just unexpected!” she yelled.

Yoruichi finally looked at Timothy with a very amused grin. “Better make your move quick, Tim. Otherwise, these two lovely ladies just might go for each other.” She ‘warned’ in a suggestive manner.

His face was now red as well at the thought. He was so shocked by the woman’s comment, that it never registered in his mind that the two women next to him were instantly leaping over the table and hurtling right at the evil demoness.

“I’ll kill you!” Kitsune yelled as she flew through the air.

Her hands were held out in a gesture to grab the woman, followed closely by Nel who had a similar face of fury that the spirit did. But both women crashed into the wall in a pile of arms and legs when Yoruichi flashed out of the way at the last second.

Rangiku was literally on the floor and holding her sides as she laughed so hard, her lungs threatened to burst. It only took a couple of seconds for the two women to untangle themselves before they were on their feet and chasing Yoruichi through the shop.

“Get back here, you damn demon!” Nel yelled as she split off from Kitsune and tried to corner the golden-eyed woman.

Timothy managed to recover from his shock enough to turn and notice that Kisuke was sitting down across from him, holding up his cell phone and recording the entire thing. The Lieutenant rose a brow in disbelief.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” he asked in shock.

The shop owner glanced at him and smiled widely from behind his fan. “Come now Tim, don’t you find this the least bit enjoyable?” he inquired.

“Aren’t you worried about your friend?” he shot back.

The man chuckled lowly. “Please Tim, do you honestly believe that those two would ever be able to catch the ‘Goddess of Flash’? I don’t think so. Right now, all their doing is wasting energy.” He informed with a wave of his fan.

Timothy’s face dropped with a moan. “I hate you all.” He stated, then turned back to the women’s adult version of ‘ring-around-the-rosy’.

“God damnit Yoruichi, hold the fuck still!” Kitsune yelled loudly as the said woman simply stepped to the side and let the spirit run by, crashing into one of the shelves.

“You’re mine!” Nel followed, only for her target to step right back to the same spot from before and let her crash into another shelf as well.

Rangiku was ‘still’ laughing her ass off, causing Timothy to turn his eyes to her. “It’s not that funny, Rangiku.” He stated.

The woman rolled over to face him with tear of laughter in her eyes. “Your…right it…it’s not!” she stated between laughs. “It’s freaking…hilarious!” she finished, then continued her laughing spree.

Timothy groaned as he started rubbing his temples. “I really don’t know how this can get any worse…” he moaned.

“What the hell is going on in here?!” a voice yelled, the one voice he definitely did ‘not’ want to hear at the moment.

He quickly looked up with wide eyes at the same time that Yoruichi’s two aggressors stopped their assaults and slowly turned to see Captain Hitsugaya standing in the front doorway; his fists clenched at his side and a furious look on his face.

“I spoke too soon.” Timothy moaned further after slapping the hand from before onto his face.

Toshiro glared at his Lieutenant. “Rangiku, you want to explain all this?” he asked/demanded.

It was at this time that Rangiku had finally stopped laughing, sweat beading down her face as she looked back at her superior in worry.

“Um…Hey Captain…The girls were just having…a little fun?” she tried, but failed as it only made the short man even madder.

“I can see that! I sent you here to retrieve the woman’s zanpakutō, not for fun and games!” he growled.

Timothy then stood up and looked at him firmly. “I’ will get it for you, Captain.” He announced.

The man nodded. “Be quick about it, Lieutenant. My patience is already at its limit, and it would not bode well for you to test it any further.” He warned.

The Lieutenant stared back at him. “Noted, Captain. One second.” He said, then left the room.

“And you…” Toshiro started, turning to Nel. “…I assume Rangiku told you about her and Lieutenant Durn taking you out into the city?” he inquired.

The woman stood straight from her still frozen position and nodded. “Yes sir. She said that I was to tell her everything about me.”

The Captain nodded firmly. “And you had better not leave anything out. I’m giving you this one chance…‘Nel’…so don’t screw it up.” He warned.

Nel gave the man a swift bow. “I won’t, I promise.” She assured.

She rose back up as Timothy reentered the room, Gamuza’s blade in his hands. He came to a stop in front of the shorter man and held the weapon out to him with a very firm gaze.

“Unless you want Gamuza to pay us another visit Captain, I strongly urge you to take good care of it. She’s not exactly happy I’m giving her to you.” He stated.

“You have nothing to fear, Lieutenant. And once ‘Nel’ has proven herself to me, I will consider returning it.” He said in return, accepting the blade from Timothy.

Nel then held a hand to her head and moaned quietly, causing Timothy to turn to her. “I assume that’s her getting mad?” he observed.

She nodded in confirmation. “She’s really giving me an earful right now.”

Toshiro looked at her and rose a brow. “Well tell ‘her’ she can calm down. I already said you will get it back once you’ve proven yourself.”

Nel winced a bit as Gamuza started yelling in her head. “Captain, please don’t upset her.” She begged.

Timothy nodded. “Yes, please don’t.” he furthered.

The Captain growled in annoyance, but finally let it go. “Rangiku, we’re leaving.” He instructed.

The woman quickly got up off the floor and ran toward them. “Yes Captain.” She said, then stopped and turned to Timothy. “I’ll be here early tomorrow so we can get going, Tim. See you then.” She informed with a smile.

His face then dropped, along with his shoulders. “Please…don’t hurry on my account.” He moaned.

Rangiku chuckled as she turned and left the shop, running up to walk beside her Captain. Everyone watched as the two officers rounded the corner, where Timothy turned to Nel.

“Is she still going off?” he inquired.

Nel sighed and nodded. “She is ‘very’ upset right now. I knew this was a bad idea.” She commented.

“I know Nel, but doing so will help the Captain trust you more. Just ask Gamuza to please be patient, and trust us.” He pleaded.

She gave him a sorrowful look. “That’s honestly asking for a lot right now, Tim.” she informed.

He nodded. “I’m know, but we ‘all’ need to keep calm, or this could end up going the wrong way. And I seriously doubt even Gamuza would want that.”

Nel shook her head. “No, she doesn’t. She says she’ll calm down, but she also says it’s on you.”

“She don’t have to worry. She knows where I stand in all this. I thought I made that very clear to her this morning.” He stated firmly.

The woman nodded. “Apparently you did, since she’s actually listening to you.” She remarked.

He hummed with a smile. “I’m glad.” He said, then sighed heavily. “I don’t know about the rest of you, but I ‘really’ could use a drink or two right now.” He stated with a moan.

Kitsune and Nel both quickly nodded. “I could probably use more than just a couple.” The spirit informed.

“I’ll have a couple as well, Tim.” Nel followed.

Yoruichi then threw a hand up in the air. “Ah, what the hell…I guess I’ll join you guys.”

Timothy turned to glare at her. “I swear to God Yoruichi, I am ‘not’ in the mood for any more of your teasing tonight. It has been a ‘long’ fucking day, and I would ‘really’ like to enjoy at least a little peace and quiet tonight.” He warned.

She waved him off gently. “Alright. You don’t have to be so rude about it, you know.”

He scoffed at her words. “Yes, actually; I do.” He returned.

Kitsune glared at her as well. “He actually does, Yoruichi. It’s really the only way to stop you.” She hissed, still furious with the woman.

The golden-eyed woman groaned loudly. “I swear, you guys are no fun!” she whined.

Timothy sighed heavily. “I am not even going to dignify that with a response, Yoruichi.” He moaned as he left the group to grab the drinks.

“You two ‘do’ realize that you’re going to have to fix my shop up…right?” Kisuke inquired from the table.

Nel and Kitsune’s faces dropped as they started sweating. They then looked around at the carnage that they had caused while trying to catch the elusive demon. All three of the center shelves were on their sides, their contents scattered all over the floor, and hardly ‘any’ of the wall mounted shelves had anything left on them.

“…Shit.” Kitsune groaned.

Nel sighed heavily, then side glanced the spirit. “I hate that damn demon.” She whined.

Kitsune rolled her eyes to her. “Join the fucking club.” She returned.

Both women sighed once more in unison as they dropped their shoulders, then split up and began cleaning the monstrous mess they caused.


	28. Ice Cream and Espada

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 28

**(Ice Cream and Espada)**

** Karakura Town City Center, The Next Morning **

Timothy walked slowly through one of the many aisles of women’s clothes as he followed the four women in front of him, his shoulders slumped in despair and a large frown on his face. Both of his arms had a bag each looped onto them, filled to the point of spilling over.

“What do you think about this one, Tim?” Orihime inquired as she held up a light-blue sundress.

Rangiku had actually shown up much earlier that Timothy had expected, walking into the shop just as he was about to go to the basement for his morning training. If that wasn’t bad enough, waking up Nel proved to be a challenge of its own.

When he walked into her room to wake her up, her found her completely sprawled out on her back, her head turned to the side and drooling. And even though the walls of the room were quite thin, they did an excellent job at muffling the sound of Nel’s deep snoring.

He found that the challenge in waking her up was; one, she was a heavy sleeper, unless she woke up on her own. And two, the instant he nudged her shoulder to wake her up, she subconsciously wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him down on her.

That was when he realized the teal-haired woman was a hell of a lot stronger than she looked. Her hold around his neck quickly tightened like she was snuggling a teddy bear, pain shooting through his body as his neck threatened to snap in half.

In the end, it took Kitsune slapping her on the face and shocking the woman awake to save her partner from a death that she was sure he wouldn’t have minded.

But once she was finally awake, Rangiku was quick to give Orihime a call and invite her along as well. Needless to say, the young woman was very happy to accept. And to be frank, so was Tim in a way.

Although he wasn’t too happy about having a fourth woman in the group, he knew that he could count on Orihime to at least help keep Yoruichi’s mind in the gutter, and not in the pit. And now, after the first hour of shopping, it was paying off.

…At least a little.

She had managed to talk Yoruichi out of ‘some’ of her…provocative…choices in clothing, but there was only so much the poor girl could do. If he were to go into statistics, Timothy would have guessed that Orihime managed to prevent at least thirty percent of his pain.

But, at least there was one thing he didn’t have to worry about; the ridiculous price tag at the end. He wasn’t sure why, but for some reason, during breakfast, Rangiku and Yoruichi both stated that they would pay for Nel’s clothes.

The faces they gave off when they said it didn’t suggest they had any ulterior motives behind it, but since it was basically sort of a ‘tradition’ for the men to buy the clothes, he was still very skeptical about the whole thing.

He looked at the dress the teen held out for him, studying it closely. It was just a normal light-blue sun dress where the hem would have stopped just below Nel’s knees had she been wearing it.

The man gave her an approving nod. “I like it, and it almost matches her hair, just a little lighter.” He stated.

Orihime looked at it and nodded. “I like it too. I think she should try it on.” She offered.

Timothy glanced down at the bag on his right arm with a dropped face. “It’s a hell of a lot better than the crap Yoruichi picked out. I don’t even think the things she got could even be considered ‘clothes’.” He moaned.

The young woman chuckled brightly. “Don’t feel so bad, Tim. You know she’s only doing it to make you feel uncomfortable.” She reminded.

The man glanced back at her. “I know. I still can’t believe Nel’s ‘allowing’ her to use her as a guinea pig.” He admitted. He then started looking around, his eyes getting wider the longer he noticed that the others were missing. “Where did they go anyway?” he inquired.

Orihime’s cheeks then turned a bit pink as she tucked her head in a bit. “Um…Yoruichi and Rangiku took her to…the lingerie shop.” She answered in a quiet voice.

Timothy’s head instantly jerked to her as the bags slipped off his arms and landed on the floor. “You’re kidding! Pleeeaaase tell me you’re kidding!” he begged in horror.

The teen sunk her head in more before gently shaking it. “No.” she answered in the same voice from before.

The Lieutenant began sweating profusely as his mind began to wonder against his will. If there was one thing that could have possibly been worse than Yoruichi picking out clothes for Nel, it was definitely Yoruichi picking out ‘underwear’ for Nel.

“Oh sweet God…” he mumbled.

**_“Tim…at least let me write out my will before you let us both die.”_** Kitsune pleaded.

“Oh Tim.” Yoruichi called out from behind him in a singsong voice, causing him to swallow hard.

_“You should have done that last night, Kit…along with me.”_ He said in return.

He then slowly turned around to see the three women walking up to him, Nel with red stained cheeks, Rangiku with a pleased smile, and Yoruichi with her usual grin, holding a medium sized bag in her hands.

“Yes?” he answered in a squeak.

The three women stopped in front of him, where Timothy looked at the bag the golden-eyed woman had, only for her to pull it away from him and a wiggle a finger at him as she clicked her tongue.

“Uh uh, no peeking Tim. I think Nel should save it for when you two ‘really’ experience how much you love each other.” She said in her ‘very’ seductive voice.

“Y…Yoruichi!” Nel whined as she quickly turned to the woman with wide eyes, absolute horror etched on her face.

A small trail of blood ran down from Timothy’s nose, causing him to slap a hand to his face to quickly cover it up. Too bad for him that Yoruichi noticed it, making the evil woman chuckle under her breath at him.

“My my, having dirty thoughts now, are we?” she teased.

He glared at her with a deep growl. “If anyone here is dirty Yoruichi, it’s you!” he hissed through his hand.

She rose an amused brow at him. “How am ‘I’ dirty? I was just stating the obvious. Or are you saying that you don’t find Nel attractive?” she goaded.

Timothy growled again before dropping his, now blood covered, hand. “Of course I find her attractive!” he almost yelled.

Yoruichi’s other brow rose in surprise as Rangiku gasped and Nel grew and even deeper shade of red. He quickly realized what he said, then immediately slapped the same hand back over his mouth.

_‘Damn it! She got me again!’_ he yelled in his mind.

Nel tucked her head in closer. “Do you…really think I’m attractive…Tim?” she inquired without looking at him.

The poor man’s eyes were now saucers, completely shocked at the bottomless pit he threw himself into because he fell for the demon’s trap. No matter how he answered her, he was screwed.

**_“…I hate that woman! My teasing is one thing, but that is just pure evil!”_** Kitsune hissed in his head.

**_“I…agree.”_** ‘Johnny’ followed.

Yoruichi tilted her head at Timothy’s silence. “What’s wrong, Tim? Aren’t you going to answer Nel?” she pressed.

Timothy growled loudly as he grabbed tufts of his hair tightly. “I am ‘not’ playing your damn games, Yoruichi! Stop trying to turn every fucking thing around on me!” He then dropped his hands and pointed at Nel while glaring at Yoruichi. “How Nel and I feel for each other is ‘our’ business! Unless you want to offer ‘actual’ help, stay the fuck out of it!” he barked at her.

The woman rose a brow again. “Oh, getting a little defensive? So, does that mean you’ve taken her for your own already?” she teased further.

Nel looked at her with a pleading face. “Yoruichi, please stop it. It’s not funny anymore.” She begged.

Yoruichi rolled her eyes with a moan. “Fine. You two are such killjoys. Lighten up and live a little for God’s sakes.” She whined.

That proved to be the last straw as Timothy simply threw hand into the air. “I’m done. I’m going home, where I can maintain the last bit of my sanity.” He stated as he turned and began walking away from the group.

Orihime looked at the golden-eyed woman with a bit of anger. “Yoruichi! That wasn’t nice! You should apologize to Tim!” she asserted.

“I’m leaving too. Bye Orihime, Rangiku.” Nel stated in sadness, then quickly walked in the direction Timothy went.

Rangiku looked at Yoruichi in worry. “It was funny, but even I have to admit that was a little far for someone like Tim, Yoruichi.” She informed.

The woman rolled her eyes again as she crossed her arms. “I can’t help it, he makes it too damn easy to mess with him. They both do.” She returned.

Orihime shook her head gently. “That doesn’t mean you should do it, Yoruichi. I’ll go and try to calm him down.” She stated, then ran off to go find the pair.

Rangiku waited for a minute until the teen was out of sight, then turned to the other woman. “So, Tim really does care for her that much? I thought they were just really good friends.” She inquired.

Yoruichi shook her head firmly. “No, it’s far deeper than that, Rangiku. I’m surprised you haven’t noticed yet, but Tim and Nel are actually in love with each other.” She corrected.

The Lieutenant’s eyes widened a bit. “Really?! Even knowing what each other are, they still feel that way?!” the busty woman asked in shock.

“Yes.” Yoruichi answered with a nod. “That’s the main reason why he gets so worked up when I tease them.”

Rangiku sighed heavily. “He probably thinks you’re making fun of him for it. If that’s the case, then you ‘really’ should lay off teasing them so much.” She stated, but only a second before her eyes went wide again. “Wait a minute…does the Captain know about this?!” she asked in worry.

Yoruichi shrugged a shoulder. “I’m not sure. If he doesn’t know already, I’m sure it won’t be long before he finds out. But I doubt it would matter anyway.”

The busty Lieutenant nodded. “I don’t think it would either. Want me to try and find out if he does know?” she offered.

Her friend shook her head. “No, it’s best to leave it as is for now. We should probably call it a day. I doubt Nel will be in the mood to continue now.” The woman advised.

Rangiku moaned in disappointment. “But there were so many more things I wanted her to try out.” She whined.

Yoruichi grinned at her. “I never said to call it a day for ‘us’. Why don’t ‘we’ go try that stuff on and find the best stuff for her? Afterall, you and Nel really aren’t that far apart in regards to body shape.” she offered.

The Lieutenant’s mood instantly switched. “Definitely! Let’s get started, Yoruichi!” she said in bliss, picking up the bags Timothy left before both women continued with their spree.

Meanwhile, Timothy, with Nel right beside him, walked across the main lobby of the mall towards the front doors, but stopped when their names were called. They turned around to see Orihime running to catch up to them.

Timothy sighed heavily and held a hand up. “I really appreciate your help today, Orihime. I really do. But Nel and I are both done dealing with Yoruichi today. I swear, if I hear one more of her jokes, I ‘will’ strangle her.” He warned in a moan.

Orihime stopped in front of him, panting lightly, as she gave him a pitiful look. “I’m sorry that she was taking too far, Tim. You know she’s not trying to be mean.” She offered.

He nodded firmly. “I know, Orihime. But that woman really needs to learn control. I’m sick and tired of being teased and commented on because she finds Nel and I’s relationship funny. Why can’t she just leave us alone and let us be happy?” he growled.

The teen quickly shook her head. “She doesn’t think that you and Nel being together is funny, Tim. She’s just trying to help. It’s just that her way of doing is a little…different.” She admitted.

The man held a hand up to stop her. “That may be, but she ‘knows’ it bothers us, Orihime. If she ‘really’ wanted to help, she would have stopped when we literally ‘begged’ her to. She may be trying to help a bit, but she’s mainly doing this for her own entertainment. And I’m done with it, at least for today. Nel and I are going off to spend the rest of the day looking around…alone. I’m am most definitely not mad at you, Orihime, or Rangiku. But right now, I am not in the mood to deal with ‘anybody’. Thank you so much for your help today, and I promise we’ll make it up to you. We’ll see ya later.” He stated calmly.

She sighed in defeat, but nodded. “Ok. I’ll have a talk with Yoruichi. You two have fun. Bye Nel.” She said with a wave.

The woman smiled and waved back. “It was nice shopping with you again, Orihime. I hope we can do it again soon.” She offered.

Orihime quickly nodded, returning the smile. “Of course! I’d like that! Bye.” She finished, waving once more before starting back towards where she left the other two of the group.

The pair watched the young woman leave, before Nel turned to him. “I’m sorry.” She said with a sad face.

He looked at her with a raised brow. “For what?” he asked in surprise.

She lowered her head a bit in shame. “For…putting you on the spot like that, Tim. It’s just…what you said…surprised me.” She admitted.

His face dropped a bit along with his shoulders. “Don’t be, Nel. You didn’t mean it that way. And before you ask again, I…I do think you’re attractive.” He said with pick cheeks. “But I want you to know…that’s not why I love you.” He insisted.

Nel looked at him with curiosity. “What do you mean?”

He raised a finger and touched it her chest. “It’s what’s in here that I love, Nel. You, for who you are. Not what you are, or what you look like. And I still stand firm on what I said before, that we’ll only take this as far as you feel ready to, Nel.” He said in a firm voice.

He was a bit surprised when she took his face in her hands and swiftly pressed her lips to his. But he recovered quickly, wrapping his arms around her waist loosely and gently pulling her closer to him.

The little male voice in his head told him to take their kiss further, but he held that notion back for fear of scaring her. Instead, he settled with the simple one that they were sharing at the moment, savoring it.

Although it was only around three or four seconds, it honestly felt to them like an hour before they broke apart. Nel then wrapped her arms around his midriff, resting her head against his chest.

“I am content with this for now, Tim. I just want to have you with me.” She admitted in a low voice, a happy voice.

He raised his hand behind her back and rested it on the back of her head, just below where her mask would have been had she not currently been in her gigai. He then began stroking her hair gently, earning a content sigh from her.

“As long as you want it, I’ll be here for you, Nel. Don’t forget that.” He affirmed.

She held him a bit tighter, then nodded. “I won’t. I promise. Just don’t let anything Yoruichi says get to you, Tim. It was because of her and Orihime that we ended up together in the first place.” She pointed out.

Timothy sighed heavily. “I know, Nel. I know she doesn’t mean anything by it, but I do wish she would lay off on her teasing a bit. I personally don’t care what she says about me, I really don’t. But she keeps making you feel uncomfortable, and that ‘does’ bother me.”

She raised her head and backed away from him enough to look into his face with a warm smile. “I’m not going to lie and say it doesn’t bother me Tim, but as long as we have each other, does it matter?” she questioned.

He scoffed lightly, then brought his lips to hers again in a quick peck before smiling back. “I guess not, but it’s still annoying. I’ll try to be more calm towards her Nel, but that’s honestly all I can offer you in that regards.” He said calmly.

Nel nodded firmly before returning into his embrace. “Thank you…for everything, Tim.” she whispered.

The man chuckled lowly. “My pleasure, Nel. Wanna go to the arcade?” he offered.

She quickly backed away from him and nodded encouragingly with wide eyes. “Please! That place is so much fun!” she answered in a cheery voice.

Timothy laughed aloud at her sudden change in mood. “Alright, let’s go then.” He returned, holding out a hand to gesture for her to take the lead.

The woman nodded, then started walking, grabbing his outstretched hand with hers and pulling him along. He grabbed her hand back as he came up beside her, a very content smile etched onto his face.

** Outskirts of Karakura Town, Present **

The normally calm atmosphere of the hilly terrain just outside the city limits of Karakura Town was suddenly disturbed by the eerie, scratching sound of the air being ripped apart; a tear appearing in an open field and growing wider by the second.

As the rip in space grew to its widest, seven humanoid forms slowly appeared and began walking out from the dark abyss one by one. The moment the last person stepped out onto the grassy field, the dark portal instantly snapped shut and vanished.

One of them, the man with black hair and green eyes, stepped forward and peered down at the vast, and active city in front of him with an emotionless face, his hands tucked calmly into his pockets.

Another man, this one with bluish hair and a jaw-like bone fragment on the side of his face, walked up next to the first man and also looked down at the city. He raised a brow, then looked at the man next to him.

“So, you want us to just cause trouble, right?” he inquired skeptically.

“That is correct, Grimmjow. However, we must remain here, where we cannot be detected, until tonight.” The green-eyed Espada answered, then pulled out his right hand from his pocket, presenting a small bracelet on his wrist. “With our spiritual pressure, these devices Lord Aizen gave us will only work up to a certain distance. If someone with enough spiritual pressure of their own comes close enough, they would be able to detect, and see us.”

He placed his hand back into his pocket. “We must wait until tonight, when the humans are mostly asleep.” He instructed.

Grimmjow scoffed. “What does it matter? They can’t see us, with or without these bracelets. I say we go now, Ulquiorra.”

The Cuatro Espada side glanced his comrade. “It matters, because our activities while they are out would cause many of them to perish, and their existence is paramount to Lord Aizen’s plans. Besides, we want the soul reapers focused only on us, and not the humans. If the human’s lives are at risk, they would very likely ignore us in order to protect them. All you need to worry about is doing what you have been instructed by Lord Aizen, and leave the rest to me.” He informed coldly.

The Sexta scoffed again as he turned around and began walking away, waving over his shoulder. “Yeah, whatever. As long as I get to have my fun.” He growled out.

Ulquiorra watched the man go back to his fracción, before turning back to the view of the city. Grimmjow walked up to his subordinates, where Shawlong took a step forward.

“Grimmjow, I assume he intends for us to wait?” the Arrancar asked cautiously.

The Espada scoffed at the question. “Yeah, says that it’s best to attack when all the damn humans are asleep. Whatever. You guys feel those spiritual pressures in town?” he questioned.

The Fraccións all nodded. “Yes. Nine of them in fact. But I do not sense the one you described from the fighting last time you were here.” Shawlong informed.

Grimmjow glanced back towards the city. “Yeah, I noticed that too. He must be somewhere where we can detect him. But it doesn’t matter.” He then looked back at his subordinates. “Pick the one’s you want to fight later, but there’s one that belongs to me.” He warned.

“And who is that?” Di Roy asked with a toothy grin.

“The one that’s currently alone in the large part of the city. He’s the one Yammy fought last time, and I’d like to see for myself just how good he is. The rest of em are all yours, as long as you can keep em busy and away from Ulquiorra.” The Sexta instructed.

“What exactly ‘is’ his mission, Grimmjow?” Yylfordt inquired.

The man scoffed as he turned away. “Beats me, all I know is that we’re to make sure they don’t interfere with him. Kill em if you can, but your main job is to simply keep em tied up. So, don’t be stupid and pick a fight you can’t win, got it?”

Shawlong gave him a respectful bow. “Of course, Grimmjow.” He responded, then rose.

“One more thing…” the Sexta said, then looked back at them. “If that orange haired soul reaper shows up, he’s also mine.” He declared with a grin.

** Karakura Town City Center, 2 Hours Later **

A loud clacking sound echoed through the room as the small, orange, plastic disk sailed right into the small slit at the end of the field. This was followed by the loud growl of Timothy, and the just as loud cheer of Nel.

“How the hell are you some damn good at this damn game?!” he hissed, holding the small striker in his fist.

The woman across the air hockey table smiled as she shrugged a shoulder. The score was currently eleven to three in Nel’s favor, the three points that Timothy had being the first ones of the game while he was still teaching Nel how to play.

Although he was no master at the game, Timothy still prided himself at being better than most others. But Nel on the other hand, she had managed to pick the game up in only a matter of minutes and was already better than him; which seriously irked him to no end.

“I don’t know, it just seems so easy to play to me.” She admitted.

Timothy growled in annoyance as the table’s air compressor stopped, therefor ending the game. He set the striker down and crossed his arms with a huff.

“Ten damn minutes, that’s all it took for you, and it took me months to get as good as I am.” He complained.

She set her striker down as well with a chuckle. “It’s ok, Tim. You’re still better than me at Pac-Man.” She comforted.

“Pac-Man doesn’t require any skill to play.” he countered.

Nel touched a finger to her chin and hummed in thought. “What about ‘Dead House 2’? That takes skill, doesn’t it?” she offered.

He rose a brow at her. “You never miss a shot, Nel. The only reason I get a better score than you, is because I have to keep reminding you to reload.” He pointed out.

Her face dropped as she sweated from embarrassment. “It’s stupid you have to shoot ‘off the screen’ to reload the stupid gun.” she whined.

“It takes less than a second to do it! At least you don’t have to reload for real!” he barked back.

She growled in annoyance. “Ok, fine. Then what about the claw machine?” she tried with crossed arms.

“They’re rigged, Nel! And are you seriously using the damned claw machine for comparison?!” he yelled in shock.

“That game is not easy, Tim!” she yelled back.

He growled loudly as he grabbed his hair. “It’s ‘rigged’! You’re not meant to win, Nel! Out of all those stupid toys, or whatever’s inside, only one or two of them aren’t tied down!” he informed in anger.

The woman’s eyes went wide as she held her fists to her side. “That’s not fair! How are you supposed to win if they make it to where you can’t?!” she demanded.

“Because it’s money, Nel!” He growled again, then took a deep, calming breath. “Whatever. What do you wanna do next?” he asked in a much calmer voice.

She took a breath as well, then looked deeper into the room. “I’m actually getting a little hungry. You want to get something to eat?” she offered.

Timothy sighed and nodded. “Sounds good to me. Anything in particular you want?” he inquired.

Nel hummed in thought for a moment. “I don’t think it’s something you would have for lunch, but I would like to have ice cream again.” She admitted, now looking at him.

He scoffed lightly at her. “Got a sweet tooth do ya?” he teased.

She gave him a firm stare. “It’s really good, Tim!” she defended.

The man held up a hand with a chuckle. “Alright. Ice cream it is. Ready to go?”

Nel nodded before walking over to him and taking his hand in hers. “Ready.” She affirmed.

Timothy scoffed contently before grabbing back and leading them out of the arcade. Luckily, the ice cream parlor that Orihime had taken Nel to before was only a few shops down, so at least they didn’t have to walk far.

Once they arrived, they chose one of the booths close to the door, with Nel sitting close to the window and him next to her. He gave a relaxed sigh as he leaned back against the seat and turned to her.

“Got any idea what you want?” he inquired.

She held her chin in deep thought. “I had regular ice cream last time, but I remember Orihime telling me something about pastries. I think I’d like to try one of those.” She answered.

He rose a brow at her in wonder. “You’re gonna have to be a little more specific, Nel. ‘Pastries’ could be almost anything.” He informed.

Nel’s face dropped in despair, now afraid she wasn’t going to be able to choose the one she thought was best. She ended up having to sigh in defeat before turning to him.

“I think it would be best if you ordered for me.” She admitted reluctantly.

The man chuckled lightly, then signaled for the waitress, who was there in a flash. “Can I get a strawberry filled, chocolate covered Éclair for her, and I’ll have a simple bowl of ice cream with a scoop each of vanilla, mint, and rocky road?” he ordered.

The woman wrote everything down, then glanced back at him. “Any drinks, sir?”

“Tea for both of us.” He answered.

She nodded before writing it down and leaving to place the orders in. Nel gave him a curious look.

“What’s ‘rocky road’ Tim?” she inquired.

He chuckled with a grin. “It’s chocolate ice cream with almonds and marshmallows. It’s actually my second favorite, my actual favorite being plain old vanilla.” He answered.

Her eyes widened a little. “That sounds so good. Now I wish I had gotten that instead.” She said with disappointment.

“I’ll let you have some of mine, provided you don’t eat it all.” He offered.

The woman’s face dropped. “I wouldn’t do that. Don’t be mean, Tim.” she whined.

He shrugged a shoulder at her. “Just saying. Kit used to do that every time we went out for ice cream.” He stated, then rose a brow. “You’ll have to remind me to grab some for her to eat when we get back.” He stated.

**_“Oh God…pleeeaaassse!”_** Kitsune droned out, her mouth beginning to water at the thought.

Timothy gave a gentle laugh at her comment. “Behave, and I will.” He said in a whisper.

“Huh?” Nel wondered.

The man waved her off. “Just talking with Kit is all. She’s about to start begging me to get her some.”

**_“As long as you actually do it, I won’t. You know what kind I like.”_** She returned with a grin.

He scoffed lightly. “I’m not sure they have cookie dough, so you might have to make due with mint.” He warned.

**_“Good enough. Just make sure you get me some. And a lot of it!”_** she hissed.

“Pig.” He mocked.

**_“Shut up! You didn’t hear me say anything for your damn steak!”_** she returned.

His face dropped. “Alright, touché. I’ll get you a small bucket. Happy?” he moaned.

**_“Very.”_** She confirmed.

“Good, now keep quiet.” He instructed, surprised a moment later when she actually listened.

Nel laughed under her breath. “Is she giving you a hard time, Tim?” she teased kindly.

He glanced at her. “Not really, just a bit of bickering we always do. Normally she wins, so I’m a bit surprised she actually gave up.” He admitted.

**_“Because right now I think getting ice cream is more important!”_** the spirit hissed back.

“Shut it.” He returned, still looking at Nel.

Nel smiled warmly at him. “I’m glad you two are so close, Tim. I have to admit that hearing you two argue sometimes is a bit funny.” She said, then chuckled.

Timothy narrowed his gaze at her sternly. “Oh yeah? Why don’t you try having Yoruichi’s twin living in ‘your’ head then?” he proposed, hearing an evil snicker in his head.

She instantly stopped laughing and looked at him with wide eyes. “Uh…no.” she said flatly.

“I thought so.” He concluded.

It was then that the waitress came back with their order, setting the appropriate dishes and drinks in front of them and giving a swift bow before leaving again. Nel’s mouth turned into a waterfall as she stared openmouthed at the treat in front of her.

He rose a brow at her and grinned. “You’re not expecting me to feed you, are you?” he teased.

Her jaw snapped shut and she glared at him while picking up her fork. “That’s not funny.” She informed, before cutting a small piece of the éclair off and placing it in her mouth.

Timothy inwardly laughed as he watched the woman’s eyes roll into the back of her head, her thoughts obviously clouded over by the amazing taste. He almost broke out in an actual laugh when she then moaned with delight.

“Good?” he inquired.

She gave him a small nod with her fork still in her mouth. “Hmmmm.” She hummed in acknowledgment, just now pulling the fork from her mouth. “This is so amazing.” She stated, then quickly took another bite.

He let out a breathy chuckle as he grabbed his spoon and began enjoying his own treat. Nel then leaned back with a very content moan as she closed her eyes.

“I think this has to be my favorite food, Tim.” she said with her fork still in her mouth.

Timothy nodded before putting another spoonful in his own mouth. “Agreed.” He said with a full mouth, earning a light chuckled from the woman.

“Thank you, Tim.” she said, grabbing another bite, causing the man to hum in acknowledgment.

The two of them continued eating their respective treats in silence and enjoyment; until a few minutes later Nel had finished hers and switched to picking off of Timothy’s, much to his dismay.

By the time both treats were finished, Timothy had only managed to get five bites out of his own. When he mentioned to her that he had said not to eat it all, she responded by simply sticking her tongue out at him.

He honestly didn’t care that she not only ate hers, but most of his as well, he was actually happy that she enjoyed it. He watched as she rested her head back with closed eyes and a content smile on her face, a small one on his own as well.

As he sat there, his thoughts slowly went back to he and Kit’s conversation from the night before. Although they had both finally came to accept that their current relationship was what they thought it was supposed to be, he still couldn’t shake the funny feeling he was getting.

Being able to hear his thoughts, Kitsune was starting to get a bit worried, and annoyed. She honestly wished she could come out right then and give her partner a good pop on the head for his thoughts, but she also couldn’t blame him. It was something that was simply going to take time to overcome.

She finally let out a sigh and shook her head. **_“I know why you’re feeling this way Tim, and I understand. I’m not going to hound you about it, only remind you that it’s better the way we are now.”_** She pointed out.

Timothy sighed quietly to not disturb the woman next to him. _“I know. But I honestly can’t help but notice that spending time with Nel like this…feels different than when I did it with you. It feels…”_ He paused to think of the right word.

**_“…Better?”_** she offered.

He closed his eyes as his shoulders slumped. _“…Yes, even though I don’t want to put it that way.”_ He admitted.

**_“You don’t need to worry about hurting my feelings, Tim. I enjoyed what we had back then, I won’t lie about that; but I honestly enjoy what we have ‘now’ even more. I’m glad that Nel gets to have what you tried to give me. It should feel better, Tim. So, don’t fret it. Enjoy what you two have together. Now…shut up and go get me my ice cream!”_** she hissed.

The man’s brows furrowed. _“Of course you would be more concerned about your damn ice cream…”_ he mentally whined.

**_“It’s been twelve years since I’ve last had it, and I missed it! Don’t judge me!”_** she barked.

_“There’s nothing there to judge. You’re as dimwitted as a goldfish.”_ He mocked.

**_“…Are you calling me stupid?”_** she inquired dangerously.

He sighed heavily, then got up and began walking to the counter. “If the shoe fits, vixen.” He whispered, then tuned out the rampaging that was very sure to follow.

** Urahara Shop, That Evening **

Timothy and Nel slowly walked back toward the shop, hand in hand, until they finally came around the corner to the open lot that the shop resided in. As they walked up to the front door, Kitsune was already materialized and snatching the bag that contained the small bucket of ice cream and running inside.

He deadpanned as he watched the spirit take off, literally like a child that had just been given candy by its parents. The spirit nearly bumped into Kisuke as the man was walking out, stopping only long enough to step to the side and get past him.

The shop owner watched her run into the kitchen, then looked back towards Timothy with a raised brow behind his fan. The man simply dropped his head and slowly shook it with a heavy sigh.

“Don’t ask.” He moaned, then walked up and sat down on the porch with Nel sitting down beside him. “Where’s the demon?” he inquired with a breathy voice.

Kisuke sat down against the wall near the door and chuckled. “If you’re looking to pay her back for the chaos that I’m sure she caused, I’m afraid you’ll have to wait, Tim.” he informed.

Timothy turned around to him with a raised brow. “She’s gone again?” he asked in surprise.

The owner nodded. “She went to go do some reconnaissance in the soul society for a few days, to see if they have heard anything new about Aizen and his intentions. She goes there about two or three times a month. So far, besides what miss Nel has already told us, we don’t have anything new.” He stated.

Nel dropped her head a bit. “I’m sorry I couldn’t be more help, Kisuke.” She said in shame.

Timothy quickly turned back to her. “Don’t be. You told us everything you knew, and we all know how secretive Aizen is. None of us are surprised he didn’t tell the Espada anything. You’ve been a great help, Nel.” He reassured.

Kisuke nodded firmly. “I agree. You may not have been able to tell us much, but you have definitely been a great help, miss Nel. Especially with telling about that device that separated you and Gamuza. And so you both know, I’ve been trying to do what research I can on that subject to see if I can find a way to counter its effects. Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to come up with anything yet. We’ve at least been able to prove that reestablishing that connection is possible, at least in regards to Arrancars. I would imagine that it should work similarly with soul reapers and their zanpakutō spirits as well.” He commented.

Kitsune then walked out of the shop, her bucket of ice cream in one hand, and a spoon in the other, and proceeded to sit down next to Kisuke, who just stared at her and the bucket with raised brows.

“You don’t plan to eat that entire thing in one sitting, do you?” Timothy inquired with a very skeptical face.

The spirit paused while scooping up a spoonful to glare at him. “So what if I do? Just shut up and leave me alone.” She barked.

He rolled his eyes at her and began rubbing his temples. “Damn vixen.” He moaned.

Nel meanwhile was staring intently at the bucket in the spirit’s arms, her mouth just slightly agape as she began drooling. Kitsune placed a spoonful in her mouth, moaning with delight, before she noticed the woman staring at her treat.

She narrowed her gaze at the woman. “Mine!” she hissed with the spoon still in her mouth, then turned her body a bit to ‘shield’ her priceless possession from the woman.

The teal-haired woman’s face dropped as she whined in disappointment. “Can’t I have just a little?” she pleaded, earning a slight snarl from the spirit.

Kisuke turned to her as he waved his fan. “I do have some cookie dough ice cream in the freezer in the kitchen, if you’d like some.” He offered.

Kitsune’s eyes shot wide open as she quickly turned to the man. “You do?!” she demanded, getting a nod back.

The two women then stared at each other with wide eyes, that slowly morphed into challenging stares. Before anybody knew what happened, Nel quickly shot to her feet as Kitsune set her own bucket down and jumped to hers.

Both women then ran into the shop at subsonic speeds and disappeared from view as Timothy turned to the shop owner with a deadpanned expression.

“You shouldn’t have said that.” He informed.

The man rose a brow in confusion. “Why do you say that?” he inquired.

His answer came in the form of the sudden sounds of crashing and plates breaking as the two women began a private session of ‘Mortal Kombat’ in the kitchen. Both men turned to the door, Kisuke with wide eyes, and Timothy with an agitated face.

“That’s why.” He answered in a growl.

“Hands off, Nel! This is mine!” Kitsune yelled from the kitchen, followed by the sound of two more plates shattering.

“That’s not fair! You have your own on the porch!” Nel returned, also followed by more crashing.

“It’s not cookie dough! This is my favorite kind, and you’re not getting any!” the spirit stated, only to responded by the sound of, what Timothy could guess, was Nel tackling the spirit to the floor.

Timothy sighed in a moan as he rested his face in his hand, shaking it slowly. “I’m surrounded by idiots. One that is a pervert, one who can’t stop talking in riddles, and ‘two’ who act like fucking five-year-olds over ice cream.” He observed.

Then came the sound of more plates and glasses breaking, quickly followed by rumbling and tumbling as the two women continued their wrestling match. Kisuke dropped his head with a heavy sigh.

“Tim…I hate to say it...” He paused and lifted his head to look at the man. “…but if you can’t control your two lovely ladies, and keep them from dismantling my shop, I’m afraid I’ll have to ask you all to leave.” He warned.

Timothy gave the shop owner a deadpanned expression. “Trust me…you wouldn’t find me complaining. It would mean I wouldn’t have to deal with Yoruichi anymore.” He stated as he got up and started walking into the shop.

It wasn’t but five seconds later when the man’s voice nearly shattered all of the surrounding windows.

“Enough! You have your own, Kit! And Nel, you already had yours! So, put the damn ice cream back and knock it off!” he demanded, instantly putting a stop to the Royal Rumble.

“That’s not fair, Tim! It’s cookie dough! Are you seriously going to keep me from my most favorite food?!” Kitsune yelled back.

“Out! Both of you, out! And leave the damn bucket behind!” he demanded.

Kisuke’s attention was drawn away from the fiasco when Captain Hitsugaya, Renji, and Rukia are suddenly flashed into being in front of the shop, hands on their zanpakutōs and obviously ready for a fight.

“What’s going on here?! Why had Lieutenant Durn’s spiritual pressure suddenly skyrocketed?!” the short man demanded in a hurry.

The shop owner didn’t bother to answer, he only stared back with a bit of annoyance. Not at the Captain, but instead because he was worried about the new state of his shop. The man’s silence caused Renji to sweat drop.

“…Those two are at it again…aren’t they?” he asked reluctantly, earning a slight nod.

Rukia sighed heavily with her head tilted to the side. “How does he put up with Nel and Yoruichi fighting all the time?” she inquired.

“I’m afraid you’re mistaken, miss Rukia. That’s not Yoruichi the miss Nel was fighting.” Kisuke corrected.

The short woman straightened her head and rose a brow. “Then who…” she started.

Her question was answered when Kitsune and Nel both walked out of the shop with their shoulders slumped in defeat, scratches and bruises on their bodies. Rukia and Renji’s eyes shot wide in shock at the two culprits.

“Kit?!” the two friends yelled in shock.

The spirit glared at them. “Shut up.” She moaned.

“No, ‘you’ shut up!” Timothy demanded., now walking out behind the two women with a furious look on his face.

Toshiro growled in deep annoyance. “Do I even ‘want’ to know?” he questioned.

Timothy gave the man a stern look, noticing that he now had Nel’s zanpakutō slung on his back next to Hyōrinmaru, but choosing to ignore the fact for the moment. “…Ice cream…They tried to kill each other over ‘ice cream’.” He answered in a hiss.

Renji and Rukia’s jaws then dropped to the ground, while Toshiro’s eyes went wide. “Let me get this straight…you flared your spiritual pressure so much, because they were fighting…over ice cream?!” the Captain demanded firmly.

A simple nod came as his answer, where the man did the only logical thing he could possibly think of, short of killing the three of them.

He vanished in shunpo.

Renji then glanced over to his shorter friend with a serious look. “I think it would be best if we took off too, Rukia.” He advised.

The woman nodded quickly before they, too, disappeared. Afterward, Timothy closed his eyes with a heavy sigh.

“I don’t even want to begin to imagine just how furious the Captain is right now.” He stated, then looked at the two women sitting in front of him. “You two are grounded from ice cream for a damn month.” He declared.

Nel and Kitsune both quickly stood up and turned to him with shocked faces. “T…That’s not fair! That’s pure evil, Tim! You can’t do that to me!” Kitsune yelled.

The woman next to her nodded firmly. “Yeah! That’s really mean of you, Tim!” she said, then pointed at the spirit. “She started it! She’s the one who’s so damn greedy!” she whined further.

“My fault?!” Kitsune questioned, now staring at Nel. “You’re the one who tackled me to the floor!” she defended, pointing back.

“Only because you wouldn’t share! You had your own…” Nel started, but was unable to finish.

Both women suddenly dropped to the ground, out cold, with a lump each on the tops of their heads. Right behind where they were standing was Kisuke with his closed fan held up in a gesture to hit someone with it.

“I apologize for this Tim, but I thought it would be best to end it before it got out of hand again.” He offered in a calm voice.

Timothy turned his head and waved him off gently. “Don’t worry about it. Truth is, you actually just saved me from the painful thing of having to do it myself. Just leave em there for now and let me pour you a drink as thanks. I’ll make sure they clean up your shop in the morning.” He stated, walking over to sit next to where the shop owner was before and pouring some sake.

Kisuke chuckled before sitting down next to Timothy and accepting the saucer of fine liquid from the man; taking a long sip afterwards as the Lieutenant downed one, then another drink before pouring a third and giving a relaxed sigh.

“Damn kids.” Timothy moaned.

The shop owner chuckled again. “Well, you’re stuck with them for the rest of your life, Tim. So, it’s best if you get used to it.” He advised calmly.

Timothy side glanced him. “I hate you.” He said in a whine, then downed his drink and began pouring his fourth.

** Karakura Town Outskirts, 4 Hours Later **

It was a long, and very boring day for the six Arrancar as they waited impatiently for the final word to start their mission. The five fracción decided to try and entertain themselves by playing cards, that Edrad was smart enough to bring along.

They were currently sitting down and huddled in a small circle, while Yylfordt stood on the sidelines watching the game; seeing as the game of ‘Spades’ could only have four players. Plus, the game looked very unappealing to him.

The game had two teams of two players each, with the ‘teammates’ facing each other. It was a game that Edrad had read about one time when he had gotten bored, and wanted to find something to do. And when he read about this particular game, he instantly like the sound of it.

The teams were currently Edrad and Di Roy, against Shawlong and Nakeem. Seeing as how Nakeem had won the last set of cards, or ‘book’ as it was called in the game, it was his turn to place down the first card for the next book.

He placed down a Jack of Hearts, where Edrad, who was next to him on his left, set down a King of Hearts. The brawny man then looked up to see Grimmjow leaning against a tree a short distance away with his hands in his pockets and his head drooped low.

“Got any word as to when we’re supposed to get all this started, Grimmjow?” he inquired with a bit of annoyance.

The Sexta scoffed loudly at him. “No, I don’t. So quit asking.” He instructed firmly.

“Hah! Looks I win.” Di Roy stated with a grin, causing Edrad to look down at the cards.

He saw that the idiot had tossed down a Queen of Spades, meaning that he had ‘cut’ his partner and waisted a good card. Edrad looked at the serrated-toothed Arrancar with a deep growl of anger.

“Di Roy, you moron! I had that book with my King! If you didn’t have any Hearts, then throw something else! Don’t waist a perfectly good Spade just so ‘you’ can have the highest card!” he yelled at the man.

Yylfordt chuckled at the large man’s berating. “Seriously, what else can you possibly expect from someone like Di Roy in a game like that?” he mocked with a grin.

The mentioned Arrancar turned to glare at him. “Hey! What’s that supposed to mean?!” he barked back.

Shawlong gave a low sigh. “I believe he is correct, Di Roy. It would seem this game is far too complicated for you to understand fully.” He added in his gentlemanly-like voice.

Di Roy then turned to him. “Stay out of this, Shawlong!” he demanded.

Grimmjow growled as his temper began to flare rapidly. “All of you idiots shut up! Save your damn energy for the soul reapers!” he instructed.

Shawlong gave the Espada a low bow at the waist. “Our apologies, Grimmjow.” He offered.

The air around them buzzed with the sound of a sonído as Ulquiorra appeared in front of Grimmjow, where the Sexta turned to the emotionless man with a raised brow.

“It is time for us to begin. I have done my reconnaissance around the city as far as possible without being detected, and I have determined that it would wise of you to keep your engagements on the outskirts of the city. Fortunately, it appears that Yoruichi Shihōin is no longer here. So the only ones you should take extreme caution with is Kisuke Urahara, and Tessai Tsukabishi. I advise that you do not engage with him on your own.” He informed in his emotionless voice.

The fracción all stood up and nodded at him in understanding. “Should I assume that we are free to kill the soul reapers?” Shawlong inquired.

The Cuatro Espada looked at him coldly. “If possible, you are free remove them at your discretion. However, your primary focus is not to eliminate them, but rather only to keep them entertained. As long as you can keep them from interfering with my mission, you may do as you wish. I don’t not foresee my mission taking longer than an hour, so this should be rather simple for you.”

Grimmjow gave him a firm stare. “Just what ‘is’ your mission, Ulquiorra?” he questioned.

Ulquiorra turned his eyes to the man. “That is none of your affair, Grimmjow. You should only be concerned for your own task. Lord Aizen choose you and your fracción for this particular task, because unlike Nnoitra, you can ‘create chaos without unnecessary destruction’, even though that is your particular aspect. Just complete your task, and nothing else should matter.” The Espada stated.

The Sexta scoffed as turned away. “Whatever. So, we’re good to get started then?”

“Yes, you may begin. I shall wait here until I have confirmed that none of the soul reapers will be able to discover my presence. Now go.” Ulquiorra instructed.

Grimmjow nodded before turning to his subordinates. “Make sure you’re at your locations before you take those stupid bracelets off. Once you do, start dumping off your spiritual pressures until one of em shows up.” He added.

Shawlong bowed deeply with an arm across his chest. “Yes, Grimmjow.” He answered, then sonídoed away along with the others.

The Sexta then turned back to his superior. “Don’t take your sweet ass time, Ulquiorra. We can handle one-on-ones easily enough, but with eight against six, and one of them being this Urahara guy, I’d prefer not to tangle with them for long.” He stated firmly.

Ulquiorra looked away and closed his eyes. “I am well aware the odds are currently against you Grimmjow, so do not think that I will take longer than is necessary for me to complete my objective.” He warned dangerously.

Grimmjow scoffed once more before he, too, vanished using sonído. The remaining Espada stood there for a moment longer, before opening his eyes and looking out into the city with a calculating stare, detecting his intended target exactly where it should be.

“Now, you stay right where you are and do not interfere.” He said in a whisper.

** Urahara Shop, Present **

“I don’t give a damn ‘who’ started the damn fight, ‘both’ of you still caused the damn mess.” Timothy stated with crossed arms.

He was currently standing in the doorway to the kitchen and keeping an eye on the two women in front of him with a firm gaze as they cleaned up the mess that had resulted in their earlier tussle over ice cream, of all things.

Nel turned to him with a sorrowful face. “It’s still not fair, Tim. Kit had her own bucket, so it’s not my fault she’s so greedy.” She pointed out.

The spirit growled at her. “I am not! Tim bought that for me while you got to have your stupid éclair, or whatever. And it’s not my fault that Kisuke just happened to have my favorite flavor in the fridge!” she barked back.

“Shut it, both of you, and keep cleaning.” Timothy instructed firmly. Nel then held a hand to the side of her head, catching his attention. “And if Gamuza has a problem with it, tell her to shut it as well.” He added, guessing, accurately, why she made the motion.

The room suddenly pulsed with the presence of multiple, strong spiritual pressures, causing the three of them to widen their eyes; Nel especially, because she recognized who those pressures belonged to.

She quickly turned to Timothy with a fearful expression on her face. “Tim, that’s Grimmjow’s spiritual pressure! Along with his fraccións!” she informed in shock.

His eyes then went wider before he turned to Kitsune, who nodded and vanished back into his inner world. Timothy then fished into his pocket and pulled out his mod soul dispenser, turning around to see Kisuke standing next to the table with a serious look in his face.

“I’ll keep an eye on miss Nel, Tim; you should meet up with the others and deal with this problem.” He advised, earning a firm nod from the Lieutenant.

He swiftly swallowed one of the small, green pills, forcing his spiritual body out from the gigai, then turning to Nel who had stood up next to him.

“Stay here, Nel.” He instructed.

Her face dropped in worry. “I wish you would let me help you, Tim.” she said in sadness.

The man shook his head firmly. “The Captain still has your zanpakutō, Nel. So, I don’t think there’s much you ‘can’ do right now. Please…stay here.” He pleaded.

She dropped her head in disappointment, but nodded. “Alright.” She said in defeat.

Timothy cupped her chin in his hand and lifted her face to his. “Hey, I’ll be fine, so don’t worry. I’m in much better shape than I was last time…” he paused and gave her a quick kiss on her lips, smiling warmly afterwards. “…right?” he inquired.

Nel smiled back, but only a little as she nodded. “Yes…you are. Please be careful, Tim.” she almost begged.

He scoffed lightly and nodded back. “If you behave for Kisuke, I ‘might’ let you have some of that ice cream he has.” He teased.

Her face lit up instantly. “I will!” she affirmed quickly, resulting in a brief laugh from him.

The man gave her a last peck on the cheek, then flashed away.

** Kurosaki Residence, Present **

Rukia stood on top of the roof of Ichigo’s house as she stared into in direction where she felt one of the numerous spiritual pressures. She heard a small wisp of sound as Renji flashed up next to her, his left hand holding his zanpakutō in its scabbard on his side.

“There’s six of them, Renji. It feels like Tim is heading for the strongest one right now.” She informed.

He nodded sternly. “Yeah, so let’s get the ones on the northeast, and southeast sides of town. I’ll take the northern one.” He said in a commanding tone.

She looked at him and nodded back. “Be careful, Renji. They’re strong.” She warned.

The Lieutenant hummed in acknowledgment, then they both vanished; each heading to their assigned target.

** Skies Above Karakura Town, Present **

Toshiro and Rangiku jumped from rooftop to rooftop in rapid succession as they flew towards the western side of the city. They had been at Orihime’s place getting ready to turn in for the night, seeing as how Ikkaku and Yumichika had hollow watch that night.

The Captain leapt off a four-story building, followed closely by his Lieutenant. “I will take the one to the south, and you work on the one to the north, Rangiku.” He instructed.

Rangiku nodded with a hum. “Yes, Captain.” She answered.

He then glanced over his shoulder. “Don’t be careless. These spiritual pressures feel like that ‘Nel’ woman’s, so I assume that they must be Arrancar as well. Once you have dealt with it, I want you to go give Lieutenant Durn a hand. He’s quite obviously going up against the strongest one here, and will likely need help.” He added.

She nodded once more, then the two officers split off and went their separate ways.

** Karakura Town Southern District, Present **

“I feel it…this one is strong, so it looks like you’ll have a good fight, Ikkaku.” Yumichika stated with a sly smile on his face.

The duo hopped from one building to another as they headed towards the only target that had apparently not been picked out yet. Luckily, their hollow patrol had left them already close by, so they didn’t have far to go.

“Yeah. Too bad Tim got the big guy.” He stated with a small amount of annoyance.

Although Ikkaku wanted the strongest one that was up north, Timothy was already heading in that direction, and would easily get there way before he could. And if there was one rule he absolutely refused to break, it was stealing a fight from another.

“Yes. Well, I don’t mean to say anything against the man’s abilities, but there ‘is’ that chance that he may not be able to defeat his opponent. If that were to happen, then you would be free to continue where he left off.” His friend tried to reassure.

Ikkaku grinned madly at the prospect. He definitely didn’t want Timothy to die, or even lose his fight, but the chance to fight the strongest opponent on the field was too good for him to pass up.

“Then we’d better finish this one off quickly, so that we’ll be ready in case that ‘does’ happen.” The 3rd seat stated happily.

The 5th seat nodded firmly before they vanished, reappearing in front of their prey after traveling a large distance. The two friends stared intently at the somewhat large being in front of them as they stood in a careless manner.

“Well, I was wondering when someone would show up. Took you two long enough to get here.” The large and brawny man stated with arms crossed.

He was a good half-foot taller than Ikkaku, and wore a white overcoat and loose pants of the same color. His full and spiky red hair on one side of his head, and nearly shaved black hair on the other bewildered the 3rd seat a bit.

Not to mention the bone-like mask of his that looked to Ikkaku like a pair of shades that were pulled down the bridge of his nose. Even though this was the first one the 3rd seat had seen, this man was obviously an Arrancar.

Ikkaku grinned at the man as he held his zanpakutō, still in its scabbard, resting on his shoulder. “Sorry about that, flash step ain’t exactly one of my strong suits. But I’m here now, so why don’t we get this kicked off?” he inquired.

“If you think you’ll be able to defeat me, you are sorely mistaken. But nonetheless, come at me, and show me what you’re worth, soul reaper.” The Arrancar taunted.

The 3rd seat gave him a dark chuckle. “With pleasure, my friend.” He said in a low voice.

** With Timothy **

Grimmjow stood on the open air above the northern edge of the city; looking out at the vast, sleeping metropolis with a careless expression, his hands in his pockets. Apparently, one of his fracción had already met with his opponents, and the others weren’t far behind.

It turned out that he would be the next one in line, as Timothy flashed into place a short distance away to his right, his zanpakutō still in its sheath with his hand resting on the hilt. The man gave a firm, but calm stare as the Sexta glanced to him.

“I recognize you. You must be that Durn guy that Yammy fought, right?” he inquired calmly.

Timothy nodded just as firmly. “Yeah, the name’s Timothy, but everyone just calls me Tim. It gets a bit annoying when everyone uses your full name over and over again. And you’re Grimmjow I assume?”

The Espada huffed lightly. “Yeah, that’s me. I’m glad it’s you that came over to duke it out with me. I been wanting to see what you’ve got for myself ever since Yammy told us about your fight with him. So, let’s cut the usual crap, and just get right into this?” he demanded, not moving to get into a stance.

His opponent then drew his zanpakutō and got into a ready stance. “Fine by me. Honestly, I’d rather ‘not’ fight you, but I’m not going to let you go after Nel again.” The man stated.

Grimmjow turned to face him fully as he tilted his head. “I could care less about that traitorous woman. I’m not here for her, I’m here for ‘you’.” The Sexta corrected.

Timothy narrowed his gaze at the Espada. “Alright, then bring it.” He taunted, making the man in front of him grin madly.

“Gladly!” he yelled, then charged at Timothy with his fist held back.

** With Hitsugaya **

Toshiro came to a stop several feet in the air, and a few yards from the Arrancar in front of him. The taller man stared at the shorter with a smug grin on his face, his one eye that wasn’t covered by his elongated, hat-like mask looking at the Captain intently.

“Greetings. I am Shawlong Koufang, Arrancar #11, and the head fracción of Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez. Judging by your white coat, I assume you must be a Captain.” He greeted.

The Captain drew his zanpakutō from his back, the scabbard disappearing in a fine mist as he did so. “I’m Toshiro Hitsugaya, Captain of Squad 10.” He returned in an official voice.

Shawlong narrowed his eye at him. “Squad 10 you say? That’s good. Once I’ve defeated you, the rest of the soul society will finally see the true strength of the Arrancar. This is indeed my lucky day.” The tall man taunted.

Hitsugaya narrowed his own gaze before assuming a ready stance. “I think that you’ll find that it is quite the opposite, Shawlong Koufang. This day will instead witness your downfall.” The Captain returned.

“Is that so?” Koufang asked, then drew his own zanpakutō. “Then why don’t we see what the true result is for ourselves? Prepare yourself, Captain Hitsugaya.” He announced, holding his weapon outstretched to his side.

** With Rangiku **

Rangiku calmly glared into the eyes of the slightly rotund man in front of her; her hand resting on the hilt of her zanpakutō that she kept tucked behind her back, rather than at her side like most others tended to do.

The slightly overweight man watched her just as calmly with his own hands held behind his back in a relaxed-like manner. The hollow mask that covered the entire right side of the man’s face looked to Rangiku very similar to that of a Gillion’s.

“And just who are you, big guy?” the woman asked in a surely tone.

The Arrancar continued to look at her with an unchanged face, clearly not letting the slight insult get to him.

“I’m Nakeem Grindina, the fourteenth Arrancar.” He answered simply.

Rangiku furrowed her brows in minute annoyance. “Rangiku Matsumoto, the Lieutenant of Squad 10.” She returned in a serious manner.

“…Don’t care.” He stated, vanishing instantly in a burst of sonído and repapering right in front of the woman thrusting his fist down on her.

Luckily, she had managed to draw her zanpakutō in a reverse grip and position it to block the incoming attack. Nakeem’s fist collided with the sharpened edge of her blade with impressive force, forcing the woman down to her knees as she fought to hold out against the very unexpected power in the man’s swing.

The Arrancar’s strength shocked her. Here she was using her zanpakutō against him, and he was using his bare hands to force her back. And what surprised her even more, was the fact the man had struck the sharp edge of Haineko with that bare hand, and it didn’t even scratch him at all.

“What…was that?” she asked through breathes as she struggled to hold the man back.

“…Sonído.” He replied in an unchanged voice.

Nakeem then lifted his other fist above his head and brought it down with vigor. Rangiku let out a low gasp before quickly using shunpo to get away from the large man, his fist narrowly missing her by a millisecond.

The Arrancar recovered quickly and stood straight while looking a bit to his side at the busty Lieutenant.

“You’re quick.” He observed.

Rangiku scowled as she swiftly reversed her grip on her zanpakutō, now holding it with both hands as she stood in a crouched position, ready to either attack, or to defend.

“It’s called shunpo, and it’s much faster than that sonído you guys use.” She answered in a little bit of anger.

“We’ll see.” The man retorted, vanishing again and delivering another frontal attack; his fist creating a cloud of dust and smoke as it hit.

** With Renji **

Yylfordt turned to face Renji as the red-headed Lieutenant exited shunpo a short distance away, his zanpakutō already drawn and in a ready stance. The Lieutenant stared at his opponent with firmness, while the Arrancar returned the stare with one of slight annoyance.

“Is it possible for you to be any slower, brother? I’ve been waiting here for ages.” The Arrancar mocked.

Renji gritted his teeth. “I was on the other side of town, you idiot! It’s not like I can just snap my fingers and instantly be here, you know!” he shot back. “So who the hell are you anyway?”

The side of his opponent’s mouth tilted up a bit as he huffed. “I really don’t think you deserve the right to know my name…” he stated, where his mouth morphed into a sly grin. “…but I am Yylfordt Granz, Arrancar #15. And just who are you, soul reaper?”

Renji growled at him. “I’m the Lieutenant of Squad 6, Renji Abarai.” He finally said.

Yylfordt then drew his own zanpakutō and held it to his side nonchalantly. “Well, now that we have that out of the way, why don’t begin.” He stated, vanishing in sonído.

The Lieutenant flinched in shock a brief second before raising his blade and blocking the Arrancar’s sudden attack. The man gave him a vicious, and cold smile as he began to push the Lieutenant’s blade against him.

“I doubt an amateur like yourself would last long against me, but do try to survive long enough to at least make this fight enjoyable for me.” He said further in a sadistic voice.

Renji scoffed as he narrowed his gaze. “Great…I just ‘had’ to end up with the crazy one.” He mumbled.

** With Rukia **

Rukia landed on the rooftop of a nearby abandoned warehouse, her free hand holding onto the scabbard of her zanpakutō, and began looking around her for her opponent; but she quickly realized that she was the only one there.

She turned her head left and right, giving occasional glances behind herself, as she began reaching out with her senses to try and detect her opponent’s spiritual pressure, but was coming up with nothing.

The woman could sense the pressures of her friends, and that of the ones they were currently fighting, but for some reason she just couldn’t detect her own opponent.

_‘Strange…I know that that spiritual pressure was coming from somewhere over here. Where did it go?’_ she pondered.

Before she could think more on the matter, the roof behind her exploded, where a humanoid being shot out at her from the large hole that resulted from it. Rukia only had that split second to draw her zanpakutō while twisting her body to block the incoming attack.

A hand with outstretched fingers collided with her blade, the power from the attack pushing her blade back a moderate amount. She clenched her teeth tightly as she tried to avoid being overpowered by the being in front of her.

Her gaze followed the arm that the hand was attached to, to see a man with an exceedingly large crab shell-like, boney structure on his head; the right side of the adornment covered in large, teal-colored wrappings.

“Good reflexes, soul reaper.” The man said through his serrated teeth. “I hope you can at least put up a decent fight.” He added, before thrusting his hand at her harder and pushing the small woman back several yards.

She landed softly on her feet before turning to face the man fully with a serious glare. “Who are you? An Arrancar?” she inquired in an elevated voice.

He chuckled madly at her with a sickening grin. “It doesn’t really matter, but I supposed I could tell you my name. I’m Arrancar #16, and I’m called Di Roy. Don’t bother telling me yours, because I don’t care about the names of those I’m going to kill!” He said, then charged at her again, a menacing smile on his face.

** With Hitsugaya **

Shawlong spun back around after his last attack, only to see that Captain Hitsugaya was barreling down at him with his fully released zanpakutō held high above his head.

“Hyōryū Senbi!” the short man commanded as he swung his blade down and across, sending a massive trail of ice in the Arrancar’s direction.

But Shawlong swung his own blade at the incoming attack, shattering the ice wave mere feet in front of him. As the ice broke away in tiny pieces, Toshiro was already charging in him with his zanpakutō outstretched in an attempt to skewer the tall man.

The Arrancar buzzed out of the way and behind the Captain, swiping down at one of the exposed ice wings of Toshiro’s Bankai and cutting it off cleanly. Toshiro continued forth with his charge, stopping a few yards away before turning around to face his opponent.

Shawlong watched calmly as the Captain’s wing quickly grew back as it drew in the surrounding moisture in the air, all while one of the pedals of the ice flowers above the Captain’s head began to break away.

Whenever Toshiro first enters Bankai, because he has not yet managed to fully complete it, three ice flowers, with four pedals each for a total of twelve pedals, form behind him and above his head.

These pedals of ice serve as a timer, telling him, and at the same time, his opponents, how much longer he would be able to remain in his Bankai state. Once the last pedal breaks away, his Bankai will reseal itself, leaving him defenseless.

He also had to be considerate when using some of his much stronger techniques, as these require a great amount of his spirit energy, and therefor significantly reducing the amount of time he has left.

The Captain was now down to only five pedals left, with one of them already starting to break away. To make the matter worse, he was in a rough shape, while his opponent didn’t have so much as a scratch on him.

Shawlong stared at the man with a calm gaze. “Come now, Captain. Is that truly the best you can do? I am thoroughly disappointed if this is all a Captain in his Bankai state is able to manage.” He mocked.

Toshiro narrowed his eyes. “Don’t be so quick to judge you opponent so early in the battle.” He warned.

“I am not judging anything, I am merely stating a point. The battle has yet to last ten minutes, and already you have been reduced to four flower pedals now.” Koufang observed smugly.

“What does that matter?” the Captain inquired.

The Arrancar gave him a light chuckle. “I may not be the strongest in terms of combat, Captain; that honor belongs to Edrad. But I am the most observant. I’ve noticed over the course of our battle that your ice pedals have been slowly fading away. This leads me to believe that your Bankai has not reached its maximum capability. Those pedals serve as a countdown, until your Bankai is rendered useless. I will admit I am amazed you have maintained your Bankai for this long, but as we can both see, your time is almost out.” He stated in a matter of fact.

Toshiro growled a bit. “And yet you still judge too soon. What makes you think that because I only have four pedals left that I can’t still defeat you?” he inquired.

Koufang held his hand out to his side a bit. “Is it really necessary to ask such a question when the answer is quite obvious? If I wanted to, all I would have to do is remain on the defensive until your Bankai runs out, then finish you off when you are at your weakest. But that would be very unsporting of me.” He stated, then held his zanpakutō in front of his face, the tip pointing to the sky and his offhand resting on the guard.

“I like to completely destroy my opponents, but one thing I do not enjoy is humiliating them. There is simply no honor in it. So that is why I will fight you while we are both at full power. So, accept this as my final respects to you, small Captain.” He offered as his entire body and blade began to emit a bright yellow spiritual energy. “Awake and snip…” Then man rolled his off hand against the back of the hilt, twisting the blade slightly as he lowered the tip. “…Tijereta!” he finished.

The spiritual energy burst out from the man’s body, concealing him entirely in a large mass. Toshiro watched with caution as the large gathering of energy began to slowly dissipate a few seconds later. It wasn’t long before the Captain could see the figure standing in the center of the mass.

The man’s eyes widened a bit when he saw that, while his lower body was unaffected, Shawlong’s upper body had changed quite a bit. His mask now completely covered his entire head, for the exception of the right side of his face, and a long skeletal scorpion-like tail that protruded from behind it. His chest was now covered in bone-like armor, and his arms were slightly elongated, with his fingers turned into very long claws that nearly touched his feet.

Toshiro looked at the, now released, Arrancar in front of him with a mix of shock and amazement. Even though he had been there when Gamuza took over Nel’s body and released her Resurrección, seeing it up close and actually having to face it was another thing entirely.

Shawlong brought his hand up to his face, looking closely at his claws for a moment, before returning to the Captain. Before the short man even knew what happened, his chest now sported four long gashes running diagonally; a spurt of blood flying out from the wounds.

The 11th Arrancar moved so fast and unexpectedly, that the Captain never even saw the attack coming. It didn’t even look like his opponent moved an inch from his spot.

He quickly tossed the matter aside and charged forward at his opponent. Using a quick dash of shunpo during the charge, Toshiro covered several yards of distance between them as he held his zanpakutō forward to run the man through.

But Shawlong had done the same thing using sonído, using his claws to once again cut the Captain’s wing off near his body. Both warriors continued on for several feet, until finally stopping to turn and face one another as the Arrancar flicked his claws to shake of the particles of ice that clung to them.

“I am impressed, little Captain. Even after seeing the vast difference in our powers, you still stand there and choose to face me. Truly, you present your honor as a Captain very well.” Shawlong complemented.

Toshiro took a moment to let his heavy breathing calm down before responding. “You mentioned that you’re the 11th Arrancar, and I know for a fact that that Nel woman was once the 5th Espada as well as an Arrancar. So, I’m a bit confused…does that mean she is the 5th strongest Arrancar, and you’re the 11th strongest? Or is an Espada a form of special soldier?” he questioned.

“Not quite. The fact that Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck ‘was’ the 5th strongest Arrancar is in fact true, as well as once being the 5th Espada. However, you are wrong to assume that because I am the 11th Arrancar, that I am the 11th strongest. It is the system that Lord Aizen has established. While the ranks up to ten are the actual rank of an Arrancar’s strength, and are reserved for the Espada, all ranks higher than that are simply used to designate the order of our birth. Of all the Arrancars, ‘I’ was the first to be born from the Hōgyoku. And when it comes to the Espada, they are Lord Aizen’s elite; his strongest warriors, and the only ones, besides Lord Aizen himself, who can command the other Arrancar. And their strength is far superior than what we lower Arrancars possess; we cannot even hold a light to their power.”

The man then narrowed his gaze at the Captain. “One of them is even here along with us. And in fact, is currently facing off against that young Lieutenant.” He informed further, causing Toshiro to widen his eyes. “It’s too bad for him, for the very moment that he crossed paths with ‘this’ Espada, that man’s fate was sealed. The only reason that he is still alive is ‘also’ because of who the Espada is. But that won’t last for much longer. Because the Espada that Lieutenant is facing, is Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez, the 6th Espada.”

** With Timothy **

Sparks flew through the air with a loud clashing sound as Timothy blocked an attempted uppercut from Grimmjow. Even though the Sexta Espada was only using his bare hands to fight with, the hardness of his Hierro was more than enough to protect the man’s appendage from Timothy’s blade.

The Lieutenant, after only the first few minutes, quickly realized that he was simply no match against the blue-haired man in his sealed state, and had already released Kitsune’s Shikai. The area around them was now littered with a multitude of the spirit’s flames.

Grimmjow’s attack pushed Timothy’s blade up and away above his head. Using the momentum, the Lieutenant lifted his right foot and twisted his body around to the left, swinging the raised foot out in an attempt to hit his opponent with a roundhouse kick to the head.

The Espada simply reached across his chest with his right hand and grabbed the man’s ankle before it could hit. He then kicked out with his own right foot and managed to catch Timothy in the chest.

The man gave an involuntary exhale of air as his body was sent skirting across the open air, falling downwards and away several hundred feet until he crashed into a small water tower on the rooftop of a nearby industrial building.

Fortunately, the water inside the structure acted as a buffer for him, slowing his descent down enough that when he went right through it, his body didn’t collide with the cement surface of the roof with great force.

But it was still enough that the wall of the standalone shack, that led to the rooftop’s stairwell, cracked when his body crashed against it in a sitting position. The man groaned as he slowly pushed himself back up to his feet before looking back up to the sky to see Grimmjow standing where he was before nonchalantly.

“Come on, is that the best you got? The way Yammy told it, you put up way more of a fight with him than you are with me. That can’t be all you’ve got in you, kid. That good lookin chick with the yellow eyes put up a hell of a better fight that you are.” The man taunted.

Timothy growled as he wiped away a spot of blood off his chin with the palm of his off hand, holding his zanpakutō to his side. He then flashed away to reappear back in front of the blue-haired Espada in a mid-level guard with the tip of his blade pointed at the man’s chest.

“Not exactly, though you’re not really giving it your all either, Grimm.” He taunted back.

The Espada rose a brow at him. “Did you just fucking call me ‘Grimm’?” he asked in surprise.

The Lieutenant scoffed with a roll of the eyes. “It’s annoying for me to use long names fully, so I shortened it. What? Don’t like it?” he mocked.

The Sexta scoffed back as he turned away. “The fuck if I care. It was just unexpected, ‘Tim’.” the Espada shot back, mocking the man’s own shortened name a bit.

Timothy dropped his guard and stood straight as he tilted his head. “Why the hell are you complaining then? To be honest, I personally think ‘Grimm’ sounds cooler than ‘Grimmjow’.” He admitted sternly.

Grimmjow cocked an eyebrow at him. “You can’t be serious. Are you seriously changing how you say my name because it ‘sounds cooler’?” the Espada questioned in disbelief.

The other man gave a deadpanned expression. “Are ‘you’ seriously going to stand there and tell me Grimm doesn’t sound better?” he sent back.

The Espada growled in annoyance. “Fine, I’ll admit it doesn’t sound bad. Now can you shut up and get back to the damn fight?” he hissed.

Timothy sighed heavily, then threw his hand to the side. “I give up. But whatever, let’s get back to business.” He agreed, then vanished into one of his nearby flames.

Grimmjow quickly turned around, expecting one of the Lieutenant’s traditional attacks from behind. But Timothy had managed to fool him yet again, reappearing from in front and swinging at the man’s now exposed back.

That was one of the things that was constantly working in Timothy’s favor. Although the man appeared to be a calm and calculated person, Timothy could tell by the way Grimmjow tended to act that he was an impulsive individual.

And that was a good thing for the Lieutenant, because impulsiveness usually led to blindness, making his moves all the more unpredictable. Timothy had quickly found that it was relatively easy to mislead the Espada in front of him.

But the problem Timothy faced, was ‘how’ to get past that armor-like skin of his. No matter where he struck the man, his blade would simply bounce off of the man’s exposed skin. Hell, he couldn’t even damage the man’s uniform.

His blade flung right back at him as his attack once again failed to break the Espada’s skin, causing him to lurch back a bit. Grimmjow immediately turned right back around, bringing his fist to bear on his opponent.

The Sexta’s attack, once again, struck true; catching the young Lieutenant in the stomach and sending him flying back several feet. Fortunately, the man was able to do a quick spin midair and come to a stop on his feet, only to clutch his front and groan in pain.

That was another bad problem he faced with the number six Espada. Unlike Yammy, who reacted much slower, and therefor gave Timothy enough time to react to the Espada’s counter, Grimmjow had much faster reflexes, and most of the time he was unable to get away, or block in time.

Timothy held out his free hand towards the blue-haired man, pointing his five fingers at multiple points around him.

“A king that reigns upon a shattered throne…” he began.

Grimmjow was immediately in front of him in a buzz of sonído, thrusting his fist towards the semi-exposed Lieutenant.

“I don’t think so, kid!” he growled.

But before the Espada’s attack could make contact, his target instantly vanished, now suddenly far over to the man’s right in the same posture as before.

“…the queen who sheds a shower of tears.” Timothy continued, bringing Grimmjow’s attention back to him.

“Damnit! Quick moving around!” he yelled, using sonído to again appear in front of the man.

But once more, the Lieutenant used his flames to move to his next spot, now to the Espada’s rear.

“Barren fields, crumbled walls, and hordes of despairing souls!” the younger man finished.

Grimmjow was on him again, his temper now flaring madly. “Hold the fuck still!” he demanded, swinging at him again.

He would have grinned widely from his attack finally hitting the man, but instead widened his eyes a bit in surprise when his fist seemed to just go right through the man. His target didn’t even so much as flinch.

“Hadō #45, Amegafuru!” Timothy yelled from behind the man.

Grimmjow turned to see five orange balls of energy sailing right towards him at random angles. He then turned back to see that his target was smiling at him, before instantly vanishing.

“Damn!” he growled, only to be nearly consumed in five masses of fire from the energy projectiles Timothy had fired at him.

Timothy meanwhile, returned to a ready stance and watched the inferno in front of him; waiting for his opponent to come out, knowing that that would not have been enough to kill him.

But he didn’t have to wait long, for the masses of fire were quickly blown out when Grimmjow fired a Cero in his direction. Luckily, the man had misjudged Timothy’s last known location, thus causing his aim to be off and narrowly missing the Lieutenant.

The man watched the Cero pass by, following its trajectory into the distance, before turning back around to see that his kidō had little effect on the Espada. Besides a couple of soot marks on the man’s uniform, Grimmjow was otherwise completely unharmed.

Grimmjow had a very angry look on his face. “Damnit…Yammy wasn’t kidding when he said you were annoying as hell to fight, Tim.” he stated in a growl.

Timothy moaned in annoyance as narrowed his gaze. “I knew that wouldn’t be enough to do much to you, but I definitely expected it to do more than just dirty up your clothes. Guess I’ll have to try something with a little more bite.” The younger man commented.

He then began his very rapid transitions between flames, creating almost a dozen clones of himself surrounding the Espada. Grimmjow quickly switched from one clone to another, trying to discern the real one, and failing.

“Carriage of thunder, bridge of a spinning wheel.” He began causing Grimmjow to scoff in agitation.

“This shit again? Haven’t you learned from the first one it won’t work?” he taunted.

“Sprinkled on the bones of the beast. Sharp tower, red crystal, steel ring. Turn thy ears from the heavenly choir.” He continued, but Kitsune froze in shock in his inner world.

**_“What the hell are you doing?!”_** she yelled.

“With light, divide this into six. Move and become the wind, stop and become the calm. Sink your teeth in the rotting fruit of despair.” He added further to the incantation, the spirit now very worried.

**_“Tim, don’t be an idiot! You can’t handle that!”_** she insisted.

It was at this time that Grimmjow realized that something wasn’t right; the man’s kidō incantation was way too long, meaning that he must have been attempting to use a double incantation to hit him with two kidōs.

“Damn!” he hissed, then began using sonído to rapidly buzz from one clone to another, trying to hit the real one before he could finish.

“The sound of warring spear fills the empty castle. Boil the blood, tear the flesh, and claw at your own eyes.” He finally finished.

**_“Timothy, stop!”_** Kitsune yelled.

“Bakudō #61, Rikujōkōrō!” he chanted as he threw out his free hand toward Grimmjow with his index and middle fingers extended, securing the Sexta Espada in place with the six, yellow energy blades.

Grimmjow growled in deep fury as he began struggling against his bonds, but the Lieutenant’s voice from behind suddenly caught his attention and made him look over his shoulder. The clones had all vanished, and Timothy was now standing firmly behind the blue-haired man with the palm of his free hand held out to him.

“Hadō #63, Raikōhō!” Timothy yelled, causing a mass of yellow, electrical energy to gather in his palm before launching it at the pinned down Espada.

The man watched with wide eyes as the kidō sailed straight towards him, creating a massive explosion upon impact. Anyone else would have though the Lieutenant’s attack were over, but Kitsune knew what he was doing, and she was still pleading with him to stop before it was too late.

**_“Tim, please don’t do it! You know what happened last time you tried it!”_** she begged.

But it was too late, for Timothy was already to the right side of where Grimmjow was and was holding his palm out again with a serious glare in his eyes.

Six bluish-green orbs then gathered around his hand in a circle, slowly growing in intensity, and flickering dangerously. One of them was starting to fall out of alignment, causing Timothy to worry that the kidō might backfire.

Normally, he would have already released the kidō at his target, but with double incantations, the user normally had to take a little extra time when sending the second spell at his target, because the second spell was usually more unstable than the first.

But Timothy was using a ‘triple’ incantation, something that wasn’t taught in the kidō books he read, and not even in the 13 Court Guard Squads. This was something that he had experimented with while still living in Rukongai, and he had only ever attempted it once, resulting in an epic failure that almost killed him; and that was with twenties and thirties level kidōs.

But this time, he had used two ‘sixties’ level kidōs, and was about to send an ‘eighties’ level. He knew, as did Kitsune, that his life depended on whether or not this kidō backfired.

“Hadō #86, Roku-ten Jigoku Keimusho.” He finished in a low, and dangerous voice.

The orbs of energy pulsed wildly in front of him, threatening to explode; but they had very luckily held true, and shot forward at the blanket of smoke and dust the explosion from his Raikōhō had created.

Within seconds, the six bluish orbs arrived at their destination, arranging themselves in a diamond-like manner before sealing the area from the outside world. The moment they did, the area inside was incinerated with a mass of fire far hotter than the flames of hell.

Timothy dropped his hand to his side as he began breathing a bit heavily from the sudden drain of so much spirit energy. He continued to stand there and watch as Grimmjow’s prison burned furiously, and hopefully cremating him.

**_“You’re a fucking idiot, Tim! You know that?! You have no fucking idea how lucky you are that actually worked! What the hell where you thinking?!”_** Kitsune berated adamantly.

The Lieutenant lowered his head a bit as he closed his eyes. “He wouldn’t have…expected it.” He answered between breathes. “I needed…to catch him…off guard…and hit him…with everything…at once.”

The spirit started tugging on the fur on the top of her head. **_“I don’t care! That was one of the stupidest things you’ve ‘ever’ done! What if that had failed, Tim?! What then?! How do you think Nel would feel if you had died because of your stupidity?!”_** she demanded.

He rolled his eyes at her. “Just calm down. It worked, didn’t it? Besides, I think I got em.” He commented dryly.

The man spoke too soon, because right afterwards, the kidō dissipated and the smoke cleared, revealing a very furious Grimmjow standing there and staring at him with the upmost hatred. Timothy’s eyes went wide in shock.

**_“…Oh it did, did it?! It doesn’t look like it to me!”_** she mocked.

Although Grimmjow’s skin was burnt in several locations, mainly his exposed arms and face, and his clothes were now heavily singed, the man was very much alive, and still in pretty good condition; considering what Timothy had just hit him with.

“That’s bullshit!” he growled in disbelief.

Grimmjow cocked his head at him. “What? That’s it? A couple of burns and a ruined uniform is all you can manage? You mean to tell me I waisted my time fighting someone who can’t even cut me once? I can’t believe how pathetic this is. It’s too damn bad I can’t kill you, but that doesn’t mean I can’t put you to within an inch of death’s doorstep. But I’m honestly sick and tired of all the damn jumping around you keep doing, so before I start beating the life outta you…”

He paused to grin at the man before reaching into his pocket and pulling out a small, cylindrical device. “…I’m going to keep ya from doing that jumping around.” He finished, holding the device in front of him with a maddening grin.

Timothy narrowed his gaze at the Espada, eyeing him cautiously. **_“Tim…you don’t think…”_** Kitsune started, causing him to widen his eyes when he realized what she was suggesting.

“That’s not…” he tried, but stopped when Grimmjow grinned even wider.

“Say goodbye to your zanpakutō, Tim.” he mocked, then pressed the small button on the side of the device.


	29. Karakura Showdown, Part 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 29

**(Karakura Showdown, Part 1)**

** South Side of Karakura Town, Five Minutes Later **

Ikkaku leaped back just as Edrad’s fist came crashing down into the pavement where he once stood; the man’s fist creating a small pothole as the asphalt underneath shattered.

The 3rd seat landed on his feet a short distance away, but then immediately charged back forward at the large Arrancar as he gave a loud battle cry and swung out with his left hand that held his zanpakutō.

Gathering a small amount of spirit energy into his hand, Edrad blocked the attack with his bare palm, raising his other arm up to block the second attack from his opponent’s scabbard that was in his right hand in a reverse grip.

Edrad looked closely at his opponent to see that, even though the man was battered and bruised, and was clearly losing the fight, he still had a wide, and very content smile on his face. The man somehow seemed…happy…about the fight.

“What’s the matter? Having trouble keepin up?” Ikkaku taunted.

The larger man growled a bit before throwing his left arm out, knocking Ikkaku’s scabbard away as he did, then charged some spirit energy into his hand again as he thrusted his fist at the man’s head.

Ikkaku leaned back as he jumped into the air, landing on his hands before pushing back off in a half flip to land back on his feet, now a few yards away. He then gave his larger opponent a dark chuckle as he got back into a fighting posture.

“You’ve got some good reflexes, big guy. I’m impressed.” He praised.

Edrad grinned a bit. “You’re not so bad yourself. I’m amazed that you haven’t included your friend over there in this fight.” He stated, glancing over to a side street where Yumichika stood nonchalantly watching the fight.

The soul reaper chuckled again. “That’s one of my little rules. I like to fight my opponents one-on-one, without anyone getting in the way. The fight’s more enjoyable that way. So, you don’t have to worry about my friend there. He’s not going to join us for this one.” He informed.

The larger man smiled. “Is that so? Then you have at least some of my respect. And I admire your courage, soul reaper, but I’m sure you realize that without your friend’s help, you are going to lose this fight.”

Ikkaku chortled lowly. “Is that right? Sorry to break it to ya pal, but I haven’t lost until I’m dead. That’s one our ‘squad’s’ rules; you never back down in a fight. If you win, you live. If you lose, you die. And that reminds me, we were so quick to get this started, we never properly introduced ourselves. I’m Ikkaku Madarame, 3rd seat of the Zaraki squad.” He greeted.

Edrad huffed at the man. “I see. Unfortunately, I find that it’s nothing more than a waste of time to give my name out to someone I’m going to kill. So why bother?” he sneered in a dismissive tone.

The 3rd seat’s smile dropped to a frown of disappointment. “That’s too bad. Something that I teach to everyone I train, is that if you are prepared to die in battle, it is a sign of respect to die knowing the name of the person who had defeated you. But I guess I can’t blame you for having a different etiquette than me; being a hollow and all.” The man mocked.

The Arrancar rose both brows. “Oh really? Well, if you can prove your worth to me, then I might consider telling you my name.” he proposed.

Ikkaku’s smile returned. “With pleasure!” he yelled.

The man then charged at his opponent once again, swinging out with his hand that held his scabbard as he twisted his body in midair. Edrad placed his spirit energy into his hand to block the attack, causing it to deflect off.

But the momentum of Ikkaku’s body brought his sword arm around right afterwards, causing it to strike the same hand again. The larger man kept the energy in his hand to block the second attack, also causing it to bounce away.

As it did, Ikkaku brought his scabbard overhead and swung down on the man’s head; but Edrad held his other arm up and allowed the weapon to hit his forearm, stopping the attack. With his previous hand, he then punched the man in the gut, forcing him back the way he came.

Ikkaku’s body landed on the ground a few yards away before rolling along it until he stopped the roll and leaped back to his feet. The instant his feet touched the ground, he was already launching another assault on the larger man; thrusting his blade at him.

Edrad threw his energy charged fist to catch the man before he could complete his attack, but the 3rd seat simply jumped into the air and started another spinning flurry of attacks; starting with his blade, then alternating weapons with each hit.

The large man looked at him with surprise as he deflected each of the man’s blows, seeing the same happy expression on the man’s face from before. Using the brief instant between attacks, Edrad cuffed the man in his shoulder, sending him to the side and through a tall wooden fence.

Ikkaku crashed right through it with a slight grunt as the impact forced the air out of his lungs. His adversary turned and walked up to the new opening, stopping to look inside and see that the man’s body had created a small trail in the ground from where he had landed and scooted across.

“Ha…pathetic. Is that all you’ve got, Madarame?” Edrad asked with crossed arms.

The man laughed lowly before starting to get back up. When he got back to his feet, he began flexing and rotating his right shoulder with a grin on his face.

“That was a good hit. Same as the one before. That technique of yours, putting some spiritual pressure into your hand to block or attack, is pretty effective. You almost broke a few ribs with the first hit.” He informed, then returned to his battle stance. “Round two, coming up.” He said further.

He then darted forward at his rival, his blade held out to stab, with a loud yell. Edrad prepared to deflect the attack, expecting the man’s usual routine.

_‘He uses such a rough method to fight with, but he clearly has the skill to do it.’_ Edrad thought, then stepped to the side and threw a fist at Ikkaku’s side, only to be blocked by his scabbard. _‘He keeps attacking with his sword, while using his scabbard to defend after his attack. But because I know which sides he’ll use to attack or defend, it makes him easy to manipulate.’_ The Arrancar thought further.

Ikkaku turned his body as he swung across with his blade. Edrad was in a poor position to defend against the attack how he wanted, so he was forced to draw his zanpakutō for the first time in the fight to stop the man’s blade.

Both warriors stopped to stare at each other for a moment. Ikkaku had a pleased grin etched on his face, while Edrad a look of anger. He had preferred not to draw his zanpakutō, feeling that his opponent wasn’t strong enough to warrant using it.

Edrad growled deeply at the man before drawing his zanpakutō the rest of the way out of its scabbard and taking a swing at Ikkaku, forcing the smaller man to back up a few yards before returning to his stance.

The larger man got into a stance as well while glaring at Ikkaku with resentment. “Damn it. Humiliated by having to draw my zanpakutō against a lowly soul reaper like you. I’ll never hear the end of it.” He seethed.

Ikkaku chortled lowly. “Don’t feel too bad, big guy. I’m a lot stronger than I look. But now that I pushed you far enough to draw your zanpakutō, now I just gotta push you enough to release it.” he commented.

Edrad rose a brow. “Is that what you think? That by pushing me far enough I’ll release my zanpakutō for you?”

“Sounds about right.” Ikkaku answered.

The Arrancar scoffed at his opponent. “If that’s the case, you’ve got a hell of a long way to go before you push me far enough to release my zanpakutō.” He informed.

Ikkaku’s smile grew wider. “Then let’s get started.” He said, then charged at the man again.

He leaped into the air, holding his scabbard in front of him while holding his zanpakutō above his head to cut down on the large man. But Edrad swung out with his, catching the 3rd seat’s scabbard and forcing the man away to the side.

The officer flew through the air a short distance, landing on his feet against the side of a telephone pole facing up, his body hunched over. It was only a second later when Ikkaku pushed off with his feet right back at the Arrancar. He then twisted his body to the left, preparing to swing with his blade.

Edrad narrowed his gaze at him. _‘Here comes his blade, so predictable.’_ He thought, then swung out to catch his opponent’s attack.

The two weapons clashed loudly, stopping each other. But Edrad’s eyes went wide when he saw that, instead of Ikkaku’s blade, he had stopped the man’s scabbard, now in his ‘left’ hand. He looked up just in time to see Ikkaku finish his twist and swing overhead with his blade.

_‘He switched hands!’_ he thought in panic, just as opponent’s blade made contact.

After the strike, Ikkaku planted his feet on the man’s chest and pushed himself away a few yards; landing in front of Edrad in a combat stance. He looked the man over and chuckled to himself at the damage he caused.

Edrad growled in anger as he held onto his right upper arm that was now bleed profusely. “Damn you, Madarame. You must be crazy, fighting like that. I’ll grant you, you can score big hits with that tactic, but that’s only if it works. Cause if it don’t, you’ll only get yourself killed.” he hissed.

Ikkaku snickered darkly. “Is that right? It’s just part of the game for me.” He stated.

The larger man’s eyes shot wide. “Game?! You think this fight is some kind of sport?! You mean to tell me that you’re fighting because it’s ‘fun’ to you?!” he asked in shock.

“That about sums it up. And it’s bad news for you my friend. I’ve got all of your attacks figured out. I’d give it about another five or six minutes before you’re forced to release your zanpakutō. Then the ‘real’ fun can begin.” He commented.

Edrad’s mouth morphed into a small smile as he huffed lightly in amusement. “So…if I take what you’re saying at face value…you been holding back this entire time. And, if I want you to fight me fully, I have to release my zanpakutō…is that right?” he inquired.

Ikkaku let out two short huffs of air in enjoyment. “You got it, pal.” He said in acknowledgement.

The Arrancar scoffed at him. “Fine. Since you are so adamant, and refuse to take me seriously until I do so, I’ll show you my zanpakutō release.” He said as he held his blade in front of him, resting his hand on top of the blade. “You seem to be a fearless warrior, and in most cases that is admirable; but you need to learn what true fear is. You need to experience something so terrifying that it makes you tremble down to your bones. Once I’m done with you, you’ll learn it’s not smart to pick a fight with an Arrancar. Awaken, Volcánica.” 

The man’s zanpakutō then shattered into tiny pieces before his entire body was wrapped with powerful spiritual pressure. The fragments of his zanpakutō then started gathering on his body; melting and morphing into molten rock as the white substance began consuming his arms and shoulders.

The 3rd seat watched with widened eyes as Edrad threw an arm out to the side, the appendage growing longer and much more muscular before the fist hit the ground. The white, molten substance began covering his chest and surrounding his head as he tossed his other arm out, also growing and becoming more defined.

The Arrancar’s shoulders suddenly grew out into large, plate-like extensions that rose a few feet above his head; a small hole that was roughly six inches in diameter on the flat surface of each one. Once the shoulder extensions finished their growth, the wall of spiritual pressure vanished, presenting Ikkaku with a clear view of the man’s released form.

“So…that’s your released state is it?” he inquired, now with a broad grin.

Edrad rose a curious brow at the man. “Judging by your reaction…I’m guessing you’ve seen an Arrancar’s Resurrección before?” he questioned in surprise.

Ikkaku chuckled lowly. “I’ve seen it before, but I’ve never faced one up close. And now that you’ve released your zanpakutō, I guess it’s time for me to get serious as well.” He stated. The officer then slapped the front of his scabbard to the bottom of his zanpakutō’s hilt. “Extend, Hōzukimaru!”

His two weapons then fused together where they touched, before straightening out with the scabbard growing into a long wooden pole, and the blade shortening until the entire weapon became a long halberd-like blade-pole.

He twirled the weapon in circles above his head a few times before bringing the weapon down to his side, holding it with both hands. The man stared at his opponent with a very pleased grin on his face, giving the man a last chortle.

“Now we can begin the ‘real’ fight, my friend.” He announced, then charged forward at the large man with a loud yell.

** With Rukia **

A large, and very wide beam of snow and ice shot straight up into the air, solidifying into a large pillar of ice a moment later. It was joined by three other ice pillars that had been erected earlier in the battle.

Di Roy landed on his feet comfortably a few yards to Rukia’s right side, his zanpakutō drawn with the scabbard discarded and lying somewhere else on the battlefield. He then lunged out at the woman with his outstretched fingers, attempting to run her through.

Rukia turned her body and raised her palm to her oncoming opponent. “Hadō #33, Sōkatsui!” she chanted.

Blue, electrical energy then burst out from her hand, flying right at the haughty Arrancar. But with a simple burst of sonído, Di Roy blitzed past the kidō, now much closer than before.

“Nice try, soul reaper! But it ain’t gonna work!” he yelled as he thrusted his hand forward.

The woman twisted her body just enough to allow her to place her blade in the way of the man’s hand. His fingers struck the side of her blade with enough force to propel her off her feet and back several yards, her feet dragging across the ground as she struggled to maintain footing.

With another buzz of sonído, Di Roy was upon her again; swinging his zanpakutō at her exposed side. But because of his last attack that she defended against, her blade was in perfect position to use one of her dances.

“Some no mai, Tsukishiro!” she snapped, swinging her sword out in front of her.

Di Roy flinched before growling in annoyance, then used his sonído to get out of the attack’s freeze radius. His body left the area a brief instant before the beam of ice shot up to the sky, hardening into a solid cylinder of ice.

“I told you…” he said, now behind her and causing her to turn over her shoulder. “…that won’t work!” he finished as he lifted the wrapping covering his right eye to reveal a charging Cero. “Cero!” he yelled, sending the powerful beam of energy at the woman.

Rukia gasped lightly before leaping into the air, the Cero crashing into the ground and exploding upon impact. She came to a stop several feet in the air above Di Roy as he looked up at her while recovering his mask.

“You sure do an awful amount of dodging around, soul reaper!” he mocked with a wide grin. What’s the matter?! Can’t handle a little fight?!” he taunted.

“If you expect me to just sit there and take a hit, you’re gravely mistaken, Di Roy. And I wouldn’t be so quick to judge your opponent.” She returned, then held her zanpakutō with the blade facing down. “You’ve only seen ‘one’ of my dances so far. So, let me show you my ‘second’ dance. Tsugi no mai…” she started, then began stabbing the tip of her zanpakutō into the ground.

With each stab, a small stream of ice particles began flowing out of where she stabbed. In total, she stabbed the air underneath her four times in a half circle, where she then took on a battle stance with the zanpakutō’s tip pointing at Di Roy.

“…Hakuren!” she finished.

The four streams of ice then flowed to the tip of her blade, before bursting out towards the Arrancar in a massive wave of ice and snow. Di Roy’s eye went wide as the mountain of ice barreled down on him.

He used his sonído again to move out of the way just in the nick of time, reappearing a short distance to the left of where the attack had almost claimed him. He watched as the ice-wave crashed into a nearby warehouse, instantly freezing every single inch of the structure that was caught in the attack’s radius.

“Hadō #73, Sōren Sōkatsui!” Rukia yelled, somehow now right behind him.

Di Roy turned around just as a large blast of electrical energy crashed into his back; sending the man flying into, and plowing through the roof of the warehouse Rukia’s attack had just froze. His body landed on the floor inside with a loud crash that she could hear from outside.

The Arrancar growled in anger as he climbed back up to his feet. “Damn you, soul reaper! You’ll pay for that!” he stated. He then held his zanpakutō next to his mask with the back facing him. “Resound…Onda Sónica!” he commanded, tapping the back the blade against his mask and causing it to give off a low humming sound.

The man’s body was then surrounded by a mass of green spiritual pressure as Rukia landed on the ground a short distance away with her zanpakutō ready to defend. She looked towards the mass, unable to see inside, as she waited for the Arrancar to attack.

Windows shattered, and the metal support beams reverberated as the dense pressure threatened to bring the structure down on top of them. Rukia could actually hear the metal groaning from the stress.

The mass of pressure and energy finally began to dissipate, granting Rukia a small glance at the being inside it. Her eyes widened a bit as the last bit of pressure then vanished, revealing DI Roy in his new, and released form.

While his lower body was relatively unchanged, his upper body was completely different. His mask, although the same shape and size, now had a toothy visor that covered the man’s face; the bottom of it extending down to his collar bones.

His arms and hands were gone, replaced with a pair of very large, three-foot-long prongs. At the bases of each prong were two small objects that looked very similar to mallets, hovering over about half a foot past where the prongs converged.

His shoulders were now large, round spheres with small indents where his ‘arms’ were connected to in a ball-joint manner; giving the prongs a full ninety degrees range of motion in any direction from center.

Rukia cringed when Di Roy started laughing maniacally, but took a step back when he pointed one of the prongs at her.

“Time to die, soul reaper!” he hissed.

One of the devices of the side of the prong then slammed down on it. The entire room was then filled with the unbearable, exceedingly high-pitched blast of sound that shattered every single window in a two-block radius and shook the whole building.

Rukia quickly covered her ears and screamed in pain as the wave of sound began to tear at her eardrums. She wobbled this way and that as she growled out against the horrible pain that resonated inside her head.

Fortunately, the sound only lasted a few seconds before it quickly died down; the area around them now deathly quiet. Rukia was now standing and hunched over with her hands still over her ears; a small trickle of blood running down her hands as the sudden, and very unexpected attack had ruptured her eardrums.

Di Roy started laughing again as he saw the damage his attack had done to her. “What’s wrong, soul reaper?! A bit too loud for you?! Why didn’t you say so?! I would have turned it down for ya!” he mocked, then continued laughing.

His words never reached her, as the attack had now left her essentially deaf. She hissed and groaned as she tried to cope with the horrible pain that still resided in her ears; her whole world now sealed in complete silence.

_‘Damn it! What kind of an attack was that?! I’ve never heard of an ability like that! I can’t hear anything! And this pain, it hurts so bad that I can’t concentrate!’_ she though as she opened an eye towards the Arrancar, who was still standing in the same spot.

He had his head tilted a bit, making it look like he was speaking to her, but she couldn’t hear a single thing; expect for the horrible ringing sound that bounced around inside her head, only adding to the massive headache the attack had caused.

The man then aimed his appendage at her again, causing her to widen her eyes as both of the mallets slammed down on the prong. A massive soundwave shot forth at her, tearing a gash in the ground and destroying everything in its path.

She quickly leaped from the ground and into the air as the shockwave passed by, holding her zanpakutō to her side while bracing her head with the other hand to try and sooth the pain, even though it was doing very little in doing so.

She came to a stop, now several yards high in the air, and turned around to see that the soundwave had created a large hole in the wall of the warehouse that was nearly eight feet in diameter.

Her senses were still so jumbled up, that she never even detected that Di Roy was now behind her; one of his prongs pointed at her fully exposed, and unprotected back. The woman never even knew what hit her when she was suddenly sent right back down to the ground and crashing through the roof of a different warehouse.

Di Roy was laughing like a madman at his sudden victory. “How do you like my Resurrección, soul reaper?! The tuning forks that make up my arms produce a very loud, and very powerful wave of sound that destroys anything it touches! Just a light tap with one of my mallets was enough to rip your ears open! And the residual vibrations inside your head make it impossible for you think clearly, or even detect my spiritual pressure!” he informed in an evil tone.

He then held out one of his forks towards the building where she had landed. “So how do you plan to fight me, now that all you have left are your eyes?!” he added, then snapped his two mallets down, creating another shockwave.

The wave sailed through the roof, obliterating it almost entirely, before crashing into the ground; blowing out windows and doors throughout the entire building. It proved to be just enough, as it was only a moment later when the whole building collapsed on itself, burying the woman under several tons of metal.

Di Roy continued manically laughing, but a voice behind him cause him to stop and flinch. “Hadō #31…” it said, causing the man to turn around and see Rukia standing behind him, palms facing him. “…Shakkahō!”

A red mass of energy quickly formed in her hand, but it surprised Di Roy a bit when the mass suddenly exploded in her hands, throwing her right back down to the ground. He grinned widely as he laughed even more.

“What happened?! Something wrong with your kidō?! I guess you can’t concentrate enough to use it with all that ringing going off inside your stupid head!” he mocked.

Rukia managed to recover in time before she fell to the ground, flashing away and reappearing back in front of Di Roy, who simply stood there and continued laughing. She hissed in pain before growling at the man.

_‘Damn! This throbbing pain in my head is breaking my concentration! I can’t focus enough to use my kidō! And if that wasn’t enough, it’s also keeping me from being able to detect his spiritual pressure! If he used his sonído again, the only way I’ll be able to tell where he’s at is if I actually ‘see’ him! And his attack definitely broke my eardrums, so the only thing that will fix it is Orihime’s healing, or a very long session of healing kidō! Damn!’_ she fretted.

Di Roy tilted his head. “What’s wrong, soul reaper?! Aren’t you going to attack?!” he taunted behind his mask.

Rukia flashed back to stand in front of Di Roy, her cheeks soaked with semi-dried blood that had oozed from her ears, and her shihakusho was now charred and torn a bit from her backfired kidō. She got into her ready stance and took a calming breath.

“This isn’t over yet, Di Roy! I may not be able to hear anymore, but as long as I can see you, this battle is far from over!” she announced sternly.

The man chuckled darkly at her. “That’s just fine for me, soul reaper! I’ll kill you, and then I’ll get to work on the rest of your friends!” he yelled.

Rukia huffed as she got ready for his attack, glaring fearlessly into his eyes.

** With Renji **

The end of Zabimaru’s extended blade flew into the air after being deflected by the back of Yylfordt’s hand. With a quick jerk back, the blade segments of Renji’s zanpakutō quickly retracted until it returned to its normal state.

“Really. The same tactics over and over again. It’s getting ridiculously boring fighting you. And here I was, hoping you could at least put up a decent fight.” The blonde man mocked.

Renji growled lowly at him. “Shut up! I’m not through with you yet!” he stated as he swung his zanpakutō out again, extending the whip-like blade out as he began twirling it above his head. “This battle is far from over!” he yelled, then swung the blade at his opponent, the weapon slinging out at impressive speed.

Yylfordt chuckled lowly. “Honestly, is it even possible for you to do better than that, brother?” He taunted, then vanished using sonído.

The Lieutenant lightly gasped with widened eyes, turning to see that his opponent was now right next to him with his arm held across his chest. Before he could react, the Arrancar backhanded him with enough force that it sent him flying towards the ground.

“So weak.” The Arrancar said with a sickening smirk, then dove after the Lieutenant. “I guess it would be best to end this now.” He stated as he brought his zanpakutō back to swing.

Renji recovered swiftly as he regained his footing in the air, looking up to see his opponent barreling down on him.

It was now clear to him that he really had no chance of fighting the Arrancar in his current release state. He felt it was a bit pitiful that he should have to use his Bankai, but it appeared to him that he had no choice.

“I told you, it’s not over!” he yelled, then held his retracted zanpakutō in front of him. “Bankai!” he commanded, causing Yylfordt to stop his assault.

Renji was quickly engulfed in a mass of red spiritual pressure swirling around him, completely concealing him from his opponent. Yylfordt watched the display in front of him with his smirk as he waited for the man to finish with his release.

“It’s about time you got serious, brother. I thought you were going to try and bore me to death. Guess I was wrong.” He taunted further.

The gathering of energy and pressure suddenly died down and vanished. In the center of where it used to be was Renji, encircled by a very large creature that looked very much like an exceedingly large anaconda skeleton.

The head of the skeleton was roughly the size of a small van, with yellow eyes and adorned by a mane of thick, red horse hair. On the vertebrae, each segment of the boney structure was one meter in diameter, and possessed a single, two-foot-long spike on the top.

The creature was wrapped around itself loosely with Renji standing in the center, his attire changed a bit. He now wore a pinkish-red cowl over his shoulders, with the fabric of the adornment extending down to his right wrist, and a baboon’s skull on top of his left shoulder.

The large snake’s skull of the weapon lifted its head before hissing loudly at Yylfordt and moving its coils in circles around Renji. Yylfordt grinned smugly, amused by the sight of his opponent’s released zanpakutō.

“Hihiō Zabimaru.” The Lieutenant announced, causing Yylfordt the chuckle darkly.

“So, this is a soul reaper’s Bankai? It’s big, I’ll give it that. But I wonder how it would fair against me.” The Arrancar mocked.

“Why don’t we find out!” Renji yelled back as he pulled back on his handle, then flung it back over his shoulder.

Zabimaru’s snake head then sailed forward towards the Arrancar, its large mouth opened half way. Yylfordt held his zanpakutō out in front of him, the snake’s head crashing into it as it began to very slowly push him back on his feet.

The man looked at the creature with an amused face. “Wow, it seems that it does possess a bit of power behind it.” He commented, then narrowed his gaze a bit. “But not nearly enough for me.” He added.

Using his free hand, Yylfordt threw a fist at the upper jaw of the zanpakutō’s head. A small dust cloud erupted as the large head was sent flying through the air, straight back towards its master who stood in the same spot with eyes widened in shock.

“…How?! That’s impossible!” he said in a mumble.

Yylfordt smiled at him. “Pathetic.” He stated, then used sonído to appear right in front of Renji to slash at his chest.

The Lieutenant groaned in pain and shock, before regaining his composure enough to yank back on his weapon and cause the snake’s head to sail right past him; only inches from his right shoulder.

The Arrancar sonídoed away at the last second, reappearing where he was before. “Even in Bankai, is that really the best you’ve got? And you call yourself a Lieutenant of the 13 Court Guard Squads. If you’re an example of their higher officers, then it’s truly amazing that they’ve lasted this long.” The man ridiculed.

Renji growled loudly at him. “Shut the hell up! This fight isn’t over yet! Hikotsu Taihō!” he yelled, swinging out in front of him at his opponent.

Zabimaru’s head charged at the man as it began charging a powerful, and dense mass of spirit energy inside its mouth. When the head was near the halfway point between the two men, Zabimaru opened its jaw wide.

The enormous collection of spirit energy then shot out from the snake’s head at a velocity that nearly broke the sound barrier. Yylfordt’s eyes went wide as the large beam of energy barreled towards him, too fast for him to react in time.

The sky exploded when the beam of energy met its target, lighting the sky up in a bright, and large flash of red spiritual pressure. Renji grinned widely at the sight before him, happy that he had finally defeated his opponent.

The residual spirit energy began to fade away, leaving only a large cloud of smoke in its wake. The light breaths of wind in the air began to blow the cloud away, only to reveal something that instantly removed the grin from Renji’s face.

There stood Yylfordt, and besides his clothes having bits of soot on them, and a couple of small tears in the fabric, he was completely unharmed. What made it worse was the fact that the man was smiling deviously at the Lieutenant.

“Was that it, brother? Was that the best you got? That Bankai of yours really is pathetic. Here…” He paused a moment and held his zanpakutō next to his head, the tip pointing at Renji with his smile getting even darker. “…let me show you ‘true’ power, brother. Impale, Del Toro!”

The man’s body suddenly began glowing with powerful, yellowish spirit energy; quickly growing in intensity until the large mass concealed the Arrancar’s entire body. Renji remained still as he waited for the man’s next attack.

It wasn’t long before the spiritual mass vanished, when Renji widened his eyes in shock at his opponent’s new form. Yylfordt was standing hunched over, his now much larger and bulkier upper body being supported by his fists that where now resting on the ground.

His chest and forearms were much larger than they were before, and his hollow mask, that resembled something along the lines of a bull, now covered his entire head. His long, blonde hair flowed out from the back of the mask, while the top of it now sported long, sharp horns.

“Are you ready, brother? I think it’s time I put an end to your useless life.” He stated in a maniacal voice.

Renji had no time to respond to the man’s comment, because Yylfordt was very suddenly ramming into the Lieutenant’s chest with his head. The red-haired man felt the pain of the hit before he even heard the buzzing sound of his opponent’s sonído.

He grunted in pain as his body was sent flying backwards several hundred feet, the entire length of Zabimaru being dragged behind. Yylfordt then began laughing hysterically in a very sadistic manner, the jaw of his mask opened wide as he did.

It took several seconds before Renji’s body finally came to a stop in the air, where he quickly jumped back up to his feet and recoiled Zabimaru around him. The man clutched his chest with a wheeze of deep pain as he looked back at the maniacal Arrancar.

_‘Damn! That release of his made him a hell of a lot stronger! And that speed of his, I never even saw it coming! Was that sonído, or is it an ability his zanpakutō release gives him?! Just how powerful is this guy?!’_ Renji pondered.

Yylfordt stopped his laughing and looked at the Lieutenant with a very unnerving smile. “What’s wrong, brother? Am I too fast for you? Can’t handle the bull? Just say the word, and I’ll make sure you’ll never have to worry about it ever again. Or are you too ashamed to ask? Cause if that’s the case…”

The man was gone once again, this time ramming into Renji’s side. The impact yet again launched the Lieutenant from his stance, now sending him down to the ground.

“…I’ll go ahead and take care of it now.” The Arrancar finished, before resuming his insane laughter.

Renji crashed down onto the empty four-lane pavement between some moderately sized skyscrapers, the impact creating a large crater nearly twenty feet in diameter. Zabimaru itself created a long, trench-like crevices wherever its boney structure landed all around the man.

It wasn’t but a few seconds later when Yylfordt touched down on the ground several yards down the street, walking slowly on all ‘fours’; the sadistic man still laughing lightly as he crept closer and closer to the downed Lieutenant.

“What? Down already, brother? Are a couple of taps to your body really all it took to put you down? Can’t you at least make this last a little longer for me?” he taunted as he came to the edge of the crater, peering inside to see the Lieutenant lying face down and trying to get back up.

Renji slowly brought himself up to support himself with his elbows before glaring back at the crazed Arrancar. He was breathing heavily, and blood ran down multiple points of his face; his bandana and hair tie had broken loose, leaving his red hair in a wild mess.

“Damn…you.” He cursed between pants. “This…isn’t…over.” He added as he clenched his teeth, trying to get himself back up to his feet.

Yylfordt watched with an insane grin as the Lieutenant slowly pulled himself back up to his feet, then entered a very weak combat stance as his upper body slouched over in weakness. He yanked back on Zabimaru, forcing it to coil around him once more.

I’m not…done yet.” Renji firmly stated.

The Arrancar returned to laughing in a sinister way. “You’re still standing, so I’d have to agree with you on that, brother. But don’t worry, I’ll fix that problem…” He stopped for a moment to lean forward and prepare another charge. “…by killing you.” He responded in a dark voice.

** With Rangiku **

Nakeem stood proudly in the open air with a serious, yet calm look on his half-covered face; his zanpakutō drawn and held at his side with his other hand clenched into a fist. He stared at the busty woman in front of him with contempt.

Rangiku had definitely had better days, especially when it came to her apparel. The entire left sleeve of her kosode was torn off, nearly half of the lower sleeve on the right side of her hakama was in tatters, and she was missing her left waraji.

Her left arm hung limply by her side, the upper arm broken just under the shoulder joint after Nakeem had punched her earlier. She was feeling a stinging pain in her side, leaving her to believe that the large man’s attack may have bruised, or even broken a few ribs as well.

She stood as firmly as her body would allow, holding her zanpakutō’s hilt in front of her while the ashes of its released state floated freely around her; a good portion of the ash hovering around her broken arm in order to prevent further injury.

“So, is that all you’ve got?” she taunted at the Arrancar.

Nakeem huffed skeptically. “Your words are pointless, when you’re the one who’s all beaten up, Lieutenant. I thought that someone of your rank would be more of a challenge, but I guess I was wrong. So, what do you plan to do now, Lieutenant? You plan to keep fighting me with a broken arm, and clearly exhausted?” he sent back.

Rangiku gave him a sly grin. “Didn’t anyone ever tell you not to judge your opponent by looks alone? You should know that I still have plenty left in me, Nakeem.” She stated firmly.

He narrowed his gaze at her. “Is that so? Then I guess I should stop holding back and finish you off.” He threatened, then held up his hand. “Cero.” He said, quickly charging and releasing the powerful beam of red spirit energy towards the woman.

Her face fell into seriousness before she flashed away and letting the Cero fly by, reappearing above, and slightly behind the man. She swung her hilt at the Arrancar, sending the grey ash out at him and surrounding him from all sides.

“You’re done.” She stated, then swung back towards herself.

The ash cloud quickly closed in on itself, encasing the man within and causing Rangiku to grin with a huff of approval. But the ash was suddenly scattered when Nakeem swung his own zanpakutō out, again holding his hand towards her.

“Cero.” He uttered, sending another red beam of energy at her.

She was unprepared for the attack, therefor allowing it attack to hit her head-on. The blast from the attack sent the woman flying back as she groaned in pain; her body falling down from the sky and crashing onto the roof of a tall skyscraper.

“Your zanpakutō’s abilities are ineffective against me, Lieutenant. My Hierro is more than strong enough to stand up against that cutting ash of yours. You can attack me with it for days, and you would still never be able to hurt me.” He proclaimed.

Rangiku got back up to her feet, grunting in pain as she did. She looked up at her opponent, who could now see that a large portion of fabric that covered her stomach and right flank was now burned off, exposing the charred, white shitagi underneath.

She scoffed lightly before reaching into the folds of her kosode and pulling out a small, slim device, placing it next to her ear. The device beeped once before she started speaking into the small device.

“This is Lieutenant Matsumoto of Squad 10, how much longer on that authorization?” she asked in a serious tone.

_“We are still trying to acquire authorization for your limiter release, Lieutenant Matsumoto; but as it stands for the moment, the release of your limiter is denied. We’re doing everything we can to get the authorization for you as fast as possible. Please stand by.”_ The voice informed in an urgent tone.

Rangiku moaned in annoyance as she returned the device to her kosode. _‘Damn…with my power limiter in place, there’s no way I can keep fighting him for much longer. What are those idiots doing? Can’t they see that this is an emergency? And I’m sure the Captain and Tim are having a hard time as well, especially since Tim is fighting the strongest one here.’_ She fretted.

Nakeen scoffed lightly as he waited for his opponent to make her move. “What’s wrong, Lieutenant? Giving up?” he questioned.

The woman growled at him dangerously. “No! I’m just not in a rush to give you the beating you deserve.” She mocked back.

The Arrancar tapered his stare slightly. “Is that so? Then perhaps I should speed things up for you.” He said, then raised his hand and began charging another Cero.

Rangiku prepared herself for the attack, gathering her zanpakutō’s ash in front of her as she entered her stance.

Nakeem simply smiled at the woman. “Bala.” He said in a low voice.

The energy in his hand then shot out at the Lieutenant, but at a speed that was clearly several times faster than a normal Cero. Rangiku, obviously not expecting such an attack, didn’t even have enough time to be shocked by it.

In less than a second after releasing it, the mass of energy struck the ground a few feet in front of her, the explosion creating a large hole in the roof of the building and causing Rangiku to fall through it, landing on the floor below.

The man waited a moment for the woman to come out of the rubble, but was a bit surprised when he noticed that she was already standing nearby to his right. Her eyes were widened a bit in shock, but they also had anger in them.

“What in the world was that?! I’ve never seen a Cero that fast!” she demanded.

Nakeem stared at her for a second. “That wasn’t a Cero, Lieutenant.” He informed, then turned to her fully. “That was a Bala. It’s similar to a Cero in its makeup, but the power is greatly reduced to, just as greatly, increase its speed. It basically turns the Cero into a rocket. Of all the fracción, I am one of only two who can use it.” He looked over at the damage he caused, then brought his hand up to look at it calmly for a moment before turning back to the Lieutenant.

“The only downside is that Balas are hard for me to aim. Even though I’m one of only two who can use it, it’s still difficult for me to use. That’s why I hit the roof in front of you, when I was aiming ‘for’ you. You should consider yourself very lucky it wasn’t an Espada who used it on you. Not only would it have hit you perfectly, but it would have also had a lot more power in it, and certainly killed you.” He warned, then dropped his hand.

“But out of all of the Arrancar below the Espada, my Ceros are by far the most powerful. That’s where my combat abilities lie, is in my Ceros. I’ve actually been holding back on the power of my Ceros quite a bit.” He stated.

The man then held up his hand again and started charging a much stronger Cero than Rangiku had seen him use before. The mass quickly grew in size, until it stabilized at a size roughly that of a soccer ball.

“Why don’t I show you one of my Ceros when I’m ‘not’ holding back.” He threatened.

Rangiku gritted her teeth as she growled lowly. _‘Hurry up, you idiots! If you don’t get that authorization soon, there’ll be nobody here to give that authorization to!’_ she fretted.

The two warriors stared each other down, before Nakeem gave her a wide grin. “Cero.”

** With Timothy **

Timothy and Grimmjow stood several yards from each other, eyeing the other closely as they both waited for the device in the Espada’s hand to take effect. But both warriors became quite puzzled when nothing did happen.

Grimmjow looked around with a raised brow at Timothy’s numerous flames, still scattered around the two of them. At the same time, a small bead of sweat started running down the side of the Lieutenant’s head.

“Uuuuhh…was something…‘supposed’ to happen?” he asked with a deadpanned expression.

The Espada looked down as he held the small, cylindrical device up for inspection. “What the hell is wrong with this thing? Is it broken?” he growled in annoyance.

Another bead of sweat ran down the opposite side of Timothy’s face. “Did you…check the batteries?” he moaned.

The Sexta turned to him scornfully. “What the hell you talking about? This thing don’t run on damn batteries you idiot.” He insulted.

“Then what the hell ‘does’ it run on? Looks to me like it’s dead.” Timothy observed.

Grimmjow rose a brow. “How the hell am ‘I’ supposed to know? I didn’t build the damn thing.”

Timothy stood straight and started scratching the top of his head. “Then maybe it ‘is’ broken. Why would you bring a busted weapon to a fight, Grimm?” he questioned.

“Shut up! How the hell was I supposed to know it was broken, you bastard?!” Grimmjow shot back.

The Lieutenant rose a skeptical brow. “Uh…you ‘check’ it.” He answered simply.

Grimmjow scoffed at him. “Whatever.” He returned, then stuffed the device back into his pocket. “I don’t need the damn thing to beat you anyway; Aizen just wanted it to be used in my fight.” He informed.

Timothy’s face immediately grew serious. “Really. And ‘why’ would Aizen want that thing used in your fight, Grimm? What exactly was it supposed to do?” he pried.

The man grinned madly. “Like I’d tell you. I guess you’re gonna have to wait to find out, huh?” he mocked.

The Lieutenant shrugged a shoulder. “It was at least worth a try. You can’t really get mad at me for trying, can you?”

Grimmjow chuckled lightly. “No, I guess not. But that don’t matter, all that matters now is our fight. So, what do ya say we get back to business?” he taunted.

Timothy sighed heavily as he tilted his head to the side with closed eyes. “Do we really have to go back to fighting, Grimm? Can’t we just call it and leave as equals?” he pleaded.

The Sexta rose a disbelieving brow. “Equals? Us? Hah! Like that could ever happen. Look Tim, I’ll admit that you might be a cool guy, but don’t think for a moment that the two of us could ever get along. And even if we did, that still wouldn’t mean that I don’t want to fight you. Now quit goofing off and bring that wolf chick out here, and I want both of you to fight me like you did that big, brawny, Captain guy.” He demanded.

The younger man rose a brow as well. “You mean Kit? Well, one, she can’t come out while I’m released like this; and two, she’s a fox, not a wolf.” He clarified, then held his free hand to the side of his head. “She gets very…vocal…when someone calls her that, and ‘I’m’ the one who has to suffer for it. And I seriously doubt you wanna hear the things she has to say right now for that remark.” He warned as he rubbed his head.

Grimmjow started laughing loudly for a moment before smiling widely. “Sounds like you got yourself a feisty zanpakutō there, Tim. I think I’m starting to like her.” he commented.

Timothy’s face dropped fully. “You have no fucking idea, Grimm. And ‘please’ don’t encourage her. Like I said, ‘I’m’ the one who suffers here.” He moaned.

The Espada gave him a toothy grin. “Sounds like I might need to put a leash on her.” He mocked.

The Lieutenant’s eyes went wide. “If you honestly think that’s even remotely possible, be my fucking guest, Grimm. I’ve been trying for twelve freaking years to put a muzzle on that damn vixen, and I’ve come to the conclusion that it’s ‘not’ possible. Besides…” he paused to tilt his head. “…I doubt you’d last more than two minutes with her before she drove you up a fucking wall.”

**_“I am ‘not’ that bad, Tim!”_** Kitsune yelled in his head.

“Yes, you are!” he yelled back aloud.

Grimmjow looked at the man like he was crazy. “What the hell’s your problem?” he inquired.

Timothy growled as he turned to him. “See what the hell I mean? It never ends with her. You should be thankful she can’t come out right now.” He stated.

**_“Oh? And who told you that I couldn’t?”_** she inquired.

He deadpanned. “Uh…you.” He answered.

**_“Oh really? I said that I couldn’t come out while you were released, but I never said I couldn’t reseal myself and ‘then’ come out.”_** She threatened.

His eyes widened again. “You wouldn’t dare.” He stated, then his face dropped not a second later. “I take that back…you definitely would.” He moaned.

Grimmjow started snickering. “I’d like to get back to our fight, but I find this to be far more entertaining at the moment.” He stated with a wide grin.

Timothy rolled his eyes to him. “You just ‘had’ to say something, Grimm. And now she wants to come out and I have to talk her out of it.” He informed.

**_“Too late.”_** She stated.

Before he could ask what she meant, the flames around the field vanished as his zanpakutō began returning to its sealed state. Timothy slapped a hand to his face with a whine as Kitsune materialized herself next to him.

Grimmjow rose both brows in surprise as he looked at the spirit with confusion. “What the hell?”

She turned to him and grinned. “Well, hello to you too, sweetie. You wanted to meet me, so here I am. And I gotta say, you look better in person than through Tim’s eyes.” She stated in a seductive voice.

The Sexta laughed wildly, the jaw-like mask piece on his face opening slightly as he did. “Well well, you really are a feisty one; just like that yellow-eyed kitten from last time. The names Grimmjow. So, who might you be exactly, ‘vixen’?” he asked with a wide grin.

Her own grin grew wide and toothy. “My full name is Moeru Kitsune, but you can just call me Kit.” She greeted, then crossed her arms. “So, what, you wanna dance, Grimm? I gotta warn ya, I’m quite difficult to handle.” She teased.

Grimmjow chuckled lowly. “Oh really? Well, lucky for you, that’s the way I like my women; full of piss and vinegar. So, I’m up for a round or two, if you’re sure you can handle it.” He taunted.

She rose her brows in surprise. “I’d be careful, Grimm. Afterall, foxes eat little kittens like you.”

The Espada then looked at Timothy. “I like this vixen of yours, Tim. Too bad I can’t take her home with me.” He commented.

Timothy gave the man a deadpanned expression. “You can have her. Too bad she’s stuck in my head.”

Grimmjow chuckled. “Bad luck for you I guess. But whatever. Why don’t we get this dance of ours started, ‘Kit’?” he asked, now looking at the spirit.

Kitsune chuckled back. “I’d love to, but Tim’s right; I can’t play like I used to do in the past, Grimm. But…” she stopped to hold a finger up. “…how about if Tim fight’s you in his Bankai? You did ask ‘me’ to dance, so how about we dance the way you like? Personally, I prefer a good, old-fashioned two-step, but this will work just as well.” she proposed with slightly widened eyes and a wide smile.

The Espada laughed madly before giving her his widest grin. “Absolutely! I’ll gladly take you up on that offer! Just don’t be too upset once I beat your partner into a bloody pulp!” he returned.

She chortled back at him before resting her hands on her hips. “Well then, let’s dance, Grimm. And try not to step on my partner’s toes, will ya?” she teased.

“Hah! I’m gonna be stepping on far worse than his toes, vixen! I’m gonna step on his head!” he yelled, then drew his zanpakutō.

Timothy rolled his eyes to Kitsune. “You just had to provoke him…didn’t you?” he whispered.

The spirit nodded. “Yup! Wouldn’t be fun otherwise.” She informed.

He growled deeply at her. “One of these days, I ‘will’ find a way to kill you.” He threatened.

She shrugged a shoulder at him. “But you’ll still love me.”

“…I hate you.” He hissed in a low voice.

The spirit then vanished back into his inner world as he slapped a hand to his face and dragged it down with a long moan.

“Why is it that I’m the one who always has to suffer?” he whined. The Lieutenant then took a deep, calming breath before looking back towards Grimmjow. “Well…you ready to get serious, Grimm?” he inquired.

The chuckled once. “Ready and waiting. I’d rather fight the both of you, especially that vixen of yours, but your Bankai is more than good enough for me. So go ahead and release Tim, I’ll wait right here for ya.” He stated.

Timothy sighed heavily. “Alright. But you asked for it, Grimm.” He returned, holding his zanpakutō in front of him and grabbing the blade near the hilt with his free hand. “Bankai.” He called, snapping the blade. “Furasshu hi Kitsune Hime.”

Grimmjow chuckled a few times as he watched the two halves of Timothy’s zanpakutō slowly reshape themselves into elongated gauntlets. He turned to see that the flames had returned to the field, now in far greater numbers.

There were far too many to warrant counting, but he could easily guess that there were at least over a hundred flames surrounding the two of them. He chuckled once more before looking back at Timothy to see that the man’s entire body was covered with smoldering flames.

Timothy stared at the Espada with a pitiful face. “I was honestly hoping that I wouldn’t have to use my Bankai, Grimm. The reason for this is because my Bankai is exceedingly painful to my opponent. I’d prefer not to fight, but if I do, I really try to make it as painless as possible.” He stated.

The Lieutenant held a hand out to a cluster of flames nearby, the flames quickly shrinking and flying towards his open palm. Grimmjow rose a brow as the flames seemed to be absorbed into the man’s left gauntlet.

But what really got his attention was that the small fox emblem on the man’s armored wrist began glowing. With each flame that he absorbed, the emblem seemed to glow brighter and brighter. After absorbing nearly a dozen flames, the etching had a dull, orange hue to it.

“So, I hope you won’t hold it against me when I burn you to a crisp.” Timothy added as he closed his hand into a fist and held it to his side. “Cause I can tell you right now Grimm, that this is ‘going’ to hurt…a lot.” He furthered.

The man clenched his teeth and growled out as he thrusted his fist forward. Grimmjow’s eyes went wide when a basketball sized ball of fire left the end on the man’s fist, flying straight towards him at an amazing speed.

“Damn!” he hissed the brief instant before using sonído to vanish.

The flaming projectile continued on unobstructed as Grimmjow reappeared a few yards away from where he was. He watched as the fireball kept going, until it suddenly exploded in midair, sending hundreds of tiny embers in every direction.

The embers flew out about ten feet in their respective directions, until they finally burned out on their own. After watching the whole thing, he began to understand exactly why Timothy had said what he did.

_‘If that had hit me, it wouldn’t have killed me, but it definitely would have left a mark.’_ He thought, then glanced at Timothy, who was still standing in the same spot. _‘His Bankai must give him more abilities to use those flames of his with. That fireball attack of his can’t be the only added ability his Bankai gives him, though. I’m sure that kid’s got more tricks up his sleeve. Even in his Bankai, he don’t have the power to defeat me; but that doesn’t mean I want to get my ass cooked playing around with him.’_

“What’s wrong, Grimm? I thought you wanted to ‘dance’.” Timothy taunted, breaking the man’s thoughts.

Grimmjow laughed aloud at him. “Of course I wanna dance, kid! Show me what you’ve got!” he sent right back.

Timothy sighed heavily at him. “One ‘Kentucky Fried Cat’…” he started as he pulled back his fist. “…coming right up!” he yelled further, now throwing his fist forward and sending another fireball at the Espada.

The Sexta grinned widely at the Lieutenant, before vanishing again and reappearing to the man’s right side, ready to swing down. But he froze when he saw Timothy already looking in his direction and sending his right fist at him.

_‘Damn!’_ he fretted.

The fireball hit the Espada in the chest, exploding upon impact and covering the entire front side of his body with tiny embers. He growled loudly at the stinging pain of the embers burning the exposed skin of his forearms.

The embers were also beginning to burn the man’s clothes, the front side of his shirt already possessing several small holes. But lucky for him, the embers only burned for about five seconds before they started going out.

Once the last ember was out, Timothy looked closely at the Sexta to see that his forearms and face were reddened with 1st degree burns, and the entire front side of his uniform riddled with tiny holes that were charred on the edges.

Timothy sighed again. “You can see now just how painful my Bankai can be, and I haven’t even gotten serious yet. Unlike most other zanpakutō releases, where the opponent gets cut up, or hit with a strong force of energy or the such that is rather quick, mine does the job very slowly. So, can we please stop now, Grimm? I really don’t want to take this any further; and honestly, neither does Kit.” He informed with a bit of sadness.

Grimmjow looked at the man and gave him a toothy snarl. “Are you pitying me?! You think that you and that damn vixen of yours are stronger than me?! I’ll kill the both of you!” he yelled in fury.

The Lieutenant rose a brow at him in surprise. “I never once said that, Grimm. I’m not stupid enough to deny that you are easily stronger than I am at the moment, but that doesn’t mean I won’t cause as much damage that I can before I die. The question you need to ask yourself Grimm, is whether or not a very long, and painful session is worth it all. I’m trying to avoid doing that as much as I can, that’s why I’m asking you to please just leave and save yourself the pain.” He pleaded.

The Espada started laughing wildly. **_“I don’t think that’s going to happen, Tim. If anything, I think he’s likely to get more into this.”_** Kitsune commented.

Timothy sighed again. “Yeah…I know…and it’s all ‘your’ fault, stupid.” He responded in a whisper as Grimmjow calmed down and glared at him.

“You think a little bit of pain worries me, kid?! Ha! Don’t make me laugh. We’re both warriors kid, so pain is naturally a part of our lives. It don’t matter how strong you get, there will always be pain in a fight. So quit your worrying about me, and ‘get’ serious; cause I ain’t got all night to waist playing kids’ games. I’m still waiting for that ‘dance’ the vixen promised me.” He finished with a maddening grin.

The younger man shook his head slowly. “Fine.” He answered, then looked back at him with a serious face. “But don’t blame me if you go home looking like a freaking lump of charcoal.” He hissed.

The man then threw his left fist, followed quickly by his right, and finalized by another from his left; sending three, smaller and faster, fireballs at his opponent. Grimmjow buzzed out of the way, letting the projectiles sail by, and reappeared behind Timothy.

Grimmjow swung at the man’s exposed back with his zanpakutō, but when the blade was only inches away, the man disappeared. The Lieutenant reappeared right in front of his previous attacks’ flight path with his open palm facing towards them.

The fireballs gathered back into the man’s gauntlet before he twisted around and swung his fist out behind him. Grimmjow’s eyes widened when he realized that he was now looking at a clone that Timothy had switched out with the instant he finished absorbing the fireballs.

Pain shot up the Espada’s back as a small, fiery explosion sent him flying forwards; dozens of tiny embers now slowly burning away at the back of the man’s shirt and exposing the skin in small patches.

The Espada recovered quickly, bringing his zanpakutō around underneath him and swinging up. But Timothy was already gone again, now to the man’s left with his fist held back and ready for another strike.

“Don’t do this, Grimm. It’s only going to get worse.” Timothy warned in a calm voice.

Grimmjow turned to him with a snarl. _‘Fuck! He’s better than I thought. I can’t catch the fucker while he’s jumping around with those annoying flames of his. And I can’t release my Resurrección. Aizen wants this damn kid alive, and doing so would easily kill the brat. If it wasn’t for those Goddamned flames…’_ he paused in thought and rose a brow. _‘Wait…’_

The man started glancing around them, then dropped his brow back. _‘Some of those flames are missing…’_ He then looked at the emblem on Timothy’s gauntlet to see it was just barely glowing. _‘…and it don’t look like he has that many gathered in that glove of his. So, either he can control how many are out at a time…’_ He narrowed his gaze at the Lieutenant. _‘…or, every time he uses those fireball things, he has to use up some of those flames. If so, then he ‘has’ to have a limit to how many of them he can make. Let’s test it…’_ he concluded.

Grimmjow sonídoed away, reappearing right in front of Timothy swinging down with his zanpakutō. Timothy then held his right gauntlet up to block the attack, the blade striking the back of the wrist area and cutting a small notch into the metal.

Timothy’s eyes widened a little bit in surprise, but still swung out with his left fist at the Espada’s exposed chest. The man quickly jumped back as the projectile left the Lieutenant’s fist, bending backwards to allow the fireball to sail past overhead.

The Lieutenant used a flame to get some distance before looking down at the small cut Grimmjow had made in his gauntlet. The blade had dug in enough to almost cut through it. Not only that, the impact left his hand and wrist feeling a bit numb from the force.

**_“Tim, your gauntlets are not there as armor, they are there to channel your flames. They can protect you from minor hits and the such, but don’t count on them lasting long in a full fight like this. If Grimm had hit you just a bit harder, he would have likely got a part of your wrist.”_** Kitsune warned.

Timothy scoffed lightly. “Yeah, ‘now’ you tell me. Stupid vixen.” He growled.

**_“Also, take it easy with your attacks. You’re doing good for now, but if you keep this fight up for too long, you won’t have any flames left to use.”_** She added.

“You know…it’s information like this that would be very useful ‘before’ getting into a fight, Kit.” He mocked with a dropped face.

**_“Look out!”_** she yelled.

Timothy gasped lightly, then turned around to place his left hand in front of Grimmjow’s incoming blade from the left. The blade hit the top of his gauntlet near the end, again cutting into the metal just above the fox emblem.

“Damn!” he mumbled with wide eyes.

He then reached across himself and grabbed the Espada’s blade at the halfway point. Focusing his gathered flames into the palm, he began to superheat the man’s blade, causing it to start turning a dull orange.

Grimmjow’s own eyes widen at what the Lieutenant was doing, before holding his free hand up and charging a Cero a few inches from Timothy’s chest. The man instantly let go of the blade and used shunpo to jump to the side as the Espada fired the attack into the distance.

Giving two quick thrusts with his fists, Timothy sent two more fireballs at the Espada. Grimmjow dodged to the right, avoiding the first attack, and swung out at the second. The blade hit the projectile, causing it to explode, just as he used sonído to get out of the blast radius.

He reappeared a few yards to the Lieutenant’s left in a semi-ready stance. He took a look at this zanpakutō to see the area where Timothy had grabbed it was still a tad orange, but the color was beginning to fade as the blade cooled down.

The man then looked at the flames again to see that there were indeed slightly less flames on the field than before. And if he had to guess, the two fireballs the man had sent at him just now were just as powerful as the first ones he used.

_‘So, it looks like those fireballs ‘do’ use up those flames each time. Not only that, it looks like he’s using more than one for each of the bigger ones. So that means, the more he uses that attack, the less flames he’ll have to use afterwards. So that just means I have to keep drawing his fire until he runs out. It’ll also limit the areas where he can appear when he uses them to move around. So, I guess that means this is a battle of endurance, huh. That’s just fine with me.’_ He concluded.

The man turned to his opponent with a grin. “Nifty trick you got there, Tim. But very annoying. You’ve messed up my clothes.” He stated as he held an arm up to prove his point.

Timothy gave a breathy scoff. “Yeah, sorry about that Grimm. So I guess you’re still not going to consider leaving?” he pressed.

Grimmjow laughed a bit at the comment. “Why would I do that? I’m having fun here. Been a while since I’ve had to get serious.” He said in a happy tone.

The Lieutenant’s face dropped. “You sound just like a particular person I don’t really like. I hope you’re not as bloodthirsty as him.” He moaned.

The Espada chuckled darkly. “Nah, I’m not that kinda person, kid. I just really like my fights, and so far you’ve given me a good one. I’m actually glad that stupid little toy of Aizen’s broke, otherwise I wouldn’t be able to enjoy beating the hell outta you.” He taunted.

Timothy rose a skeptical brow. “Uh…looks to me like ‘you’re’ the one who’s been getting beat up, Grimm. Or rather, burned up. But that’s beside the point. The thing is, is that my friends aren’t going to last much longer with the way things are going right now. So we’re left with only two options here, Grimm. Either A, you can save yourself the pain and leave; or B, I stop holding back and roast you to death. I really prefer the former, but that’s all up to you.” He warned.

He then sighed heavily and closed his eyes. “But then…you could always switch sides, Grimm.” He offered.

Grimmjow rose a brow in shock. “Excuse me?”

Timothy opened his eyes again. “You heard me. Switch sides; you don’t have to stay with that crazy psychopath, Aizen. Nel’s turned away from him, and so can you. You’re a cool guy, Grimm. A bit too eager to get into a fight, but still a good person. Besides, I can tell you don’t like Aizen too much yourself either.” He proposed.

The Espada stared at the man with a shocked look on his face, while the man stared right back with one of hope. The blue-haired man then laughed loudly and manically; the jaw-like mask fragment on his face wide open and moving with his own jaw.

He suddenly stopped and glared at Timothy. “Wow, kid. I honestly never expected that one. You really think that I would just up and leave Aizen? Yeah, I’ll admit I don’t really like the guy, but he gives me all the fights I want. And that is more than enough reason to stay put. Thanks for the offer, but I don’t think so. So, I choose option C; where I roast ‘you’ to death.” He answered back.

Timothy’s shoulders dropped. “It was worth a try.” He said lowly, then held both hands out wide.

He then began to gather a very large amount of flames into both gauntlets, the emblems on both of them glowing brighter with each one. After a few seconds of gathering, all but a couple dozen flames were now inside the man’s gauntlets, both emblems now a very bright, cherry-red.

The Lieutenant dropped down to a boxer’s ready stance with a sorrowful look on his face. “I hope you won’t have any regrets, Grimmjow. Because, with how big this one’s going to be, you’ll have no chance to escape the blast. This will incinerate you all the way down to the bones.” He warned.

Grimmjow chuckled lowly. “Bring it, kid!” he taunted.

Timothy stared at the man with a bit of worry. **_“Tim…you’re not really ready for this technique yet. You know what will happen if you use it, right?”_** Kitsune cautioned.

_“…Yeah…I do. Hopefully it won’t leave me unconscious. It’ll at least leave him unable to continue anymore._ ” He returned.

**_“And if it don’t, you’ll be completely unable to fight back, Tim. You’re pushing yourself enough as it is, and you know it.”_** She pointed.

_“I know, so let’s hope this works.”_ He concluded. “Bikusen Ikari.” He said aloud in a low voice, then brought both fists down to the ground hard.

The two emblems on his wrists flashed a bright white, then went dark as the ground around him instantly sprouted numerous flames, dancing violently. The ground then exploded in a furious inferno, completely encasing him inside.

The explosion burst out with monstrous force, causing Grimmjow’s eyes to widen into saucers as the large wall of fire flew right at him. It happened so fast, that the Sexta Espada simply didn’t have enough time to react, forcing him to take the explosion head-on.

The explosion flew out several dozen yards, until it finally stopped. As it did, many dozens of tiny fireballs hurled out in random directions from the center of the explosion; each one flying out a certain distance before exploding themselves and showering the field with hundreds, upon hundreds of tiny embers.

Unlike the embers from his previous fireballs, these ones actually stayed lit for a bit longer; leaving the entire battleground littered with smoldering flames. There was simply nowhere you could walk without touching one of these tiny flames.

But after a short while, and after the wall of fire dissipated, they began to burn out. Timothy sat there, knelt down where he was before with both fists still planted on the ground; breathing very heavily with sweat trailing down his forehead.

Both of his gauntlets, that were once a shiny silver color, were now a solid, burnt black color and emitted a steady stream of smoke, rising up. The two emblems on the top of his wrists now distorted and malformed.

Timothy wobbled to the side, nearly falling over from exhaustion, but shifted his hand over to the side to brace himself up. He stared at the spot where Grimmjow was before, seeing the entire area still covered in tiny embers.

“I think…I…I got him.” He mumbled between breathes.

He then heard Kitsune sigh heavily. **_“You better hope so, you’re lucky you’re even still conscious after that, Tim. I told you that you wasn’t ready for that. You’ve still got about a dozen flames left, so I suggest you use them to retreat for now. You are in no condition to fight anymore.”_** She advised.

Before he could reply to her, he suddenly heard a low chuckle in the distance. His head snapped back to the area where Grimmjow was, and his eyes widened when he saw that, besides his shirt now completely gone, his trousers pretty much turned into beach shorts, and second degree burns all over his body, the Sexta Espada was standing there with a wide grin on his face.

“What! How?!” Timothy breathed out.

Grimmjow had his arms over his face from shielding it from the explosion. He dropped the arms and stared at Timothy with a maniacal glare. He then laughed like a madman as he began walking forward.

“Now ‘that’ is what I’m talking about! That’s what I’ve been waiting to see! Excellent job, kid! You gave me just the kind of dance that vixen promised me! I owe ya!” he declared proudly.

“There’s…there’s no way…No way you should have gone through that and be in that kinda shape.” Timothy stated.

Grimmjow stopped his walk and scoffed. “I’ll gladly admit kid, that attack ‘did’ have power behind it. There’s no doubt about that. But if you honestly think that that power would have been enough to stop me, then think again. I like you Tim, and you have got my respect, but you honestly have no chance at beating me. Just look at yourself. You can barely stay up in a kneeling position, let alone even remain conscious, after that attack. So it’s quite easy to tell that, while that attack has power, it’s also quite demanding. Look around, Kid.” He said as he threw his hand out.

“You’ve got maybe a dozen or so of those flames left. That’s enough for a couple of your fireballs, and to move around a bit, but that’s it. You can’t honestly expect to keep fighting me with so little, can you?” he mocked.

Timothy gritted his teeth with a low growl before trying to push himself up to his feet. **_“Tim, stop! Whether or not ‘you’ want to admit it, what he said is true! There is no way you can keep fighting him like this! And if that attack didn’t do anything besides strip him, then you really have no chance against him!”_** the spirit yelled.

He groaned as he finally made it to his feet and began rising. “I don’t care.” He returned, then got back into a weak ready stance, weakly trying to hold his arms up. “It’s my job to stop you, and I told Nel I would protect her. So, I’ll keep going until my last breath, Grimm. So, get ready.” He taunted weakly.

The Espada looked at him disbelievingly. “You’ve got guts Tim, but those guts have made you stupid. The only reason you ain’t dead yet is because I can’t kill you. But…” he paused and got into a stance of his own. “…that don’t mean I can’t teach you a couple lessons in pain yourself.” He finished, now giving the Lieutenant a sickening glare.

** With Toshiro **

The Captain stood on top of a three-story structure, his sword arm bleeding with his free hand clutched over top the wound to slow it down, and his left eye shut to prevent the blood from his forehead getting into it.

He was breathing very heavily, his body and spirit energy completely exhausted after his Bankai had given out, reducing him back to fighting the 11th Arrancar in his Shikai. Not that it would do much good, considering that not even his Bankai did much against his opponent.

Shawlong stood in the air slightly above him, his arms behind his back as he stared down at the weakened Captain with disdain. Besides a pair of scratches on his chest and the top of his mask, the man had hardly any injuries.

“You should give up, little Captain. Your Bankai is no more, your body is torn; you can barely hold onto your zanpakutō. I give you credit that you were able to fight as hard as you did, but this fight is over. Give up now, and I’ll be sure to give you a quick, and painless death. But if you choose to continue this, I can guarantee that you with die slowly as I carve you up.” He offered.

Toshiro stood tall and dropped his free hand to his hilt. “Thanks for the offer, but I refuse to give up to you, Shawlong Koufang.” He returned.

Koufang tapered his stare. “Very well. I commend you for your bravery, Captain of Squad 10; and as such, I will do the honorable thing of giving you a warrior’s death.” He said as he brought his right, clawed hand close to his head. “Farewell, Captain Hitsugaya.” He finished, then charged forward.

He thrusted his hand forward to run the short man through his chest as he flew through the air at high speed. But his eyes went wide with shock when his attack was suddenly halted by a hand grabbing him by the outstretched wrist.

“What?” he breathed.

“I am sorry Shawlong, but I cannot let you kill him.” A feminine voice said to his right.

The Arrancar turned his gaze to see a teal-haired woman standing next to him, holding tightly to his wrist with a very calm, yet calculated demeaner. She stared at him with firmness, but also with a bit a regret.

He narrowed his gaze at her. “Well well, if it isn’t the traitor; Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck. Am I supposed to be surprised to see that you have sided yourself with the soul reapers?” he mocked with a disgusted tone in his voice.

Nel let the man’s wrist go, where he quickly sonídoed away to where he was before. The woman turned to face him fully as she stepped in between him and Toshiro, preventing the man from attacking him.

“It does not matter what you feel towards me, Shawlong. Nor does it matter who I have sided with. All that does matter, is that I will not permit you to kill the Captain. I honestly have never cared too much for you, but that doesn’t change the fact that we were once comrades. Because of that, I am giving you this one chance to leave here alive, along with the others you have come with. Leave now, or I will be forced to see you as an enemy, and will eliminate you as such.” She warned.

Shawlong stood straight as he chuckled. “I see. Exactly the kind of gesture I would expect from you, former Quinto Espada. Even though I never approved of your methods in dealing with others, I still respected your abilities. Your calm demeaner is quite misleading, hiding your true skills. I honestly could never hope to stand a chance against you in the past. However…”

He pointed at the woman’s waist. “…you are unarmed. I have heard how Lord Nnoitra had broken your zanpakutō. Without it, you cannot use your Resurrección. And with me in my released state, and you with only your basic abilities, I am easily more than a match for you.” He lowered his hand and placed them both behind his back. “I’m sure that once I’ve killed you, Lord Aizen would be very pleased. I hope you can forgive me for this.” He stated with a smile.

Nel dropped her shoulders with a heavy sigh. “I was hoping we could avoid fighting, Shawlong. But unfortunately, you were always as persistent as your master.” She stated, then turned to look over her shoulder at Toshiro. “Captain, I ask that you please stand back. I don’t want to hit you by mistake.” She pleaded.

Toshiro narrowed his gaze at her. “What are you doing here? I thought you were not allowed to leave Urahara’s shop.” He pointed.

She sighed again. “We can discuss that later, once we are done here, Captain. For now, please stay back.” She asked again.

He growled lowly, but finally nodded and rested his stance a bit. “I’m watching you.” He warned.

Nel nodded back, then returned to Koufang. “I’m sorry Shawlong, I will try to make this quick for you.” She said calmly, then vanished.

** With Rukia **

“Rukia! Are you ignoring me, you damn midget?!” a young man yelled from a few yards behind the short woman.

Rukia continued to stare at Di Roy in her ready stance, planning her next move. Although she found it a bit odd that the Arrancar had stopped his attacks suddenly, she knew the man ‘had’ to be up to something; and she was not going to allow herself to be surprised again.

“Damn it! Listen to me!” the other man yelled, kicking the woman in the back and sending her forward.

She fell on her face, laying there for a moment, before turning and quickly jumping back up to her feet. She glared at the culprit who ‘attacked’ her, then growled and shook her fist at him.

“Damn you, Ichigo! What the hell is your problem?!” she yelled.

The teen scowled deeply. “’My’ problem?! What the hell is ‘your’ problem?! I’ve been standing here for five damn minutes calling you, and you keep ignoring me!” he returned, then pointed at Di Roy. “And what the hell are you doing just standing there looking at the guy?!”

She looked at the Arrancar, then back to him. “If you’re asking who he is, his name is Di Roy, and he’s an Arrancar.” She said in a loud voice, almost yelling.

Ichigo deadpanned. “Huh? I didn’t ask who the guy was…I asked why you were just standing there looking at him.” He corrected as he pointed again.

Rukia narrowed her gaze at him. “I already told you who he was, Ichigo.” She retorted.

Now he was completely confused. “What the hell are you talking about? Are you doing this to piss me off? Cause I gotta tell ya, it’s damn well working, Rukia.” He moaned.

“Heh. Guess I’ve got two soul reapers to kill now. That’s fine with me. I was starting to get bored playing with that little one.” Di Roy commented, then held out his right prong towards them.

Ichigo turned to him with a fallen face. “Shut up. I’ll get to you in a minute.” He said in an annoyed voice.

Rukia’s eyes went wide, then she quickly jumped at the teen; landing on the man’s back and just as quickly held her hands over his ears tightly. He was surprised by the sudden action and swiftly tried to shake the woman off of him.

“R…Rukia! What the hell are you do…”

He was interrupted when one of the hammers on Di Roy’s prongs slammed down, emitting the same loud, high-pitched tone that he had used against the woman earlier. Ichigo slapped his hands over hers as, although it was muffled, the sound was still clearly loud enough that it still hurt.

He growled in pain as Rukia screamed out, unable to cover her own ears while trying to protect her friend’s. The tone lasted for nearly five seconds, until it began to die down enough that Ichigo could removed his hands off of hers.

She too let go of his ears, falling off his back and onto her knees on the ground as she held the sides of her head; gritting her teeth in agony as her head throbbed endlessly.

Ichigo turned around to her with a growl. “What the hell was that?! Are you okay, Rukia?!” he yelled through the slight ringing in his ears.

When she didn’t answer, he walked up and placed a hand on her shoulder, causing her to flinch from the unexpected contact. She looked up at him with a pained expression with tears in her ears.

“Ichigo, I don’t know if you can hear me after that, but his attacks somehow use sound. He blew out my eardrums, and I can’t hear a thing. You need to finish him quickly.” She advised, quite a bit louder that was necessary.

He growled a bit before turning to face the Arrancar. “Just great. And I didn’t bring my earmuffs.” He moaned loudly as he got into a stance.

Di Roy laughed evilly. “You’re lucky the little one saved ya, soul reaper. Too bad for her. She’s deaf at a door, now. So, I guess I get to have some fun with you now?” he taunted.

Ichigo scowled at him. “That’s a sick way to fight, Arrancar. I’ll end this, and make you eat those damn fork things of yours.” He threatened.

The Arrancar grinned madly. “We’ll see about that, soul reaper.”

** With Renji **

“What’s wrong, brother? Is that all you can handle?” Yylfordt mocked as he stood hunched over a few yards to the downed Lieutenant’s side.

Renji grunted as he lifted his head from the ground, blood running down the front of his face along his nose, his loose hair flopped down and concealing his left eye as he breathed heavily.

The skeletal Bankai was cracked in several segments, while some of them were missing entirely. Part of the left side of the snake’s head lower jaw was broken off, and there was a long, deep crack along the top of the skull; running from the top of the right eye socket and over the left.

The Lieutenant struggled as hard as he could to push himself back up to his feet. “I’m…still not…done yet.” He declared as he pulled a leg under him.

Yylfordt laughed manically at him. “You just don’t give up, do you brother? That’s just fine with me, I’ll go ahead and end it for you then.”

“Aw, now that’s not very nice, mister Arrancar.” A voice said to the left.

The released Arrancar turned his head to see a man wearing a green coat, and a green and white striped hat walking up to them. The man had his head down as he walked, so Yylfordt couldn’t see the man’s face.

“And just who are you, brother?” he inquired.

The man stopped in place and held a hand to the top of his hat. “Me? Why, I’m just a regular candy store owner. Perhaps you’ve heard of it?” he joshed.

Yylfordt scoffed heavily at him. “And why would a ‘candy store owner’ want to get involved in this. Quit screwing around and tell me your name.” he demanded.

The man raised his head a bit and peered at the Arrancar past the brim of his hat. “Kisuke Urahara, a pleasure to meet you. And you are?” he asked with a playful tone.

The Arrancar turned to him fully and lowered his head. “I am Yylfordt Granz, the 15th Arrancar. And you are foolish to jump in on a fight like this. But no matter, I’ll just kill you while brother here rests up, so that I can have some more fun with him when I’m done with you.” He said in a crazed voice.

Kisuke grinned a bit. “Is that right? Then by all means, you’re welcome to try.” He goaded.

Yylfordt narrowed his gaze with a growl. “You ‘want’ to die? Well fine, I’ll oblige you!” he yelled, then charged at the shop owner.


	30. Karakura Showdown, Part 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 30

**(Karakura Showdown, Part 2)**

** Urahara Shop, 5 Minutes Earlier **

Nel and Kisuke sat patiently, albeit barely, at the dining room table; him with a calm, yet cautious look on his face, and her with her head down a bit in worry. She had her hands resting on her legs and was constantly tapping her right index finger on her knee.

Kisuke could plainly see that the woman was very on edge, quite obviously because she was worried about her friends, especially Timothy. Of all the Arrancars that had appeared, the man just had to choose the Sexta Espada to fight against.

The woman sighed heavily for the billionth time as she dropped her head back against the wall with a dull thud. Kisuke watched her closely as he fanned himself slowly, the brim of his hat just barely concealing the man’s eyes.

He stopped waving his fan as he gave a light sigh himself. “I understand you’re concerned miss Nel, and I’m sure you would like to give them a hand, but Tim did ask you to trust him and stay here.” He pointed out.

Nel opened her eyes to him. “I know Kisuke, and I do trust him. But I doubt Tim understands fully just who it is he’s fighting. Grimmjow is not just any Arrancar, he is the Sexta Espada, and he can be quite merciless if he gets serious enough. I know that Tim is a strong person, but he’s simply no match for Grimmjow at his level. The only reason he’s still fighting is because Grimmjow hasn’t gotten serious yet, and is likely toying with him just for the fun of it.”

She then lifted her head fully to him. “And to be honest Kisuke, I don’t think the others can handle the fracción Grimmjow brought with him either.” She added.

Kisuke lowered his fan a bit with a sly smirk. “Are you doubting Captain Hitsugaya and his team?” he teased.

The woman sighed. “No, I’m not Kisuke. And please don’t take this the wrong way, but you soul reapers really underestimate how powerful the Arrancar Aizen created are. If you think that a Vasto Lorde is powerful, then there simply isn’t a word to describe the power levels of an Arrancar, much less an Espada. I didn’t want to say anything, lest the Captain and the others think I was insulting them, but from the amount of spiritual pressure I felt off of each of them, they simply don’t have a chance against the Arrancar.” She informed.

The shop owner dropped his fan to his lap. “I see. Well, perhaps it’s time I let you in on a little secret, miss Nel. It is true that it would be extremely unlikely that Captain Hitsugaya and the others would be able to defeat the Arrancar; however…” The man paused and held a finger up with a smile. “…that’s only while they are at their ‘current’ level.” He stated calmly.

Nel tilted her head a bit. “What do you mean, Kisuke?” she asked.

The man dropped his hand and resumed fanning himself. “I’m sure Captain Hitsugaya would be quite upset at me for telling you this, but I personally don’t see any harm in it. Have you noticed that, as it is right now, Tim’s overall power level is actually ‘higher’ than Captain Hitsugaya’s, who is a ‘Captain’, while he is a ‘Lieutenant’?” he inquired, earning a nod from her. “Well, that is because Captain Hitsugaya, as well as Renji and Lieutenant Matsumoto, currently have a spiritual limiter, known as a Gentei Reīn, placed on them. This seal greatly reduces the amount of spiritual pressure Captains and Lieutenants exert while in the world of the living. Are you still with me?”

Nel nodded again, allowing him to raise his finger again before continuing. “Captain Hitsugaya, Renji, and Lieutenant Matsumoto all have one of these limiters. Tim on the other hand, does not.” He stated, then dropped his hand again. “Because of the nature of his original mission that brought him here, a spiritual limiter was not placed on him. That is why, as it stands at the moment, Tim is currently the strongest person on Captain Hitsugaya’s team. That is the main reason why ‘he’ is the one fighting the Espada, Grimmjow. But you don’t need to worry, I’m sure either Captain Hitsugaya, or one of the Lieutenants, will request these limiters to be removed. Once that happens, you’ll find that the tables would have turned against the Espada and his fracción rather quickly.” He concluded.

The woman narrowed her gaze at him dangerously. “If that is the case Kisuke, then why is it that they are close to being defeated? Even the Espada are well aware that the soul society keeps a close watch on any soul reapers they have assigned on special missions, which this is. So, if the Captain and the others are at risk of being killed, why haven’t they gone ahead and removed those limiters?” she questioned.

Kisuke hid his mouth behind his fan. “This is not a simple matter, miss Nel. A Captain’s full spiritual pressure, even that of a Lieutenant, has enough power to cause damage to the area around them just by simply being nearby. So great care and consideration needs to be taken when deciding something like this. I’m sure you can understand.”

Nel scoffed at him. “And yet, they all could very well be dead before they even ‘make’ that decision. I don’t care what Tim said, and I know I promised I would stay here, but I’m not going to sit around any longer.” She said, then stood up swiftly. “I’m going to give them a hand, Kisuke. And I’m sure you know not to try and stop me.” She half threatened.

Urahara looked into her eyes to see that, although she would be very hesitant about it, the woman clearly meant what she said. Considering the last time that she was kept out of the fight, when she nearly shot Tessai with a Cero at point blank range, it was very clear that nothing, short of death, would stop her.

He stared at her for a moment longer, before snapping his fan shut to expose a wide grin on his face.

“Now why would I try to stop you from doing something I was just about to do myself, miss Nel?” he inquired in an amused tone.

She rose a brow at him curiously. “You intend to help as well?” she questioned.

The man stood up swiftly, grabbing his cane as he did. “Why miss Nel, do you believe a gentleman, such as myself, would sit by while a lovely lady like yourself goes out to fight? You wound me.” He teased.

Nel’s face dropped. “I don’t know how Yoruichi can stand you, Kisuke. But it doesn’t matter. I’m going to go help Tim.” she stated, turning towards the door.

“Actually, miss Nel…” Kisuke started, causing her to stop and turn back to him. “…Tim is fine at the moment, it’s Captain Hitsugaya and the others who will need the most assistance. So, I strongly suggest you give them a hand first. I will go assist Renji, while you help Captain Hitsugaya. It would seem that Ichigo is on his way as well, and is currently heading towards Rukia’s location.” He advised.

Her eyes widened a fraction. “Are you sure that is a good idea, Kisuke? I don’t think the Captain would be very happy to see me out of the shop and helping him.” She warned.

Kisuke nodded firmly at her. “That is true, however, helping him directly would not only save his life, but it would also show him that you are willing to fight for us, even against those who used to be your comrades. Once we have helped Renji and Captain Hitsugaya, I can go assist Lieutenant Matsumoto, while you help Tim. Sound fair?” he proposed.

Nel sighed heavily and closed eyes, but finally agreed. “Alright, then I’ll go help the Captain first. But I still think it’s a bad idea, Kisuke.” She said defeatedly.

The shop owner held the hand holding his cane towards the door. “After you, miss Nel.” He offered with a grin.

She nodded again, then turned and began walking out the door.

** With Nelliel and Toshiro, Present **

Shawlong hit a wall on the side of a large building with a loud grunt, creating an indent in the brickwork, but not going through it. Before he even had time to recover, the air buzzed in front of him as Nel appeared with her fist held back.

She threw her fist forward, hitting the man in the chest and sending him through the wall into an empty office, his body crashing into a desk inside and snapping it in two as he fell to the floor. The air buzzed again as Nel grabbed the 11th Arrancar’s ankle and threw him back out the way he came in.

He flew head over heel through the air several hundred feet, until Nel again reappeared, this time above him, and sent another fist into the man’s torso. The punch changed the man’s flight path and sent him straight down to the ground at near subsonic speed.

As his body flew downwards, Toshiro watched the entire ordeal with wide eyes on a nearby rooftop as he held his zanpakutō at his side. He knew that the Espada were tough, and not something to take lightly; but to actually see one fighting, and doing so completely unarmed, took it to a whole new level of disbelief.

Not five minutes ago, he was having extreme difficulty fighting the Arrancar. Even in his Bankai, he could barely put so much as a scratch on the man. Yet, here was Nel, fighting the same person he had so much trouble with, and she was ‘unarmed’.

The woman was simply having no trouble in taking the fight to the man with only her fists as her weapons. And she had yet to even use any of her hollow abilities, besides sonído to get to him quickly.

Nel buzzed into place next to the small crater Shawlong’s body had created, with him lying prone and face down in the center. She glared at the man with a calm, yet very serious look in her eyes.

“I’m sure you can now see that fighting me is futile, Shawlong. You should know better than judge your opponent by whether or not that person has a zanpakutō. In case you were not aware Koufang, each Espada is uniquely proficient in a certain aspect of combat. Zommari has the fastest, continuous sonído, Yammy is the strongest in terms of raw power, and Ulquiorra possesses the best self-healing capabilities.” she informed, then narrowed her gaze a bit. “And mine was hand-to-hand combat. Out of all the Espada, no one was more proficient at unarmed combat than me.”

She began walking down into the crater as Shawlong started moving to get back up to his feet. “To put it simply Shawlong, you stood more of a chance against me while I had my zanpakutō.” She stated, before reaching down and grabbing the man at the base of the tail that protruded from his mask.

The woman lifted him up to her face, where she glared into his eyes. “I will give you this one last chance, Shawlong. Take your friends and leave. I do not wish to kill you, but you are greatly mistaken if you believe that I won’t. So, tell me, will you submit and leave?” she questioned.

Shawlong opened his eyes to her and growled. “I’m afraid…that’s not possible. I have been given a mission, and I would rather die, than to fail it.” He declared firmly.

Nel’s shoulders dropped a bit with a depressed sigh. “Then I am sorry for this, Shawlong.” She returned in a sad voice.

She then let get of the man’s head-tail, and as he dropped back down to the ground, she delivered a powerful punch to his stomach; sending the man flying back several feet over the ground. But Nel was already there ahead of him, swinging her leg under her and kicking him back up into the sky.

Shawlong grunted in pain as his body flew hundreds of feet into the air, only for it to be sent another direction by yet another swift kick from Nel. He continued to fly through the air until Nel again sent him going another direction.

Toshiro, now far overhead, watched as the woman’s assault continued on and on. Every two or three times she kicked, or hit the Arrancar, she would either send him into a building, or back down onto the ground before repeating the whole process.

In his mind, although he was extremely loath to admit it, he knew that with his powers restrained like they were, he stood zero chance to ever come out on top if he and Nel got into a fight with one another.

And even though he didn’t want to admit this either, he was actually a bit relieved that the woman was no longer fighting for Aizen. A small part of him was actually hoping that Timothy was right, and that she was truly fighting for them now.

The Captain’s eyes suddenly widened when Shawlong’s body started flying right at him. He was just about to jump out of the way, but Nel quickly buzzed into place in front of him and delivered a swift punch that sent the Arrancar back down to earth.

Toshiro’s eyes followed the man’s body to the ground as Nel turned her head to look at him. “Sorry about that, Captain. I didn’t see you there until after I hit him.” She offered with a kind voice.

He turned back to her with a firm face. “Don’t worry about it. Just hurry up and finish this so we can help the others.” He instructed.

Nel took a deep breath, but nodded. “I was hoping to avoid killing him, but I guess I don’t have a choice.” She said in defeat, then vanished.

Toshiro looked down to see that the woman was now standing next to Shawlong’s prone body. She bent down and once again picked the man up by the tail, before vanishing again and reappearing several feet in the air.

She gave the Arrancar a pitiful look. “I am sorry about this, Shawlong. I may not have a choice in killing you…” she started, then rose her free hand in front of his sternum. She then began charging a Cero in the palm of her hand, holding the mass of energy mere inches from the man’s uniform. “…but I can at least ensure that it is quick and painless for you. Is there anything you would like to say before this ends?” she offered.

Shawlong groaned as he rolled his eyes up to her, then started chuckling. “You fight quite well, Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck. Truly a very competent warrior in your own right. But my death would do nothing for you. Lord Aizen’s plans cannot be stopped, no matter what you, and your soul reaper friends do. Becoming a traitor has done nothing for you, except ensure your own death, by Aizen himself.” He hissed dangerously.

Nel narrowed her glare at him. “I do not care if I live or die, Shawlong; I will be content with either, because I am fighting for what ‘I’ believe to be right, just like you.” She returned. “Cero.”

The violet gathering of energy in her hand shot out in a large, and wide beam as it tore through the man’s chest, continuing on into the empty sky beyond. As the beam slowly vanished, her and Toshiro looked to see that Shawlong now possessed a one-foot-wide hole that went right through him.

The 11th Arrancar’s eyes were wide open in shock, until they swiftly closed as his head and body went limp in her hand. Using a quick burst of sonído, she came to stand on a nearby rooftop, where she gently laid the man’s body down on the floor.

She stood back up and spared a last glance at the fallen Arrancar with a bit of remorse. “I am sorry for this, Shawlong Koufang. Rest peacefully now, and hope that your friends will not meet the same fate as you have.” She offered.

Toshiro flashed in next to her and looked down at the body. “It’s unfortunate that you were the one to kill him. If I had done so, his soul would have been purified, and he would have gone on to the soul society.” He stated.

Nel dropped her head and shook it gently. “No Captain, it wouldn’t.” she corrected.

The Captain looked at her with a raised brow. “What do you mean?” he questioned.

She looked at him with sorrow. “You may purify a regular hollow or Menos when you kill them, but that is not the case with Arrancar. We are not of natural creation, so our souls cannot be purified. If you were to kill me right now, my soul would simply vanish from all existence, just as his has. Shawlong Koufang is gone, forever.” She said with a sad voice.

Toshiro lowered his stare a bit. “I see. That’s unfortunate, but we still have a job to do, so let’s hurry and help the others.”

The woman nodded firmly. “I agree. I’ll go give Tim a hand, and I think it would be wise if you gave your Lieutenant some help as well. Judging by her spiritual pressure, she’s not fairing too well with her opponent.” She observed.

The Captain huffed, then turned away. “I still don’t trust you fully yet, Nel; but as long as you are willing to help us defeat these Arrancar, I’ll let you be…for now.” He stated, then vanished.

Nel sighed heavily as she stared at the spot he was just at. “I guess I can’t really ask for anything better at the moment, but it is better than nothing.” she commented, then vanished herself.

** With Renji and Kisuke **

A loud screeching sound filled the air as a sharp, red wave of dense energy flew across the ground, hitting the bull-like Arrancar in the shoulder, cancelling out his charge and pushing him back the way he came.

The Arrancar came to a stop and glared at the man in front of him with a growl. “Damn you, and that atrocious zanpakutō of yours!” he yelled in anger.

The hatted man placed a hand on top of his hat with a sly grin. “Aw, come now. There’s no need to be so hostile, mister Arrancar. Sure, we may be enemies, but is it really necessary to call Benihime ‘atrocious’? That’s just simply not nice.” He mocked teasingly.

Yylfordt growled louder as he tensed his body in fury. “You shut your mouth, brother! Your attacks are nothing more than a nuisance, they have little effect on me! As you have just seen, all your attack did was stop my charge; it did absolutely nothing to actually ‘harm’ me!” he declared.

Kisuke raised his head a bit, now with a smile. “Is that so? Well then, if that’s the case, then perhaps I should put a little more effort into it. Kamisori, Benihime!” he yelled as he swung his zanpakutō out in front of him, creating a red wave of energy.

Yylfordt leaned forward as he lowered his head to take the attack frontally. But his brows rose in shock when Kisuke then swung his sword up, the red wave suddenly turning and shooting up into the sky.

When the wave was nearly fifty feet in the air, the shop owned then swung back down, causing the wave to change directions again, now sailing straight down towards the Arrancar’s fully exposed back.

The wave hit the man midback and sent him down to the ground with a loud grunt. The force of his body hitting the asphalt of the street caused it to crack, with the cracks spreading outwards in a large circle.

Kisuke brought his hand down off his hat and grabbed the hilt of his zanpakutō with both hands, still smiling profoundly.

“Is that good enough for you, mister Arrancar? If not, I’d be happy to show you something better.” He taunted.

Yylfordt lifted himself from the ground and snarled at the man. “You dare to mock me, brother?! Just who the hell do you think you are?! If you think you can stand a chance against me, think again!” he yelled.

The man instantly vanished, leaving a large trail of dust behind, before reappearing several feet closer as he yet again charged head on at the show owner. Kisuke simply stood there as his opponent dove right at him at breakneck speed.

He then grinned more, before letting go of the hilt of his zanpakutō with his left hand, lowering the blade to his side as he raised the left hand towards the incoming Arrancar. The man then grabbed onto one of the long horns on the top of the Arrancar’s mask.

Kisuke was pushed back as his feet dragged against the asphalt nearly ten feet. His body came to a stop, forcing the Arrancar to do the same. The whole time, Kisuke’s composure had never broken.

Yylfordt stared wide eyed at the man in complete shock. Not only was the annoying man completely unharmed, but the man had managed to successfully stop his charge with his bare hand.

“What?!” he said in a low voice.

Kisuke’s smile then dropped to a serious glare. “You should head on home, mister Arrancar. As I’m sure you can now see, it’s ‘your’ attacks that have no effect. You cannot possibly hope to stand up to me with the amount of power you possess. Such an action would be completely pointless. So, will you submit?” he questioned.

Yylfordt’s eyes then clouded over with pure rage as he yelled out at the man. “Don’t think that because you managed to stop my charge like that, that you can defeat me, brother! I’ll kill you where you stand!”

The shop owner narrowed his stare. “You just don’t get it, do you?” he inquired.

The man swiftly swung up with his zanpakutō, not only hitting Yylfordt in the chest, but also sending out another red wave that carried the Arrancar away as it flew. The fracción was pushed into, and through the wall of a nearby building.

Kisuke looked at the large hole the attack had created with a dangerous glare. “There is absolutely zero chance that you could ever defeat me. Leave, or die.” He hissed lowly.

As if in response, Yylfordt swiftly charged out from the hole in the building at the shop keeper with a loud yell. He had his head down with his horns positioned to run the man through.

The former Captain sighed as he lowered his head and placed a hand on top of his hat. “I tried.” He said in a low and defeated voice, then held his zanpakutō up in front of him. “Cry, Benihime.”

A broad, red, hexagonal barrier then appeared right in front of the man’s zanpakutō. Yylfordt’s two horns collided with the shield, completely stopping him in place without moving either the shield, or Urahara an inch.

Kisuke looked the Arrancar in the eyes to see complete shock in his eyes. “H…How?!”

“Shred, Benihime.” Kisuke commanded.

The shield then began to glow a brighter red, before several dozen bolts of red energy shot out from the front surface of the barrier. Yylfordt was unable to react as the numerous energy bolts that struck him exploded upon contact.

The volley of energy bolts seemed endless as the Arrancar’s body was steadily pushed back with each successive hit. By the time the barrage had finished, the 15th Arrancar’s body was now several yards away.

Kisuke diminished his barrier and began slowly walking towards the downed fracción. “This fight is over, mister Arrancar. If you submit now, I’ll allow you to return home in one piece. But if you persist in fighting me any further, I’m afraid I’ll have no choice but to eliminate you.” He warned as he came to within twenty feet of the man.

Yylfordt laid there completely sprawled out on the ground and Kisuke could see that the man was bleeding in several spots; both of his horns were now broken off, and pieces of his mask were missing, exposing patches of hair and skin.

The Arrancar raised his head to the man and snarled. “I am…not done…brother! You will die…for doing this…to me!” he declared loudly between breaths.

Urahara looked down at the man with a calm demeaner. “So, you still wish to continue fighting, mister Arrancar? Well, I’m afraid that I cannot give you that chance. You should have taken my offer to return to Hueco Mundo, but I guess this is to be expected.” He said lowly, holding his zanpakutō’s point above the man’s hollow hole. “I apologize that it has to end this way, but you brought this upon yourself. My condolences, Yylfordt Granz.” He concluded.

The man then stabbed the Arrancar just above his hollow hole, before swiftly swiping down and splitting the hole in two. Yylfordt gave a last yell of agony, before his eyes rolled back and his head dropped back down to the ground.

Kisuke withdrew his blade from the man’s body, allowing it to returned to its sealed state, before returning it to the bottom end of his cane. Dropping his hands to his sides, he spared a last, pitiful glance at his fallen opponent, before turning to look at a still recovering Renji.

“Are you alright, Renji?” he inquired.

The Lieutenant nodded with a smirk. “Yeah, I’m good for now. Thanks for the help. So, what, got bored of tending to the customers you never have?” he teased.

Kisuke returned the smirk with a sly grin as he pulled his fan from his inside pocket and began fanning himself.

“My dear Renji, must you be so cruel?” he teased.

Renji’s scoffed at his remark. “Just pointing out the truth here.” He returned. His face then lit up with wide eyes. “Wait a minute, if you’re here, then where’s Nel?”

Urahara smiled widely. “She ‘was’ giving Captain Hitsugaya a hand in his fight, but I’m sure that by now she is on her way to assist Tim. Which is where ‘we’ should be heading right about now. Can you stand, or do you need some help yourself?”

The Lieutenant chuckled lightly before giving the man a wide grin. “Don’t go counting me out just yet, Kisuke. I may be a bit beat up, but I still got some fight let in me.” He declared as he stood up. “Let’s go give the runt a little break for a bit.” He mocked.

Kisuke chuckled lowly before they both vanished with shunpo.

****

** With Ikkaku  **

The 3rd seat of Squad 11 stood in the empty street hunched over a bit, his breathing heavy and labored, as he held the segmented form of Hōzukimaru. He held the bladed section in his left hand, and the blunt end with his right.

The bottom portion of his hakama was ripped off, while the upper portion was in no better shape. The entire right side of his kosode was missing, and the left half was barely sitting on the man’s bleeding shoulder. Both of his waraji were long gone.

His opponent, who was standing proudly a few yards in front of him, was in a far better shape than the officer was. Besides a couple scratches to any exposed skin, and a few small tears in his uniform, he was relatively unscathed.

Black, sooty smoke bellowed out of the small hole on the Arrancar’s right shoulder plate as his right hand was glowing red with flames dancing around over it. He had the hand held back just a bit as he stood in place, waiting for Ikkaku’s next attack.

Edrad had learned fairly quickly that with the unique makeup of the 3rd seat’s Shikai, attacking the man directly would normally result in him getting countered from an odd angle. Instead, it was best to let the officer attack, then counter himself with his Volcánica.

“What’s wrong, Madarame? It looks like you’re quite tired. Have you had enough already?” Edrad taunted.

Ikkaku took two quick pants, then grinned. “I’m just getting warmed up, my friend. So, don’t be so quick to count me out, I’ve still got plenty left to go.”

Edrad chortled loudly. “That’s good. Then let’s continue.”

The officer gave a throaty laugh. “With pleasure.” He returned, then launched another assault on the larger man.

The Arrancar narrowed his stare. _‘Here comes another one of his low attacks to draw me down, then followed by another to hit me from above. Predictable.’_ He thought.

The brief instant before Ikkaku swung out at the man, he took a quick step back and to the side, letting the officer’s attack hit nothing but empty air. Using the already charged attack in his right arm, he then swung out at the spot he knew his opponent would go next.

It worked out perfectly. The larger man’s fist hit Ikkaku in his left flank as he was attempting to swing down. The explosive, fiery blast from Edrad’s Volcánica sent the 3rd seat back the way he came.

Ikkaku’s damaged body flew through the air several feet until he finally landed back down on the ground, rolling along it a few yards further before coming to a complete stop, lying face down on the pavement.

Edrad buzzed up next to him and stared down at the, now badly burned, man. The officers kosode was now completely gone, and his hakama was barely hanging on to the man’s waist. The chain between the bladed and mid-sections was broken, with the mid-section hanging by the chain of the butt-end.

“You have fought well, Madarame. You are truly a skilled warrior, and you clearly possess a great amount of honor during battle. That is why I am giving you a chance to admit defeat, and return home. Whether or not you choose to believe it, there is no shame in doing so.” Edrad offered calmly.

Ikkaku, without lifting his head, grinned and let out a small chuckle. “You’re a hell of a lot stronger than I pegged you for, my friend.” He stated, then began pushing himself up to his hands and knees. He then lifted his head to the Arrancar with a very pleased grin. “It appears that if I leave things the way they are, I’ll really end up dying.” He added.

The officer finally managed to push himself up to his feet, a bit hunched over, and gave the blunt-end of his zanpakutō a flick. The midsection instantly retracted into the back-end, returning to a straight pole.

“I guess I really don’t have a choice here. I really don’t want to use this here, but considering that everyone else is far away at the moment, I doubt that they would notice anything. So, watch closely my friend, and make sure you don’t tell anyone you saw this.” Ikkaku instructed.

He then slapped the back end of the bladed section to the top of the other half of his weapon in front of him.

“Bankai!” he hollered.

Edrad quickly took two steps back with eyes wide in shock as Ikkaku’s body was surrounded by a vortex of wind and dust. The vortex completely obstructed the Arrancar’s view of the man as the whirlwind grew wider and taller in front of him.

He watched as two red bolts of energy in the shape of dragons flew out from the sides of the vortex; flying high to the top of the whirlwind before flying down inside the center of it.

Not two seconds later, the whirlwind began to die down, growing smaller and smaller with each passing second, until it completely dissipated; Edrad’s eyes growing a bit wider when he looked at the man that was standing in the center of it.

You’re going to use…Bankai?!” he asked in shock.

Ikkaku gave the man a toothy grin. “That’s right, my friend. Bankai.” He answered.

Edrad looked closely at his opponent’s new appearance. Although the man’s clothes were unchanged, his weapon was a completely different story.

In his right hand, he held a very large spade-like weapon, with a blade that spanned over two feet in width. In his left, was a bladed weapon similar to the one in his Shikai state. At head of each weapon was a long red tassel of hair.

Both weapons possessed a large pummel that seemed to act like a counter-balance to make the weapons even in weight. At the back of each pommel was a long, very thick chain that connected to a center piece that hovered just behind the man’s head.

The center piece looked very much like an axe blade, a cloth wrapped handle on the blunt side of the weapon between the chains. On the broad side of the centerpiece, was a long etching of a Chinese dragon that ran from one end of the blade to the other.

“Ryūmon Hōzukimaru.” Ikkaku said loud and proud, twirling the weapons in his hands around a few times before pointing them both at the Arrancar.

Edrad relaxed his face a bit with a very slight grin. “An impressive display, I’ll admit. But I doubt that it will be enough to save you.” He informed, although he was actually sweating a bit.

Ikkaku snickered darkly. “Save the flattery. I haven’t released enough spiritual pressure yet for you to be truly impressed, but you better believe me pal, it’s coming. I’ll let you be the judge on whether it’s effective or not…” He then charged at the man with his left weapon held up high. “…after I use it to cut off your ugly head!” he yelled as he swung down.

The larger man lightly gasped before holding his arm up to block the attack. But his eyes went wide as sauces when Ikkaku’s blade simply went right through the man’s arms, even while it was fully charged for another attack.

Before he could react, Ikkaku thrusted forward with his left weapon, hitting him in the chest where the blade sunk deep into his skin. Luckily, his Hierro managed to hold just enough to prevent the weapon from going clean through him.

He was launched off his feet and sent flying into the air at a high speed; Ikkaku leaped from the ground as well to follow the man. The Arrancar was able to recover quickly enough, where he charged the Volcánica in his left arm and threw his fist out to catch the officer before he could attack again.

A massive blast of fire shot out from the man’s fist, sailing straight at the incoming 3rd seat. Ikkaku reversed his grip on his right weapon, throwing it like a spear at the incoming inferno.

Edrad gasped loudly when the spaded weapon cut right through the attack, and continued on until it sailed through the pauldron on his right shoulder, slicing the large piece clean off the man’s shoulder.

Ikkaku then yanked back with his right weapon, pulling the chain taught, and forcing the spade-like half of his zanpakutō back to him. He caught the weapon in his right hand and held both of them at his sides as the mid-section returned to its position behind his head.

He then dropped both weapons and grabbed the middle piece by the handle before charging at the larger man. Edrad kept taking step after step back as the officer twisted the middle weapon side to side, causing the attached weapon to fly by in random directions.

The man attacked the Arrancar nearly a dozen times, slashing him twice on the legs, and once on the left arm. After his last attack, Ikkaku jumped back several yards, tossing the middle blade up and catching the two attached weapons again before returning to a ready stance; the middle piece again returning to its position above him.

The Arrancar looked at him with complete shock and horror. _‘That’s impossible! He cut through my Volcánica not once, but twice! And rendered my right arm unusable! Not only that, he managed to go right through my strengthened Hierro several times!’_ he panicked.

The 3rd seat chuckled darkly at the larger man. “What’s wrong? Already too much for ya? I haven’t even gotten started yet, pal.” He taunted.

Edrad looked down at the man’s weapons to see that both of them had considerable amounts of the blades chipped off. Both of them also had long cracks that spread out from the chipped areas all over the weapons.

_‘His Bankai is strong, there’s no denying that; but it is also very weak in its durability. That makes him fearless and smart. He knows his Bankai won’t last long in a fight, so he’s going all out to finish this quickly, before that power breaks on him.’_ He observed mentally, then looked up to see that Ikkaku now had a few cuts and slashes on his own body, obviously self-inflicted.

_‘A Bankai is nothing more than raw power, and it’s only as good as the one who wields it. He clearly hasn’t possessed his Bankai for very long, as he’s also causing harm to himself while using it. That means this could go either way. Either he’ll cut me to pieces and win, or he’ll cut himself up and lose. And that’s only if his Bankai lasts that long. If he wants a fight for raw power, then I will give it to him. I’ll destroy his Bankai, and put an end to this before he gets the chance to cut me up.”_ He concluded.

But something then donned on him that caused him to raise a brow in surprise. _‘Wait…his spiritual pressure…it’s much higher than it was before. Something’s not right.’_

“It seems you pulled a fast one on me, Madarame. I really didn’t expect you to have a Bankai, and I ‘truly’ am impressed with its power. But I doubt that power will last long. After only a few attacks, your blades are already starting to fall apart.” He stated cautiously.

Ikkaku chuckled again. “Yeah, my Bankai is always weak while Hōzukimaru’s not fully in it yet. He’s a lazy brute, and he’s usually asleep when I use my Bankai. The only way I can force him to wake up is by cutting up my enemy, or letting him cut ‘me’ up.” He informed.

He then raised his right weapon and tapped the blade’s tip against the dragon etching on the center piece. This was when Edrad noticed that the etching was glowing a bright red; nearly the entire emblem lit up from tail to neck.

“I can monitor his progress by watching the dragon slowly light up on the blade. That’s when he’s fully awake, and I can fight at full force.”

He lowered his right weapon and brought the blade of his left weapon up to rest it against the top of his forearm.

“And when that happens, I can start cutting you up like a turkey on a platter!” he yelled as he dragged the blade against his arms, cutting open a long gash.

When he did, Edrad’s eyes went wide open as the remainder of the dragon emblem lit up. Ikkaku’s spiritual pressure then shot through the roof, nearly threatening to push Edrad back from the force.

Ikkaku got into a ready stance and gave his opponent a wicked smile. “So, are you ready for the big one?” he asked tauntingly.

His opponent gave him a pleased smile. “I recall saying that I would tell you my name if I found you worthy. You have proven yourself to be quite a formidable opponent. You have earned my full respect, so allow me to tell you my name. I am Arrancar #13, Edrad Liones,” he greeted finally.

Edrad then charged the Volcánica in his left arm with everything he had, then got into his own stance, returning the man’s grin with his own.

“Let’s finish this, once and for all, Ikkaku Madarame.”

The officer snickered loud and long. “Oh yeah, let’s do this, Edrad Liones.”

The two warriors charged at each other at full speed; Edrad with his left fist held back, and Ikkaku with his right weapon back and his left weapon held behind to slash forward.

Edrad threw his fist forward as Ikkaku swung with his left blade. The blade connected with the Arrancar’s fist, the entire blade shattering as it cancelled out Edrad’s Volcánica, before thrusting forward with his spaded weapon.

The two men sailed past each other several feet, before coming to a stop with their backs facing each other. The weapon in Ikkaku’s right hand, just like his left one, had completely shattered; leaving the officer with only the middle piece left.

That is, until it, too, began quickly cracking in random places. The cracks spread throughout the entire surface, before the red hue on the dragon emblem died out and the entire weapon shattered on its own; leaving the man holding the two broken handles with the large chains hanging loosely from the pommels.

He slowly stood straight, though a bit hunched over, and turned to see Edrad standing tall and looking over his shoulder at the man.

“Ikkaku Madarame…you fought with honor…I am glad…you gave me…your name.” he stated.

The large man’s body then fell from the sky, his torso separating from his hip as it fell down to the ground below. Ikkaku watched as it did, then turned back front when he heard a wisp sound in front of him to see Yumichika standing there.

“So, you decided to use your Bankai. So, I assume that means you had a wonderful battle?” he inquired with a smile.

Ikkaku grinned madly at him as he chuckled. “Damn right, it was. I gotta hand it to the guy, his power was something else. I just hope Tim…”

He was unable to finish, as his body suddenly felt very weak and he began to fall towards the ground. But a swift step of shunpo, and Yumichika had the man’s arms draped over his shoulder and was holding him up.

The 5th seat looked down to see his friend’s zanpakutō reseal itself back into sword form in the man’s right hand, with the weapon’s scabbard in his left. He looked back at the man and offered a smile.

“I think we should call it for now and let Tim have his own fun. It wouldn’t be fair to our friend if you had all of the fun now, Ikkaku. Why don’t we just stand by and watch. I’m sure the Captain would love to hear about his new Bankai. Don’t you agree?” the 5th seat proposed.

Ikkaku raised his head to his friend with a wide smile. “Yeah, that’s a good point. Besides, I’m a little interested in the guy’s Bankai myself.” He returned.

Yumichika smiled back, then carried the man away in a wisp of shunpo.

** With Ichigo and Rukia **

A transparent, high-pitched wave of sound tore through the wall of the three-story warehouse that Ichigo and Rukia were currently fighting Di Roy in; the teen wisping away at the last second and reappearing above the Arrancar’s head.

The young man growled as he swung his cleaver-like zanpakutō down on the released Arrancar’s head. But Di Roy was quick to react, raising his right ‘arm’ up and catching the teen’s blade on the side of the prong.

Di Roy glared at the man with deep annoyance. “Damn you! Quit moving around and hold still!” he sneered.

Ichigo scowled back as he tried to push back on the man. “Like hell! I told you that I’m gonna put an end to you!”

The Arrancar gave him a wide grin. “Ha! I’d like to see you try, soul reaper. You’re nothing more than an annoyance at this point, so allow ‘me’ to end it.” He returned.

He then swung his other arm up at the teen, hitting the man’s side with the flat side of his fork. The attack knocked Ichigo back, sending him flying through a second story window just as Rukia appeared right behind the Arrancar.

“Some no mai, Tsukishiro!” she called out.

Di Roy growled in anger as he looked down to see the ground in a large circle around him begin to freeze. He quickly jumped out of the area a brief instant before Rukia’s pillar of solid ice shot up through the roof of the building and into the sky.

“Damn you!” Di Roy hissed as he landed on his feet.

He turned to face her and pointed one of his forks at her. “Getsuga Tenshou!” a voice growled from above, causing the Arrancar to swiftly look up.

His eyes widened a bit when a saw a familiar, blade-like wave of energy crashing through the roof towards him. But a quick buzz of sonído allowed him to leave the area before the attack crashed down on the ground where he once stood.

Di Roy looked at the hole the attack had made to see Ichigo flying through it with his back held above his head to swing down. He pointed his right fork at him, while pointing the left at Rukia, the hammers on both of them slamming down.

Two powerful waves of sound erupted from the tips of the forks, flying straight towards his intended targets. Rukia flashed away just before the attack meant for her hit, but Ichigo was unprepared for it.

The attack caught him in the chest and sent him flying through a structural girder that helped support the roof of the building, before colliding with the railing of a third-floor walkway and falling back down to the ground.

“That’ll teach you, soul reaper!” Di Roy sneered.

Tsugi no mai, Hakuren!” a feminine voice chanted from behind.

Di Roy knew what followed those words, so he didn’t even spare a glance behind him before he darted to the side. But it was a split second too late, as the beam of ice from the woman’s attack caught his right foot mid-stride and locked him in place.

He turned around and growled loudly. “Damn it! This is getting very annoying!” he yelled.

The Arrancar pointed a fork at the ice that trapped his foot, and slammed the hammer down. The waves of sound hit the ice, the pulsating vibrations causing the ice the quickly shatter and allow the man to free his limb.

He then turned to face the two soul reapers who were now standing side by side. “I’ve grown tired of this bullshit!” he declared, then held his left fork out wide to his side. “Since you won’t stop moving around so much, I’ll make you unable to move effectively!” he added.

Rukia and Ichigo’s eyes widened as the Arrancar’s left fork suddenly started growing in length. Before, it was roughly three feet in length; but now, it was reaching out to nearly five by the time it stopped its growth.

Di Roy grinned madly, his serrated teeth fully exposed as he snickered darkly. “Let’s see you try to move around with this.” He said, then slapped the hammer down on his left fork.

The two soul reapers quickly covered their ears, clearly expecting another one of the Arrancar’s high-pitched sound attacks. But it surprised them both when instead of a high-pitched and very loud noise, they heard a very low, and dull vibrating sound.

What was odd though, was that the vibrations of the sound seemed to course through their bodies, like a mild massage from the inside. They didn’t feel any pain or discomfort, it just felt exceedingly weird.

“What the hell?” Ichigo barked out.

Rukia narrowed her gaze at Di Roy. “Ichigo…if you can still hear me, we need to eliminate him quickly. I don’t like this odd feeling his sound is causing, and I’m sure it’s gotta be doing something. Keep him distracted, I’ll try to get around behind him again and lock him down with a kidō.” She instructed, then looked at him for a response.

The teen nodded, then turned back to Di Roy. “Got it.” He answered, then flashed away.

The room was instantly filled with the dull sound of something hitting a large piece of metal. Rukia just happened to turn at the right time, and her eyes went wide at the form of Ichigo now plastered against one of the metal support beams.

Ichigo groaned in pain before he took a single step back and fell down on his rear, a very large, and red lump on his forehead. He then reached up and started rubbing his head furiously to try and soothe the pain.

Rukia blinked once, then twice, before she finally recovered from her shock enough to speak. “Uh…Ichigo…did you just…run into that beam using shunpo?” she inquired.

The teen then tried to get back up to his feet, but the instant he did, he started to wobble around before falling right back down on his butt. He shook his head a few times and rubbed it even more, as if trying to clear it.

“What the hell is going on?! I can’t stand up without falling the hell back down!” he announced.

Di Roy then started laughing crazily. “What’s wrong, soul reaper? Having trouble with your balance?” he questioned, gaining the teens attention. He then presented his elongated left fork. “Didn’t you know? The longer a tuning fork is, the slower the tines move. And the slower the tines move, the lower the sound, and the more dense the vibrations. And with my fork now as long as it is, the vibrations it creates is enough to throw off your equilibrium. Meaning that you can’t maintain your balance while trying to walk, or even stand up. Guess that means no more jumping around for you, huh?” he informed, then laughed evilly.

Ichigo scowled deeply. “Damn you! That’s cheating!” he accused.

The Arrancar only laughed more at his remark. “Who ever said a fight was supposed to be fair? The only purpose of a fight is to kill your opponent, and as long as you come out on top, it doesn’t matter how you fight. And now that I’ve managed to keep you from jumping around, I can kill you.” He stated, then pointed his right fork at him. “Die, soul reaper.”

“Ichigo!” Rukia yelled, then tried to take a step forward.

But she staggered quickly, loosing her balance and collapsing down to the ground. She then looked back up to see the hammer of Di Roy’s right fork slam down, creating a loud, high-pitched wave of sound that flew straight towards her now helpless friend.

“Ichigo!” she yelled again.

Ichigo scowled heavily at the incoming attack. _‘No choice!’_ he concluded.

He then raised his hand to his face, quickly pulling down in front of it where his hollow mask suddenly appeared. He then quickly swung out towards the sound wave with impressive force.

“Getsuga Tenshou!” he growled, sending, not a blue wave, but instead a black wave of spirit energy out.

The two attacks collided with each other, Ichigo’s attack cutting straight through it and continuing on towards where Di Roy was standing. The Arrancar’s eyes went wide before he quickly used sonído to move out of the way.

He then looked at the teen with shock. “What the hell?! A hollow mask?! How the hell is that possible?! Soul reapers can’t have hollow masks!” he yelled.

Ichigo then managed to get to his feet. The sudden increase in his spiritual pressure from donning his hollow mask proved to be just enough to clear his head and cancel out the residual sound vibrations around him.

Rukia also found that she could stand back up again without swaying and falling over. She quickly held a hand out towards Di Roy while the man was distracted looking at her younger friend.

“Bakudō #61, Rikujōkōrō!” she chanted.

Di Roy turned to face and stop her, but it was already too late. Six blades of yellow spirit energy suddenly appeared all around him before swiftly stabbing him through, locking the man in place and completely unable to move.

The man struggled fruitlessly against his restraints for a moment, before turning back to Ichigo. “How the hell is that possible?! There’s no way you can have a hollow mask! And how is it my attack is no longer affecting you two?!” he demanded.

**“That’s very simple, Di Roy…”** an odd, and very sinister voice said from behind him. Di Roy glanced over his shoulder to see the teenage soul reaper standing right behind him and glaring at him with his golden, sinister eyes. **“The only thing that can stop sound waves is something that has even more powerful waves of pressure. For someone who uses sound waves to attack, this should be something you already know. The spiritual pressure of my hollowfied Getsuga Tenshou was more than enough to cancel out your attacks. Now, it’s time to end this.”** Ichigo announced as he narrowed his deathly gaze at the man.

He then held his zanpakutō high above his head, glaring dangerously at the now defenseless Arrancar. Di Roy glared right back, but with a look of terror as he knew that there was nothing he could do.

**“Getsuga Tenshou!”** the teen yelled as he swung down.

A large, and very powerful black wave of spirit energy shot out from the teen’s blade and sailed right at the Arrancar’s fully exposed back. Di Roy yelled out in fear as the wave struck him full on, exploding in the air.

Ichigo watched for a moment before waving his hand past his face and causing the mask on his face to diminish and vanish. Rukia then appeared at his side as she, too, looked at the cloud of dust and debris his attack had caused.

She looked at him with a raised brow. “Do you think you got him?” she inquired.

The teen didn’t answer, he kept staring at the dust cloud as he waited for it to dissipate. But luckily, he didn’t have to wait long. Both of them looked closely into the cloud as a lone figure slowly came into focus.

Ichigo scowled heavily as Di Roy’s body came into view. “Damn. How much does it take to defeat this guy?” he hissed as he brought his hand back up to redon his mask.

But Rukia turned to him and stopped his hand. “Wait Ichigo.” She instructed, then turned back to the Arrancar.

The teen rose a brow at her, then looked back as well. Both brows rose in surprise when he saw that Di Roy’s entire left arm was gone, and the top tine of his right fork was missing as well.

Not only that, but over half of the left side of the man’s mask was completely gone, exposing the man’s bloody face, and revealing that he was missing a considerable number of his jagged teeth. The man was breathing very heavily with his upper body slouched over.

“Damn…you…soul reaper.” He hissed between breaths.

Ichigo looked down at the man’s chest, and he could see why Rukia had stopped him from hollowfying again. There was a large, and very deep gash across the man’s chest that ran right across his hollow hole. It was obvious to him now that the Arrancar was on his last breath, and would die very soon.

“Damn…you…” Di Roy hissed again, then suddenly began falling from the sky and into the warehouse underneath them.

The teen watched and waited for a moment to see if the man would get back up. Once he was sure that the Arrancar was truly done for, he glanced out to the distance for a second before looking at his friend and tapping her on the shoulder.

Rukia looked at him with a raised brow to see him pointing at his ear, then pointing at her. She smirked at him, getting what he was referring to.

“Yeah, I’ll be fine. It’s just annoying not being able to hear right now.” She answered.

He nodded, then gestured behind him with his thumb. She looked in the direction that he was referencing, and could feel a slowly fading spiritual pressure towards the north side of town.

The woman looked back at him. “Tim?” she inquired, getting another nod back. She then looked over to the north-western side of town. “Rangiku seems to be in trouble too. Big trouble” She observed, then returned to the teen. “You should go help her out first. In my condition, I can’t really do much. As much as I hate it, I’m gonna have to return to the shop. Once you’ve helped Rangiku, then give Tim a hand. But be careful, the person he’s fighting is way stronger than Di Roy was.” She warned.

Ichigo nodded. “Yeah, I know exactly who he’s fighting. And it’s time for some payback.” He growled.

Rukia grinned at him, then pointed at her ear. “Sorry Ichigo, but could you speak up?” she teased.

The teen turned to her. “I said, I know who…” He stopped when he suddenly remembered that she wouldn’t hear him, and he scowled at her for tricking him. “Damn you!” he growled. The woman laughed for a minute before vanishing in shunpo. Ichigo growled even louder. “Damn you, you midget!” he yelled.

** With Rangiku **

Nakeem stood straight on the roof of a tall building, holding a barely breathing Rangiku by the throat with his left hand with her feet off the ground. She held onto his hand with her own left own, while her right hand, that loosely held onto her zanpakutō, hung limply at her side.

Her hair was a total mess, and had blood streaks soaked into it a random spots; and her shihakusho, if you could even call it such anymore, only had enough left of it to preserve her modesty.

The woman’s zanpakutō was broken in half nearly two feet from the hilt, rendering its Shikai unusable. Her opponent hadn’t even released his own zanpakutō, and here she was, completely defeated and about to be killed.

“You fought well, Lieutenant, considering the enormous difference in our powers.” He held up his sword hand to her chest, his index and middle finger outstretched, and began charging a Cero. “I commend you, but now it is time to kill you, so I can move on to one of your friends.” He added calmly.

Rangiku closed her eyes as she waited for the inevitable. “I don’t think that’s going to happen.” A dangerous voice calmly stated.

Rangiku’s eyes shot open before they both turned to the right to see Toshiro standing a few yards away in his Shikai state. He was standing in a ready position, holding his zanpakutō in one hand, and the long chain with a crescent moon-shaped blade that was attached to the hilt with the other.

Nakeem dissipated his Cero and dropped his hand. “Who are…” he opened, but immediately yelled out in pain when the hand that was holding the battered Lieutenant suddenly separated from his body.

He swiftly held onto the bloody stump as he turned to the left to see an orange-haired soul reaper now crouched down several yards away and holding onto the Lieutenant bridal style. He glared at the man and growled.

“What the hell?! How did you do that?!” he yelled.

Ichigo glared back for a moment, then looked at Toshiro. “I’ll get her somewhere safe, you deal with him, Toshiro.” He said in a scowl.

Toshiro’s face twitched. “I told you, it’s Captain Hitsugaya to you!” the shorter man corrected, then vanished.

Before Nakeem could react, he found himself wrapped up by the long chain that was attached to the Captain’s zanpakutō. The Arrancar simply glanced over his shoulder at the smaller man in anger.

“You think you can stop me with something like this?” he questioned.

The Captain narrowed his gaze at him. “No, I don’t. I plan to hold you with this.” He corrected, then swung out with his blade.

A large dragon made of solid ice was subsequently sent out at the entangled Arrancar. Nakeem struggled to get free, and managed to get the chain loose on him, but was unable to get fully free in time before the dragon ‘swallowed’ him, encasing the man in a prison of ice.

Toshiro stared calmly at the frozen man, who turned his eyes to look back. “Normally, I would allow you the chance to retreat; but I can tell right away that you are far less considerate than your slender comrade, and would definitely try to continue fighting.” He informed.

Before he could go on, Nakeem quickly charged a Cero in his hand, releasing it and causing the ice around him to explode. He then ripped the loosened chain from around him, tossing it to the side before glaring at the Captain again.

“Is that the best you got? A little chill? Not even that can stop me, soul reaper.” He informed dangerously.

The Captain scoffed lightly at the man. “I don’t recall ever saying that was meant to ‘stop’ you, Arrancar.” He stated.

Nakeem’s eyes widened a bit before looking down to see that all of the ice chunks had melted, then re-solidified at his feet, completely encasing them and locking him down to the roof.

“I said that that was meant to ‘hold’ you.” The Captain corrected.

**“Just long enough for me to get back.”** A sinister voice added from above.

The large man quickly looked up to see Ichigo standing in the air and holding his zanpakutō at his side with both hands; a large mass of black energy twirling around the blade. The man’s eyes became saucers when he noticed that the teen was wearing what appeared to be a hollow mask over his face.

Ichigo gripped his hilt tighter as he gave a low, rumbling growl. **“It’s over.”** He announced, then started swinging up and across with his blade. **“Getsuga Tenshou!”** he yelled, sending the mass of energy out at the disabled Arrancar.

With how close Ichigo was at the time he launched his attack, Nakeem didn’t even have time to contemplate what was going on before the large wave of black energy hit the building he was currently frozen to.

Nearly half of the building was instantly reduced to dust and fragments as the Getsuga Tenshou continued on and collided with the ground, creating a large crater in its wake and covering the entire area in a cloud of smoke.

Toshiro flashed up next to him and kept a close eye on the area. “I’m not detecting his spiritual pressure anymore.” He informed the teen.

Ichigo shook his head slowly. **“No, he’s done.”** He affirmed in a voice that threatened to send chills down the short man’s spine.

The Captain glanced at the teen with concern. “Where’s Rangiku?” the short man inquired.

The teen swiped his mask away and pointed to a nearby building. “She’s over there. She’s in really bad shape too, so I think you should take her back to Urahara’s.”

Toshiro nodded. “And what will you do?”

“I suck at the spiritual pressure thing, but from what I can tell, Tim’s fight is the only one left; so, I’m gonna go give him a hand. Besides, I owe the guy he’s fighting.” The teen informed.

The shorter man nodded again. “Alright. Once this is over, we’ll meet up at Urahara’s to discuss everything that’s happened. Be sure to let the others know.” He instructed.

Ichigo nodded in understanding. “Got it. See ya later, Toshiro.”

A vein pulsed on the Captain’s head. “It’s Captain Hitsugaya to you!” he corrected for the umpteenth time.

The orange-haired man scoffed as he waved the Captain off. “Yeah yeah. Whatever.” He said dismissively, then vanished.

Toshiro growled in deep annoyance. “Damn him.” He hissed, then vanished himself.

** With Timothy **

Grimmjow stood proudly with one hand on his hip, and the other holding his zanpakutō at his side; a small bit of blood dripping off the blade as at ran down the sharp edge and gathered at the tip.

He was giving Timothy a calm and pleased grin as he stared at the man. Timothy’s shihakusho was in complete tatters; with the right sleeve torn off his arm and hanging loosely at his side, and his left pant leg completely missing.

His whole body was littered with cuts, scrapes, and gashes, with the most notable ones being on his arms and chest, and a large slash along his entire back. His left eye was barely open as blood had seeped into it and was greatly irritating him.

The man was breathing very heavily, and was currently struggling just to even stand in one spot, let alone attack or defend. His attacks had come to be so weak and slow, that his opponent barely had to lift a finger to block and counterattack.

“Give it up, Tim. You put up a hell of a good fight, one that I am certainly pleased with, but you obviously can’t go on anymore. You’re doing nothing but killing yourself at this point.” The Espada informed.

Timothy took a few shaky breaths before finding the strength to reply. “I’m not…going…to give…up. I’ll die…before…that happens.” He declared firmly.

Grimmjow scoffed heavily at the man. “Jesus Christ kid, don’t you know when you’re defeated? You’ve used up all of your flames, you can’t even use your damn Shikai anymore. You’re barely standing, and you honestly think you have a chance at defeating me? Wake the hell up, Tim. It’s over for you. Call it fucking quits, and leave so you can fight again some other time. Your persistence is really starting to piss me off now.” He warned.

The Lieutenant glanced down at his resealed zanpakutō. The blade was starting to chip away in random locations, and he could no longer hear from Kitsune, telling him that she was very clearly done and out of the fight, meaning that he really couldn’t use Shikai anymore.

He took a few more breaths before clenching his teeth tightly. “I don’t…care.” He stated, then returned to his opponent. “As long…as I’m alive…I will…never…let you…hurt my…friends.” He affirmed in a dangerous tone.

The Espada narrowed his stare and growled lowly at him. “I’m warning you Tim, give it up now, or I’ll really end up killing you. To hell with what Aizen wants.” He sneered.

Timothy brought his zanpakutō forward and held it with both hands. “Bring it.” He taunted weakly.

The Sexta scoffed once more, then got into his stance. “Fine. You wanna die so badly, then I’ll help you out.” He stated, then charged at the Lieutenant.

The man gripped his zanpakutō tighter as his opponent approached, before bringing it up to swing down on the man. When the Espada was only a few yards away, he initiated his last attack, swinging down to try and catch the man’s shoulder.

But his attack never hit his target, and neither did Grimmjow’s. “Whew, made it just in time.” A cheery voice announced.

Both the Lieutenant’s and Espada’s eyes widened when a figure was suddenly between them, his zanpakutō holding back Grimmjow’s, and his free hand holding back Timothy’s attack by his wrist.

Timothy breathed in a couple times before speaking. “Kisuke? What…are you…doing here?” he inquired.

The shop owner glanced at him with his cheeky grin. “Well, you seemed to be in a bit of a pickle, soooo I decided to come and give you a hand.” He responded a bit mockingly.

Grimmjow recovered from his surprise and quickly buzzed back several yards, returning his zanpakutō to his side. He gave the shop keeper a once over, then scoffed.

“So, it’s you again, huh? I heard you gave Ulquiorra a hard time the last time we were here. You’re that Urahara guy, right?” he inquired.

Kisuke turned to him as he released Timothy’s wrists. “That’s me. Although I wouldn’t exactly say I gave your friend a hard time, rather more like just playing with him a bit. Did you want to have some fun as well, Grimmjow I believe it was?” he returned.

As he finished, there was a buzzing sound, followed by four wisps as Nel, Ichigo, Renji, Ikkaku, and Yumichika all appeared around Timothy in a protective formation, with Nel standing slightly in front and to the side of the Lieutenant.

“Stop this now, Grimmjow. This fight is over.” She demanded calmly.

The Espada chuckled at her. “Well, hello there Nelliel. Nice to see ya again. I see that these soul reapers managed to fully corrupt you.” He mocked.

The woman furrowed her brows. “They have corrupted nothing, I am fighting with them because I ‘choose’ to. Aizen has done nothing besides bring pain and death, while they have fought endlessly to try and protect.” She corrected.

The man then laughed at her. “What a bunch of bullshit. Even if, in the end, you guys win this thing, surly you must realize that they’ll just kill you off as an enemy, right?”

Nel’s brows dropped further. “I’m aware of that, but that doesn’t matter to me. As long as I have served my purpose, I could care less as to what happens to me. This discussion is over. Leave now, or we will destroy you.” She warned.

Grimmjow laughed even harder at her threat. “Seven against one, eh? Now ‘that’ sounds like a great fight to me. I can tell right away that fighting you in my current state is suicide, so allow me to show you all an ‘Espada’s’ Resurrección.” He declared as he held his zanpakutō up and sideways, resting his fingertips on the broad side of the blade.

Everyone was shocked when his blade began to glow a bright, bluish color. “Grind…” he started.

A hand on the man’s shoulder suddenly stopped him, and caused everyone’s eyes, including his, to go wide. He glanced over his shoulder to see Ulquiorra standing right behind him with his left hand resting on his shoulder.

“We have completed our mission, Grimmjow. It is pointless for us to remain here any further.” He informed, giving the Sexta a cold stare.

Grimmjow stared right back for a moment, his blade still glowing and waiting for him to finish his release command. After a few moments, he scoffed lightly at the Quatro and let the glowing in his blade diminish.

He then stood straight and returned his zanpakutō to its scabbard. “Fine. But what about the woman?” he inquired.

Ulquiorra turned his glare to Nel, who simply glared right back. “She is of no concern to us at the moment. Our instructions were to only kill her if it the opportunity arised. Seeing that it would be seven against two, with Kisuke Urahara being one of them, this is quite clearly not that opportunity. We will leave her for now. Now, let us return.” He stated, lifting his hand from Grimmjow’s shoulder and flicking the air, opening a garganta in front of him.

Kisuke opened his fan and started waving it at himself. “You don’t want to have some more fun, mister Ulquiorra?” he taunted.

The green-eyed man stopped and side-glanced the shop owner. “Goading me is pointless, Kisuke Urahara. I have no intention of being a victim of your childish antics. We will continue our fight another time, but that time is not now. Enjoy the peace and quiet while you can, for Aizen’s plans are nearly complete, and he will soon deliver your punishment personally.” He warned, then looked back at Nel. “Especially yours, traitorous woman.” He hissed, then walked into the garganta.

Grimmjow followed behind him, but stopped and glanced at Timothy. “You did well Tim, but your persistence is only going to get you killed.” He stated, then grinned widely. “Try not to let that happen before we have our rematch, got it?” he taunted.

Timothy narrowed his gaze at the Espada. “Oh, trust me, you’ll get yours, Grimm. You can bet on it that we’ll see each other again. I’ll put your damn face in the dirt.” He shot back.

The Sexta laughed loudly at the remark. “Tell that vixen of yours I said bye. I’ll have to have some more fun with her another time. But for now, she can wait her turn.” He announced, then walked into the black void.

As soon as he cleared the opening, the black portal instantly snapped closed and disappeared from sight, leaving nothing but a clear sky behind it.

Everyone finally relaxed and breathed easy, where Nel turned to Timothy and looked him over. “You’re hurt badly, Tim. We should get you back to the shop.” She advised.

Timothy didn’t respond, as he was still looking at the spot where the two Espada had left intently. Nel tilted her head a bit and rested a hand on his shoulder, finally gaining his attention.

“You okay Tim?” she asked.

He smiled lightly scoffed and smiled. “Yeah, I’m a bit tired, but I guess I’ll be okay.” He admitted, now starting to feel the effects of post-battle.

The woman smiled back and nodded. “Alright.”

Ichigo let his zanpakutō returned to its permanent Shikai state and returned it to his back. “Toshiro wanted to meet up at the shop once we were done, so I guess we should all head there.” He informed.

Kisuke turned to him as he hid his face behind his fan. “Should we give miss Inoue a call?” he asked.

Timothy shook his head. “It’s the middle of the night, and our injuries are not life threatening. Let her sleep for now, and we can call her in the morning. She does enough for us that the least we can do is let her get a peaceful night’s sleep. Besides, that gives us time to discuss everything that’s happened tonight.” He suggested.

Ichigo started rubbing the back of his head. “Yeah, I guess you’ve got a point, Tim. Okay, we’ll hold off and give her a call once we know that she’s awake for school.”

Urahara then snapped his fan shut. “Okay! Now that we have all that settled, let’s return to the shop and have some tea.” He said in a ‘happy’ tone.

Timothy and Ichigo both gave him a deadpanned expression. “I really hate you, you know that?” the Lieutenant moaned, getting a nod from Ichigo in agreeance.

The man’s face dropped to one of mock sadness. “Aw, don’t be like that, Tim. I’m just helping things along is all.” He ‘pouted’.

The short man turned to the teen. “I’m a bit worn out at the moment, so could you do me a favor and kill him now?” he pleaded.

Ichigo rolled his eyes to him. “Trust me, if I could, I would.” He moaned.

Timothy dropped his head in despair. “I hate my life.” He whined.

Nel chuckled in amusement. “Let’s go home and get you fixed up, Tim.” she instructed.

The man sighed heavily in defeat. “Fine.”

Everyone then started flashing, or in Nel’s case: buzzing, away until only Kisuke was left standing alone in the open air. His face then became serious as he turned to where the garganta had been opened.

He stared at the open space for quite a while, pondering the events from before in his head over and over. As hard as he tried to think on it, something just wasn’t adding up to him, and was constantly leaving him to suspect that something wasn’t right.

“I wonder…” he said in a whisper, then vanished himself.

** Throne Room, Las Noches, Hueco Mundo, Present **

Aizen sat peacefully in his large chair, slightly leaned over to the side with his jaw resting on his closed hand. He had a very calm, and rested smile on his face as he awaited the return of the two Espada from the world of the living.

He opened his eyes halfway and smiled more the brief instant before the loud ripping noise sounded in the empty hallway, followed by the air in front of him tearing apart to reveal the Quatro and Sexta Espadas.

The two men stepped out of the dark portal, allowing it to close fully before Grimmjow took a knee before him and Ulquiorra bowed deeply with an arm across his chest.

“We have returned from our mission, Lord Aizen. Though, I regret to inform you that all five of Grimmjow’s fracción were killed during the mission.” He reported.

Aizen closed his eyes and gave a very slight hum. “That is unfortunate. I assume the mission was a success?” he questioned sternly.

Ulquiorra rose and returned his hand to his pocket. “Yes, Lord Aizen. The person in question has agreed to your terms, and will meet at the directed location in two days.” He answered.

The former Captain’s smile then grew wider. “That is excellent news, Ulquiorra. I trust that none of the soul reapers assigned to Karakura town are aware of your mission?” he pressed.

“No, Lord Aizen. They did not appear to be aware of the true objective of our presence in the world of the living. It would seem that, even though the five fracción assigned to the mission were defeated, they were successful in keeping the soul reaper’s attention from our true goal.” The Quatro affirmed.

Grimmjow growled a bit at the remark, causing Aizen to look at him. “Your fracción had served wonderfully, Grimmjow. And they had fallen while ensuring your mission was a success. You should feel proud for them.”

The Sexta growled a bit more, but lowered his head. “Yes, Lord Aizen.” He answered.

Aizen continued to stare at the man. “For the sake of curiosity, might I inquire as to who it was you fought against, Grimmjow?”

The man raised his head to the former Captain. “I fought that Durn kid, the one with all those damn flames. And now that I think about it, there was something different about the way he used his zanpakutō.”

The former Captain raised a brow in wonder. “How so?” he questioned.

Grimmjow turned away a bit as he ran the fight through his head. “For one, that recording of yours showed him fighting with that fox lady that you said used to be his wife, or something.” He then looked back at his superior. “From what he told me, and by what I’ve seen, that’s not the case anymore. He said that she can’t come out while his zanpakutō is released anymore.”

Aizen’s eyes widened just a hair for a split second, then returned to normal. “Interesting. Anything else?” he pressed further.

The Espada nodded. “Yeah, the kid’s Bankai was also different than what we saw before in your recording. He didn’t have a sword, but instead had a pair of metal gloves of sorts. Not only that, the kid could absorb his flames into them and shoot them back out at you like an exploding fireball. Damn things are painful as fuck. Each one of them makes a whole bunch of these tiny little flames that spread out everywhere after the fireballs explode, burning everything they touch. But it seems that the kid has to sacrifice the flames he uses, meaning that the more he uses those fireballs, the less flames he has to use to move around.”

He then turned away again. “That last attack though was painful as a bitch. He seemed to collect just about all of him flames into the gloves, then use them all at once to punch the ground, creating a ridiculously large explosion around him, making millions of those tiny flames. I doubt you can avoid it, unless you’re miles away when he uses it.” He warned.

Aizen listened to the man’s explanation, very intrigued by what he was hearing. He had expected some form of change in the young Lieutenant’s situation regarding his wife, but this was something he had not predicted.

“I see. So you’re telling me that his zanpakutō and Bankai had behaved just like that of a normal soul reaper’s?” he inquired.

Grimmjow looked back at him and nodded. “Yeah, I guess you could say that. One last thing though, his spiritual pressure has greatly increased since the last time we were there. At a guess, I would say that it’s more than doubled. He’s definitely stronger than the way Yammy described.” He informed.

Aizen grinned a bit wider. “Is that so? Then it would seem that everything is still going according to plan. Thank you for all your hard work, my dear Espada. I have nothing further for you, so you may retire for the night. I will be postponing tomorrow’s meeting until the afternoon, so that you may be fully rested before you deliver your reports to the rest of your comrades. You are excused.” The man concluded.

Grimmjow lowered his head, while Ulquiorra gave his usual bow. “Thank you, Lord Aizen.” The Quatro responded.

The two men then rose and turned to leave, making it the edge of the stairway before Aizen called out.

“Oh yes, I almost forgot. How did my little device turn out against your opponent, Grimmjow?” he asked.

The Sexta stopped and turned as he pulled the device from his pocket, looking at it closely. “It didn’t, the damn thing is broken.” He stated in annoyance.

Aizen’s eyes went, almost noticeably, wide. “Are you sure of this?” he inquired in a dangerous tone.

Grimmjow began to sweat at the man’s tone, swallowing hard before answering. “Yeah, I pressed the button on the side, and nothing happened. The kid was still able to use his zanpakutō.” He assured.

The former Captain stared at the Espada for a moment, then held out his hand. “Please give it to me, Grimmjow. I will return it to Szayelaporro for him to inspect.” He instructed.

The Espada walked back towards the man and gently laid the item in his hand. “My apologies, Lord Aizen.” He said in worry.

Aizen looked down at the device in his hand. “It is fine, Grimmjow. These things do happen, so I cannot fault you for something that is not of your doing. You may go.” he reassured.

The Sexta then turned and briskly walked back to and down the stairs as quickly as he dared. Aizen meanwhile continued to stare down on the device, before rotating it in his hand and pressing the small button on the side with his thumb.

His eyes grew just a hair wider as he suddenly felt his inwards connection with Kyōka Suigetsu interrupted, now completely unable to hear or speak to the spirit of his dangerous zanpakutō. He pressed the button again, turning the device off, and he could instantly feel the connection again.

_‘Interesting…either Grimmjow was lying, and covering up not using this device; or, somehow this Timothy Durn is immune to it’s effects. Both scenarios I find highly unlikely, as not even Grimmjow would dare to lie about something like this, nor should it even be possible for this child’s zanpakutō to be immune. Could this be a side effect of the Hōgyoku’s use on him and his wife? I will have to have Szayelaporro take a look into this.’_ The man pondered.

He then set the device down on the arm of his chair and closed his eyes in thought. “Timothy Durn, you are quite an…interesting subject.”


	31. Revenge is 'Bitter Sweet'

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 31

**(Revenge is ‘Bitter Sweet’)**

** Urahara Shop, 1 Hour Later **

The dining room in the Urahara shop was so quiet, you could almost literally hear a pin drop on the floor. Everyone was sitting calmly at the small table in the room, all for the exception if Rukia and Rangiku, who were currently in Nel’s room being treated by Tessai.

Once everyone had returned to the shop, they had all pretty much agreed to take a little while to calm down and relax a bit before discussing each other’s fights, and the possible reasons as to why the Arrancar had suddenly decided to invade.

After a little over an hour of waiting and resting, Toshiro finally took a deep breath, letting it out slowly, and turned to the group in front of him to begin. But just as he was about to speak, Tessai then walked in with a relieved look on his face.

The large man looked at the short Captain and gave a slight nod. “Miss Rukia and miss Matsumoto will both be fine and are not in any danger. However, it will be some time before miss Matsumoto will be able to fight with her zanpakutō again, and miss Rukia will need more extensive healing for her hearing.” He informed.

Toshiro let out a breath of relief. “Thank you, mister Tessai. I am relieved.” He returned.

The large man nodded, then walked up to the table, grabbed the tea pot, and proceeded into the kitchen to make more. The Captain watched the man leave, then turned back to Kisuke, who was lightly fanning himself with closed eyes.

“Mister Urahara, before we begin, I was hoping you could enlighten us as to why you think the Arrancar were here. Do you have any thoughts on the matter?” he inquired.

The shop owner stopped his fanning and glanced over to the Captain. “I’m afraid not. There are many possible reasons as to why they would come here now. For all we know, this could have likely been a probing attack, in order to test our current strength.”

Renji rose a curious brow. “That would make sense. Those guys honestly weren’t that strong, and we could have easily handled them without any issues if it weren’t for these damn limiters.” He complained.

Toshiro held his chin in his hand in thought. “That could be another possible reason why they were here, to eliminate us while we were weak. Aizen knows that while we were here we would have these limiters. And he also knows that getting the clearance to release them is very time consuming. So, he could have sent them here to try and defeat a Captain and three Lieutenants at the same time with ease.”

Nel then decided to speak up. “If I may Captain, I don’t think that’s the case.” She said in a calm voice.

Toshiro looked at her intently. “And why do you think that?” he inquired in a cautious voice.

She took a deep breath as she prepared her next words carefully, as not to upset the short man. “No offense Captain, but Shawlong could have very easily killed you long before I arrived. And Grimmjow could have done the same with Tim as well. So I don’t think they were here for the specific purpose of killing you. If anything, judging by the way Shawlong was behaving, I would guess that they were trying to keep you busy.”

Ikkaku turned to her with a disbelieving look. “Come on, they had us on the ropes. You really think that they were here just to hold us up? Why not just kill us and be done with it? It would have been far more effective.” He pointed out.

“He does have a point, miss Nel.” Kisuke stated from behind his fan.

Nel shook her head gently. “That may be true, but I can tell you right now that Shawlong was not acting the way he normally does in a battle. He would not have waited so long to kill the Captain under normal circumstances. I honestly think that he and the rest of his friends were trying to hold you up as long as possible without killing you.”

Renji gave a low growl. “It all would have been over really quickly if we could have gotten rid of our limiters. Just what the hell happened with that anyway, Captain? Didn’t Rangiku put in a request for permission to release them?” he asked, now looking at the short man.

The Captain nodded firmly. “Yes, she did. But I am not sure what happened. Considering the circumstances, the soul society should have been quick to grant that permission. I will inquire it with the Head Captain when I deliver my report. But what about you, Renji? Did you happen to notice your opponent acting a bit strange as Nel suggests?” he questioned.

The Lieutenant’s face then dropped. “Kinda impossible to tell. I managed to end up with the crazy one who kept calling me ‘brother’ all the time.” He droaned.

Nel’s face dropped as well. “Yylfordt Granz. He’s the older brother of Szayelaporro Granz, one of the Espada. You are correct when you use the term ‘crazy’ to define him. I have always despised him the most out of all the fracción.” She moaned.

Toshiro sighed heavily, then turned to Ichigo. “And what about you and Rukia, Ichigo? Was yours acting strange in any way?”

The teen crossed his arms and took a deep breath. “Not from what I can tell. They guy was already in his released state when I got there, and it was pretty much just exchanging blows between each other most of the time. You’d be better off asking Rukia on that one.” He advised.

The Captain growled in annoyance. “What about yours, Ikkaku?”

The 3rd seat chuckled lowly. “Nothing out of the ordinary for me, just a guy that gave me a great fight.” He said with glee.

Toshiro growled even louder. “Fine. And what about you, Tim?” he asked at last.

When no answer came back, the man turned to the blonde Lieutenant. The man had his head dropped a little bit, and seemed to be staring at a small, invisible spot on the table as he ran his finger throughout the stubble on his chin.

“Tim?” Toshiro pressed, but still got no response.

This was when Nel noticed that the man hadn’t really paid attention to anything that was said, and seemed to be lost in very deep thought; as if he was completely cut off from everything around him.

She rested a hand on his shoulder, finally breaking him from his trance where he looked at her curiously with a raised brow.

“Something wrong?” he inquired.

Renji rose a brow as well and crossed his arms. “Yeah, the Captain’s been trying to get your attention a few times.” He informed.

Timothy quickly turned to the said man and rubbed the back of his head. “Eh…sorry about that, Captain. Just had something on my mind about earlier.” He admitted.

Toshiro, too, rose a brow. “Care to share it with the rest of us?”

The Lieutenant dropped his hand down to his lap and sighed as he rested his head back against the wall. He tapped his right index finger on his knee a few times as he thought over his own fight one last time.

“I don’t…” he started, then took a deep breath. “I think…that Nel is right.” He said, then lifted his head and leaned on the table. “I think those Arrancar came here to distract us, to keep us busy.”

“Why do you think that, Tim?” Renji asked.

Timothy tapped the table a few times with the same finger before continuing. “You remember what Ulquiorra said, about how their mission was complete?” he asked, getting nods from everyone. “Well, that’s what’s been bothering me the most for the past hour. He said ‘our’ mission is complete, not ‘his’ mission was complete. He said it as if he was a part of the mission in its entirety.”

Renji nodded again. “Yeah. So?”

The younger man gave the red-headed Lieutenant a firm and serious stare. “If that’s the case, where the hell was he during all this?” he asked, causing everyone’s eyes to widen in realization. “I never once sensed him during the whole thing, and judging by you guy’s reaction, neither did you. I never knew he was even here until I actually ‘saw’ him. So if he was a part of this mission of theirs, just where the hell was he while we were all dealing with the other Arrancar?” he questioned.

Toshiro started looking around the table at everyone. “So, no one fought him, or remembers seeing him?” he inquired.

“Captain…” Nel started, getting the man’s attention. “…if Ulquiorra had been a part of the fight, that person would not be breathing anymore. And besides, I know his spiritual pressure anywhere. I, too, didn’t sense him, or was even aware he was here until I saw him.”

Timothy nodded in agreeance. “So, if Grimmjow and his fracción were only trying to keep us busy, I am willing to bet my life that they were doing so, so Ulquiorra could complete a different task without us getting in the way.” He put together.

Kisuke turned to the man with a sly grin. “Very astute, Tim. If this is indeed the case, then it would be best if we started figuring out just what the man’s task was.” He advised.

Toshiro nodded. “I agree. Once everyone has recovered, we’ll do a thorough search around the city and see if we can find any clues as to what he was up to.” He instructed.

Timothy rose a questioning brow at him. “You want us to search the entire city? Do you have any idea how long that would take, Captain? Even if we were to include Kisuke and Nel on this, that’s only ten of us to do the searching, and it would take days to do even a half-ass one. By then, Aizen could have already done what he wanted to do, whatever that is.” He pointed out.

The Captain glared at him. “I’m aware of that, but it’s better than sitting here and talking about it and getting nowhere at all. And when it comes to Nel, I still do not trust her enough to leave her unobserved.” He stated, then looked at the woman to see a disappointed look on her face. “Don’t take this the wrong way Nel; I thank you for the help you have given us, and I thank you for saving my life. But the simple fact is that I don’t trust you enough on your own yet. But you do have my respect.” He informed calmly.

Nel sighed and nodded. “I understand, Captain.”

Timothy then crossed his arm firmly. “She can still help, Captain. Why not let her go with me, or someone else? That way, her and the person she’s with can cover twice the ground in the same amount of time?” he proposed.

Ikkaku looked at Toshiro with a raised brow. “He’s got a point there, Captain. And he’s right, it would take a long time to cover the entire city with the short amount of people we have for it. We’ll need all the help we can get.” He added.

Kisuke turned to him as well. “And you can’t include Ichigo on this as he will have to leave to return to his training. And I have my own things that I need to look into here, so if you do include miss Nel, you would only have eight personnel for searching.” He informed.

Toshiro lowered his head and started rubbing his temples with a low growl. “I know this is going to end badly.” He mumbled under his breath, before crossing his arms and looking back at Timothy. “Fine, she can go with you, Tim. But you know the deal; any trouble she may cause, is entirely on you.” He warned.

Timothy closed his eyes and shook his head with a sigh. “I guess it’s better than nothing.” He admitted.

Renji then turned to him with a raised brow. “Wait a minute, where’s Kit? I figured she’d be here for all this. Not only that, couldn’t she give us a hand in this as well?” he inquired.

The younger man glanced at the red-head. “She’s gonna be out of it for a while. That last attack with my Bankai, plus struggling to keep fighting Grimmjow really took it out of her. And I guess she could give me a hand in looking around. That would mean that Nel would have to go with someone else though.”

The red-headed Lieutenant shrugged a shoulder. “She could go with Rangiku, they both seem to get along really well.”

Both of Timothy’s brows lifted high as a kite. “Are you fucking stupid or something? Rangiku would get distracted by the first store she spotted. And Nel being with her to use as a dressing dummy would only make it several times worse.” He pointed out, causing Nel to turn red.

Renji’s face then dropped. “Yeah…good point. I guess she could come with me then.” He offered.

Timothy turned around to the woman in question. “You okay with that, Nel?” he asked.

She smiled and nodded. “It’s fine with me.” She returned.

Something then donned on Timothy, causing him to go wide-eyed before swiftly turning back to the Captain.

“Crap, almost forgot. During my fight, I think Grimmjow tried to use that zanpakutō sealing thing that was used on Nel.” He put out.

Toshiro’s eyes widened as well. “Are you saying he managed to seal your zanpakutō?!” he asked in surprise.

Timothy shook his head. “That’s the thing, for some reason or another, it didn’t work. After he turned it on, or at least tried to, he started getting upset that nothing was happening.”

Renji scratched his chin. “It could have been something else, you know.” He pointed.

The younger man shook his head again. “I don’t think so. Before he tried to use it, he said, and I quote, ‘Say goodbye to your zanpakutō’. That’s why I think that device he had must have been the same one that was used on Nel. I asked Kit if she felt anything different, but she said no.”

Nel turned to him. “Did you see what it looked like?” she inquired.

“No, he was too far away for me to see it well enough. I can say that it was pretty small, about the size of a mod soul dispenser. Besides that, I can’t say.” Timothy answered.

Kisuke hummed for a second, then lowered his fan a bit. “If you don’t mind Tim, I’d like to run a couple tests to see if anything else could have happened that you might not be feeling at the moment.” He advised.

Timothy sighed heavily. “Why don’t I trust you when you say that?” he moaned.

Ichigo rolled his eyes to him. “Probably because he’s as shady as they come.” He offered.

Urahara’s face fell into sadness. “My dear Ichigo, you wound me. You should know I never do anything without purpose.” He ‘whined’.

The teen growled as he slapped the table. “You mean like your stupid headband of justice, or whatever that damn thing was?!” he seethed.

Timothy rose a brow in confusion. “Headband of justice?” he asked.

Ichigo glared at him dangerously. “Don’t ask! I have no intention of reliving that damn nightmare again!” he warned.

The Lieutenant’s expression changed to one of pity. “Considering it’s Kisuke we’re talking about here, I can only say that, whatever it was, it must have been something very embarrassing. Trust me, you’re not the only one to fall for his tricks for the sake of his entertainment.” He moaned.

“My condolences.” The teen returned, also with a look of pity.

“Likewise.” Timothy returned.

“Enough!” Toshiro demanded in a raised voice, getting everyone’s attention. “Ichigo, I don’t think that there’s anything more we need from you at the moment, so you can leave to return to your training, or whatever it is. But be sure to be ready if the Arrancar return.” He instructed.

The teen nodded, then stood up. “Got it. Later guys.” He said with a wave.

Renji looked up at him with a smirk. “Try to stay out of trouble, will ya? Don’t need to keep bailing your ass out every five minutes.” He mocked.

Ichigo balled his fists and shook one at the Lieutenant. “What the hell did you say?!”

“Like now?” Timothy added with his own grin.

The teen quickly turned around and glared at him. “Hey! Don’t you start on this, too! I’ll kick your ass into next week!” he threatened.

Timothy snorted and looked away. “Not likely. Keep in mind Ichigo, you still have yet to meet Kit, and I doubt you would last more than two seconds with her.” He stated.

Nel quickly shook her head with wide eyes. “No, you wouldn’t! She is evil!” the woman affirmed.

Ichigo tilted his head in confusion. “What the hell are you talking about?” he asked.

“Trust me, you do ‘not’ want to find out!” Nel stated very firmly, earning a quick headshake from Timothy.

The teen scoffed as he threw his hand to the air. “Whatever. Orihime should be up in a few hours, so you can call her then. See you all later.” He said, then started walking away.

“Stay outta trouble, Ichigo.” Timothy teased.

“Oh, shut up!” the orange-haired man yelled back over his shoulder as he opened the front door.

Once the substitute left the shop, Timothy turned to Toshiro with a calm face. “Captain, could we talk in private for a moment?” he inquired.

The Captain nodded before standing up. “We’ll discuss this situation more later on. Yumichika, since you did not engage in any conflicts during the whole thing, you are on hollow watch until morning. Renji, I want you to contact miss Inoue once you are sure she is awake.” Everyone nodded, where Timothy stood up as well. “We’ll talk downstairs, Tim.” he added, getting another nod from the man.

Toshiro began walking towards the trapdoor to the basement, followed closely by Timothy as everyone else left to do their own things. The two officers climbed down the very long ladder to the bottom of the large training field, where Toshiro crossed his arms firmly.

“What is it you wanted to talk about?” he asked firmly.

Timothy crossed his arms as well and sighed heavily. “I wanted to apologize for the other day, Captain.”

Toshiro rose a brow. “Regarding?” he pressed.

The Lieutenant sighed again before continuing. “About threatening you after you found out about Nel. I’m sure you’ve pretty much figured it out by now, but I tend to get quite defensive when it comes to my friends. And when you threatened to report her…” He dropped one hand to his hip and rubbed his head with the other. “…well…my temper kinda got in the way, and I said some things that I meant, but clearly took too far. So, I apologize for that. We really got off on the wrong foot due to my temper, and I wanted to fix that.” He admitted.

The Captain stared intently at him. “I see. Your apology is accepted, but be sure it doesn’t happen again.” He warned.

Timothy stopped his rubbing and stared back. “I really can’t promise that, Captain. I can, however, promise that I’ll try not to let it happen. Kit told me that you know about me and Nel’s…relationship, right?”

Toshiro furrowed his brows dangerously. “Yes, and I still think you are a fool for it. You honestly have no idea just how dangerous the game you are playing is.”

The younger man crossed his arms again and gave the Captain a firm stare. “I understand wholeheartedly why you say that, Captain. And I will not deny that in some ways you are right about that. However, this is still ‘my’ life, even in death. It’s up to ‘me’ who I choose to be with. I understand that if this is discovered, I’m pretty much done for; but that is a risk that I’ve decided to take, and I will gladly accept the repercussions for that risk.” He stated firmly.

He then sighed and closed his eyes. “I am not trying to convince you to trust Nel, Captain; that is something that the two of you have to work out. I’m just telling you that ‘I’ trust her. Not only with my life, but also with my heart. If you don’t want to accept that, that’s your choice. I can’t change it, and I am not going to try. I’m only saying that I’ve chosen to see beyond what she is, and have decided to be with her because of who she is. And that nothing is going to stand in the way of that. That’s why I reacted the way I did that day.”

Timothy opened his eyes back to him. “Understand this Captain, I will always side with you and the soul society, nothing will change that. I would never raise a hand against you. But if it came to a choice between staying with the 13 Court Guard Squads, or protecting Nel, I would gladly leave the Squads for her. Call me a traitor if you want, but I will always choose my friends, and those I hold dear above anything else.”

Toshiro narrowed his glare even further. “So, you’re saying that you don’t have any friends in the soul society?”

The Lieutenant shook his head slowly. “That’s not what I’m saying at all, Captain. I view ‘you’ as a friend. Renji, Rangiku, Ichigo, Captain Komamura, Ikkaku, everyone. I view ‘all’ of you as my friends. And I will gladly put down my life for any of you without a second thought. I’m simply saying that I hold Nel in a higher standing than I do you. I had to sit and watch as my own wife was turned into something else. My weakness prevented me from saving her.”

He moved his hands to his hips and gave the Captain a deathly glare. “I am ‘not’ going to let someone else that I care deeply for go through anymore pain and suffering. I choose to stand by Nel, and I will protect her until my dying breath…even if it means I have to fight my own friends. And you have absolutely no idea how many times a day that I pray that never happens. It tears my soul to pieces just thinking about it.”

Toshiro took a deep breath as well. “I see. You have my condolences for what has happened to your wife, and I am sorry you had to witness such cruelty. But that does not change the fact that Nel is an Arrancar. I will admit, she is not like the rest of them, that she is actually a kind and caring person. But nonetheless, she is ‘still’ an Arrancar, and will always face discrimination based on that fact. You know this.” He pointed out.

Timothy nodded firmly. “Yes, I do. And I know it’s unlikely she’ll ‘ever’ be accepted by the soul society.” He said, then pointed a finger to his chest. “But ‘I’ choose to see her for the person she is. And if I can help to change how the world views her, I will.” He then crossed his arms again. “I just wanted to tell you where I stand, Captain. And to let you know that the anger I directed at you, would be towards anyone who threatened those I care about.”

The Captain stared at the man for a moment, then sighed before turning to leave. “Thank you for telling me this. As I said before, I won’t report her for now, but that’s only as long as she does nothing against any of us. And I’ll give you a word of warning…” He turned his head and stared directly into the young man’s eyes. “…if it does come to the event where the soul society orders her execution, know that I cannot help you. I always help my friends Tim, but my loyalty is with the soul society, not with them.” He stated firmly.

The Lieutenant nodded in understanding. “Then let us both pray that day never comes, Captain.” He returned.

Toshiro nodded in agreeance. “I’ll expect a full report on your fight with the Espada, including that device he tried to use on you. It may not have worked this time, but anything we can give Squad 12 about it, even what it looks like, will be helpful to them in finding a way to counter it.”

Timothy nodded back. “You’ll have it before this afternoon, Captain. If it’s alright with you, I think I’m gonna go get some sleep before we call Orihime over. I don’t know about you, but I’m beat.” He said with a small smile.

The Captain scoffed. “Yes, I believe we could all use a little rest.” He concluded, then vanished.

The Lieutenant sighed and folded his arms loosely. “Well, it could have gone a whole lot worse I guess.” He mumbled to himself, before starting to climb the ladder.

Upstairs, Toshiro walked out the front door and was about to leave when he noticed Nel sitting against the wall, now in her gigai and staring up at the cloudless sky. The woman glanced over to him and nodded gently.

“Captain.” She greeted.

He nodded back as he gave her a firm stare. “I have a question for you, Nel.” He stated.

She rose a curious, but cautious brow. “Yes?”

The Captain turned to her and crossed his arms. “Are your…feelings…for Tim real? Do you really care for him as much as you claim?” he questioned.

Her brow dropped, and she returned to stare. “Yes, they are real. I care for Tim a lot. I know you are quite displeased to hear that, but it is the truth.” She admitted just as firmly.

Toshiro narrowed his stare a bit at her. “I see. Then let me give you a fair piece of advice Nel; Tim’s life is essentially in your hands at the moment. He is risking everything he has for you, because he is adamant that you are not a bad person. I may not have known him for very long, but I still consider him a friend. So, do the both of us a favor, and don’t mess this up. For his sake.” He warned.

Nel’s shoulders dropped with a heavy exhale, before she slowly stood up and stood mere inches from the shorter man’s face, looking down on him. The Captain looked up at her, his stare turning into a cautious glare.

“Captain Hitsugaya, I am only going to tell you this one last time; I have no intention of ever bringing harm, or hardship to Tim. You don’t like me, you don’t trust me, and I accept that; but do not think, even for a second, that I would ever intentionally hurt Tim. You saw firsthand how I defeated Shawlong Koufang with ease, using only my bare hands. Do you not realize that, at any time, I could kill him without so much as breaking a sweat? With that thought in mind, tell me, why have I not done so?”

Her brows furrowed dangerously. “Don’t bother answering, because I’ll tell you why. I haven’t killed him, or any members of your team, because I have chosen to ‘protect’ all of you, including you, Captain Hitsugaya. You can hate me, belittle me, insult me, do anything you like; but the one thing you should never do, is question my loyalty. And before you decide to ask, my loyalty, is with Tim. So, if Tim’s fights for you, ‘I’ fight for you.”

Her eyes suddenly gained a deathly glare to them. “But if Tim fights ‘against’ you, I fight against you. So, if anyone should be cautious about me being discovered, it should be you, Captain Hitsugaya. Because if the soul society lays a single finger on Tim, you will personally see exactly why I was the Quinto Espada. Now, if you will please excuse me, I plan to turn in for the night.” She informed, then turned and began walking back inside.

Toshiro turn his head back to her. “Is that a threat, Nel?” he questioned firmly.

The woman stopped, then side-glanced him over her shoulder. “No Captain, that was a promise. I thought it prudent to make sure you understand exactly where I stand with this. I am still hoping that we can someday become friends, but I can see that that may be a long time from now. Good night, Captain.” She concluded, then turned back and continued into the shop.

The short man watched as she entered the dining room, then turned into the hallway, presumably to her room.

_‘That stare in her eyes…she was serious. So, she really is loyal to Tim, and Tim is obviously loyal to the soul society. But his loyalty will only continue as long as the soul society does not attempt to harm her. This is a bad situation. We need Tim for the war against Aizen, and if what the woman said was true, she could also be a great asset for the war. Her skills are highly impressive, and would be of great use to us. But that’s only if the soul society doesn’t find out about her. Since that’s the case, it seems that it would be in our best interest to make sure the soul society doesn’t find out.’_

The Captain sighed heavily and closed his eyes while rubbing his temple. _‘But doing so would be considered an act of treason. I would be in enough trouble as it is just by having known about her and not reporting it yet. Damn it. Why did ‘I’ have to be the one put in this position?’_

The man held out a finger, letting out a very brief, and light pulse of his spiritual pressure emit from it. Within seconds, a hell butterfly appeared from nowhere and landed on the tip of the man’s outstretched finger.

He mentally gave the insect his instructions that lasted for only around five seconds, before the black insect took off and flew a few feet away, disappearing into the night.

Toshiro then dropped his arms to his sides, sparing a last glance at the window of Nel’s room, before vanishing through shunpo.

** The Next Morning **

Timothy sat on his futon, his upper body slouched over a bit, his head lowered, and his hand in the center of his crossed legs. A transparent, yellowish hued barrier was currently over top of him with Orihime sitting on her knees next to it.

Even though he was quite exhausted after his fight with Grimmjow, Timothy adamantly stated that his injuries were by far the least serious, and determined that he should be the last one to get healed.

Considering that it took nearly an hour to heal Rukia and Rangiku before the teen could start on the others, Timothy instructed that he only wanted her to fix up his more serious injuries, and leave the others to heal on their own.

Orihime was hesitant at first, but seeing that she was already late for her first class, and would be late for her second if she healed him fully, she was left with no choice but to do as instructed. Thankfully, she was nearly done with Timothy.

Timothy opened an eye slightly and glanced at the teen, seeing that, even though she was in a hurry, she was also quite distressed about something. The entire time she had been at the shop, and even now, she didn’t seem to be her normal, cheery self.

“Something wrong, Orihime?” he asked in a kind voice.

She lightly gasped and swiftly shook her head. “No! Everything is fine! It’s just…” She stopped and lowered her head a bit. “I wish you guys would have called me as soon as it was all over. I would have come over right away to heal everyone.” She admitted.

The man sighed heavily. “Orihime, it was my decision not to call you yet. You’ve done more than we can pay you back for, and the last thing I wanted to do at the moment was wake you up to heal us. So please stop fretting about it.” He pleaded.

Orihime shirked a bit, but nodded. “Okay.’

“Hey.” He called out, getting her attention back. “I said to stop worrying about. So cheer up, Orihime. Please?” he begged further.

The teen smiled and nodded again. “Sorry, sometimes I can’t help it. I’m glad everyone made it out alright, though. So, where’s Kit? I haven’t seen her around.” She inquired.

“Right here.” A voice said to Timothy’s left.

They both looked to see Kitsune materialize next to them, her face dropped and her eyes a bit red. The spirit let out a long yawn, her jaw wide open and exposing all of her pointed canine teeth.

“Are you okay, Kit?” Orihime asked worriedly.

Kitsune finished her yawn and nodded. “Yeah, just weak and tired as hell.” she answered, then glared at Timothy. “No thanks to you. I told you not to push yourself, and you damn near broke your zanpakutō. You do realize it takes days to fix a broken zanpakutō, right?” she questioned.

Timothy rolled his eyes at her. “Would you rather me get killed by the Espada?” he returned.

The spirit furrowed her furry brows. “I would rather you not be so damn reckless, you idiot. If the triple incantation wasn’t enough, you just had to push it further and use my Bankai’s ultimate technique. I’m beginning to wonder if you’re ‘trying’ to kill yourself.” She hissed.

The man glared at her. “Oh shut up. I’m alive, ain’t I?”

Kitsune scoffed with a roll of the eyes. “Barely. Listen Tim, sometimes it’s not physical damage that can kill you; a soul reaper can still die if they push their spirit energy too far and cause their soul to basically commit suicide. That’s what nearly happened last night. You pushed yourself too hard, and your soul just about gave up on you. Why do you think ‘Johnny’ and I ‘both’ passed out? All three of us nearly died.”

The spirit then sighed heavily. “This isn’t a joke, Tim. I honestly have no idea how in the hell you managed to stay conscious through all of that, but me and ‘Johnny’ couldn’t. You have got to stop taking all these risks, Tim. Just because you are not physically alive anymore, it doesn’t mean that your soul can’t be destroyed.” She scorned.

Timothy held both hands up to her. “Okay okay, I get it! I’ll take it easy from now on!” he offered quickly.

She glared into his eyes, making him fret a bit. “You better, Tim. I almost lost you once, and I’ll do what it takes to make sure it doesn’t ‘actually’ happen. If I have to lock away your access to my abilities to keep you alive, by God I’ll do it. And ‘Johnny’ agrees with me wholeheartedly.” She threatened.

Orihime chuckled under her breath as she watched the two of them bicker, or rather Timothy get his ass chewed. But a part of her deep down was in a sort of panic mode after hearing that Timothy nearly killed himself the night before.

The watch on her wrist suddenly began beeping, causing her to gasp and quickly look at it, her eyes going wide with worry.

“Oh my gosh! I’m going to be late for my second class!” she fretted.

Timothy quickly turned to her. “Get going, Orihime. You’ve done more than enough. I really can’t thank you enough for all of this.” He stated firmly.

The teen quickly waved him off. “Oh no, it’s fine, Tim. I’m happy to help. Gotta go, so I’ll see you later. Bye Kit.”

Kitsune waved back as the girl stood up. “It’s good to see you again, Orihime. Have fun.”

Orihime smile brightly and nodded. “I’ll try. Bye.” She said with a final wave, then quickly left the room.

Timothy’s face then fell, along with his shoulders. “That poor girl really needs to learn that it’s okay to feel appreciated.”

The spirit sighed and nodded slightly. “Yeah, I have to agree with you on that. But…something feels…off about her.” She observed.

Her partner rolled his eyes to her. “You caught on to that too?” he inquired in a whisper.

Kitsune looked at him with a serious face and nodded again. “I can’t quite place it, but she seems a bit more…how should I put it…”

“Worried than normal?” he offered.

She nodded firmly. “Almost scared it seems like. I’m wondering if the Arrancar’s appearance last night affected her.”

Timothy turned towards the open door and hummed in thought. “Could be. After all the injuries she had to heal this morning, it wouldn’t surprise me if she grew a bit fearful about our safety.”

“Should we bring this up to the others?” she inquired.

He thought it over for a moment, but finally shook his head. “I think she’ll be fine. It’s likely she’s just more worried about us than normal, after seeing us in such bad shape. We’ll see how she’s acting the next time we see her, and if she’s still that way, we’ll talk to the others about it.” He concluded.

Kitsune nodded. “Sounds good to me. I hope that’s all it really is. She’s too young to be worrying so much, and needs to live and be happy.”

Timothy turned away with a dropped face. “I’d be living a happy life too if I didn’t a damned, perverted vixen stuck in my head.” He mumbled lowly.

The spirit’s eyes shot wide before she slapped the backside of his head with her hand. “You take that back! You love having me inside your head!” she demanded.

He quickly turned back to her and growled. “Damn you! That hurt, you stupid fox!” he sneered.

Kitsune leaped from where she was sitting, landing on top of him and grabbing him by the throat. He began gagging as she tightened her grip and began to choke him to death.

“I’ll kill you for that! I don’t mind being called a perverted vixen, but don’t you ever call me stupid! I’m smarter than you are!” he declared with fury in her eyes.

Timothy grabbed her hands and got enough leverage to push her hands away enough to speak. “Like hell you are! I’m not the one who kept getting C minuses throughout college! ‘Stupid’!” he returned.

She gritted her teeth with a loud, animalistic snarl. “At least I’m smart enough not to try and kill myself!” she yelled as her grip suddenly became tighter, instantly silencing her poor partner.

She then started lifting, and slamming his head down on the floor over and over. “I. Am. Not. A. Stupid. Fox!” she stated, hitting his head on the floor with each word.

Finally, after the twelfth or thirteenth time, she leaned down close to his ear. “You look tired Tim, I think you need a nap.” She said, then raised herself and slammed his head down hard, instantly knocking him out. She snarled once more, then stood up and straightened out the fur on her arms. “Nighty night, asshole.” She hissed.

Turning on her heel, she then left for the dining room. “Now, time for me to get something ‘I’ve’ been waiting for, for twelve years.” She stated, now in the hallway. “Oh Kisukeeeeeeee.” She called out in a sing-song voice as she entered the dining room.

The man’s head then popped around the corner near the trapdoor to the basement. “You rang, dear vixen?” he answered in a similar tone from behind his fan.

The spirit folded her arms firmly. “Is Nel around?” she inquired.

Kisuke exposed his hand from behind the wall and pointed to the floor. “She’s downstairs doing some training with miss Rukia. Fortunately, miss Orihime was able to repair the damage to her hearing, so she asked miss Nel to help train her a bit. Might I inquire as to why you ask?”

A wide, and devious grin then grew on her face. “Where’s the cookie dough ice cream?” she asked in a demanding voice.

** 2 Hours Later **

Nel pulled herself up through the trapdoor to the training area, a few beads of sweat running down her forehead and her breathing slightly elevated. After waking up with only a few hours of rest, Rukia had asked her to give her some training with fighting against an Espada.

The woman wiped the sweat away with the back of her hand as she exhaled, walking up to the fridge to get something to drink. Grabbing a glass from the cupboard, she then opened the freezer to get some ice.

She reached inside for the ice tray, but stopped when she saw the small bucket of cookie dough ice cream. Her eyes went wide, and she quickly looked around, sparing a quick glance into the dining room in particular, to see if anyone was around.

Once she was happy that the coast was clear, she swiftly snatched the treat from its place and shut the door. Grabbing a small spoon, she proceeded to the dining room table and sat down in the spot she normally did.

The woman moved to open the lid, but briefly stopped and took a last look around, just to be sure. Convinced that she was truly alone, she licked her lips as she pulled the lid open, her eyes shining with glee.

But she froze the moment the lid came off. “Huh?” she breathed out.

Inside the bucket, where there was ‘supposed’ to be ice cream, was ‘actually’ a moderately sized rock that took up nearly half of the space inside. Eyes widening in shock, she quickly snatched the rock and turned it in her hand.

She froze again, and her blood began to boil when she saw, taped to the side of the rock, a small piece of paper; a piece of paper that had a small, cartoonish, fox’s head, with its tongue sticking out, drawn in the corner, and the words, in bold red, ‘MINE!’.

The rock instantly shattered in the Arrancar’s hand as she quickly clenched it into a very tight fist. Heavy, powerful, and very deadly spiritual pressure began to fill the room, as a pinkish hue started to surround the woman’s body.

“Kit!” she yelled as loud as she could.

She then heard footsteps running towards her, and she turned towards the hallways to see Timothy standing there, staring at her with a mix of shock and fear. She growled deeply as she slowly stood up to full height.

Being a hair over four inches shorter than her, Timothy began to feel like an ant as she glared at him with an intent to kill. The spiritual pressure that was oozing off of her felt like it was wanting to kill him.

“Uh…Nel?” he squeaked out.

“Where. Is. She?” the deranged woman asked in a voice that sounded as deathly as the spiritual pressure around her.

Timothy’s eyes shot wide open. “Oh my God. What did she do now?” he inquired, very hesitantly.

Before he could do anything further, Nel grabbed him by the neck and pressed him against the wall. She then lowered herself just enough to where her face was level with his, her nose only an inch from his as she glared right into his eyes.

“Get. Her. Out. Here. Now!” she demanded.

He swallowed hard at the sickening sound of his ‘girlfriend’s’ voice. _“What the fuck did you do?!”_ he screamed inside his head.

No answer.

_“Kit?!”_

No answer.

_“Kit!!!”_

No answer.

Nel narrowed her gaze dangerously at him. “If she won’t come out on her own…” she started, then quickly grabbed the hilt of his zanpakutō and ripped it from its sheath. “Then I’ll ‘make’ her come out!” she stated, letting go of his neck and walking towards the kitchen.

“Kisuke! Where are you?!” she yelled out, walking through the kitchen and back towards Kisuke’s lab.

This was when Timothy happened to look over at the table, and notice the empty bucket; the empty bucket of cookie dough ice cream. He looked at the base of the bucket to see a small piece of paper; a piece of paper that had a small, cartoonish, fox’s head, with its tongue sticking out drawn in the corner, and the words, in bold red, ‘MINE!’.

His eyes became saucers. “Oh dear God! She didn’t!” he fretted aloud.

He then heard running and turned to see Rukia standing there with her zanpakutō drawn. “What’s going on?!” she asked in worry.

Timothy swallowed again. “World War 3…or 4…I’ve been dead for twelve years, so I have no idea if we’ve had a third war or not. Either way, it’s safe to say that there’s going to be blood involved…A ‘lot’ of it!” He informed.

She quickly turned towards the kitchen, then back to him. “Who the hell is she mad at?! And why?!” she demanded.

He simply pointed at the table, where the short woman saw an empty ice cream bucket with rock fragments around it. In the ruble, was a small piece of paper; a piece of paper that had a small, cartoonish fox’s head, with its tongue sticking out, drawn in the corner, and the words, in bold red, ‘MINE!’.

“Who the hell do you think?” he asked in a worried voice.

Rukia’s eyes shot wide open before she snapped back to him in shock. “You’re kidding! Again?!” she bellowed out in shock.

He simply nodded. “Again. Thank God she ‘inside’ the barrier, otherwise the Captain would think she’s finally snapped.” He pointed out.

“Miss Nel, perhaps you should stop and think this over. I can’t say for certain if this will have the desired result in Tim’s case.” Kisuke’s voice spoke out, causing Timothy and Rukia to turn just in time to see Nel walking out from the kitchen with what appeared to be a cardboard doll in her arms, the man’s zanpakutō still in her hand.

“I don’t care. I am going to make that fox pay for mocking me. Eat ‘my’ damn ice cream, will she?” the teal-haired woman hissed before vanishing with a buzz.

Timothy turned to the shop owner in worry. “Kisuke, what’s that in her hands?” he hesitantly asked.

The man turned his eyes to him, worry also written on his face. “I believe you are about to find out, Tim. Just remember, any damages the two of them cause is going on ‘your’ bill.” He warned.

The Lieutenant then dropped his head back and moaned loudly. “Why me?!” he yelled, then vanished himself.

He reappeared at the base of the ladder, followed immediately by Rukia and Kisuke, and looked to see Nel a few yards away standing the human-size figure up on its legs, his sword still in her hand.

“Nel!” he yelled, getting her attention. “What the hell are you doing? And are you seriously that pissed off because of a stupid piece of paper?” he asked in disbelief.

She narrowed her stare. “I am done being the victim of that fox’s stupid games, Tim. It’s time to settle this.” She declared, then turned back to the dummy.

Timothy closed his eyes with a deep growl. “That’s it.” He mumbled, then held out a hand to her. “Bakudō #61, Rikujōkōrō!” he chanted.

Nel was just about to stab the figure, when the six yellow blades of energy suddenly surrounded her, and stabbed through her at all sides, freezing the woman in place. She quickly turned her head to him in complete shock.

“Tim! What are you doing?!” she yelled.

He opened his eyes to her in a deathly glare. “Shut up and stay put.” He instructed firmly, then closed his eyes again. _“Get your ass out here now, or so help me, I will come in there and beat the living shit outta you!”_ he yelled inwardly.

He surely didn’t have to ask twice, as Kitsune was immediately materialized right next to him, her canine ears drooped down. Timothy then reopened his eyes and glared at the spirit.

“Get your ass over there next to her, and not one fucking word.” He demanded, then turned two his two friends. “Would you two mind giving us a few minutes?”

They both nodded, then swiftly flashed away. Timothy turned back front and walked over to the two banes of his existence. Kitsune had her head down, while Nel looked at her with fury, a very slight growl escaping her throat.

Timothy stopped in front of them and crossed his arms. “What the hell is you two’s problem? Do you two seriously hate each other that much that you would go at each other over something as stupid as ice cream?”

Nel’s head quickly snapped to him. “I…I don’t hate Kit! I’m just tired or her making fun of me so damn much!” she insisted.

He turned to the spirit, who shook her head. “I don’t hate her either, Tim. I just wanted the ice cream so bad, and I thought it would be funny to mess with her a little.”

The Lieutenant rose a brow at her. “I distinctly remember you promising ‘not’ to tease Nel anymore, Kit. I believe we made a deal on it.” He pointed out.

She dropped her head and nodded. “I know, and I’m sorry Nel. I honestly didn’t mean to make you that mad.”

“I don’t think ‘mad’ is the word to use, Kit. And you, Nel…” he started, now looking at her. “…What exactly were you about to do just now? What is that thing?” he questioned.

Nel dropped her head as well. “It’s one of Kisuke’s inventions, or something like that. He used it to help me get Gamuza back. By stabbing it with a zanpakutō, it makes the spirit come to this world. I was going to use it to force Kit out and deal with her. I let my anger get the better of me, and I apologize…to both of you.” She said in embarrassment.

Timothy sighed heavily. “So, you were going to use that to force her out? Did ever take a second to consider my situation? I have ‘two’ zanpakutō spirits in my inner world, Nel, not one. Not only would you have pulled Kit out, but you would have likely pulled ‘Johnny’ out as well. And considering that I have yet to learn his name, there’s no telling what would have happened if you forced him out.”

She dropped her head lower and closed her eyes. “I…I didn’t think about that. I’m sorry.” She admitted.

He sighed again and dropped his arms, flicking his wrist on the way down and removing the kidō from the teal-haired woman. Taking a few steps forward, he stopped right in front of them and rested his hands on their shoulders.

“Nel, I care about you, deeply. I know you didn’t mean anything, and I forgive you. And Kit, I forgive you too, but for God’s sakes, you have got to stop with all of your tricks. It may be fun to you, but ‘I’m’ the one who has to keep paying the price for them. So please, just stop. Okay?” he pleaded.

The spirit sighed in defeat. “Fine.”

Her partner smiled and nodded back. “Good. So are the two of you friends again?” he inquired.

The two women looked at each other and smiled. “Yeah, we’re friends again.” Kitsune affirmed.

“Same here.” Nel followed.

Timothy took a relaxing breath and dropped his hands. “Good. Nel, I think it would be a good idea to give Kisuke his…thing back. He didn’t seem too happy about you just storming in and taking it. And Kit, behave.” He instructed.

The spirit’s face dropped. “Why are you being nicer to her? I thought we supposed to be partners.” She whined.

He rose a brow at her. “I’m sorry, were you actually expecting me to answer that question?” he mocked.

Nel chuckled at the remark, earning a growl from the woman next to her. “I hate the both of you.” She moaned, then disappeared back into his inner world.

The teal-haired woman turned to pick up the human-sized figure, where Timothy looked at her with a firm face.

“Nel, have you spoken to Gamuza recently?” he asked.

The woman stopped and turned back to him. “Not really. She’s still pretty upset with everything. I can say that she doesn’t seem as hostile towards you though. You never did tell me what exactly happened between you two.”

Timothy sighed and crossed his arms. “No, I didn’t. And honestly, I think it would be best if you didn’t know, Nel. But I can say that my original thoughts about her were greatly misplaced.”

Nel tilted her head a bit. “What do you mean?”

“What I mean, is that, originally, I thought Gamuza was only your basic instincts as a hollow. That the only feelings she had were anger, hunger, and all the other things that make up a hollow. But as it turned out, she’s much more than that. I think that when she was split from you, she not only became your basic instincts, but also inherited some of your human emotions as well. She told me how the two of you had spent plenty of time talking, and getting along in the past. And she thinks that I stole you from her.” He informed.

Her eyes widened a bit. “What?! You stole me?! How could she think that?! I ‘chose’ to be here!” she insisted.

The man nodded slowly. “She knows that, but she believes that you chose to be here, because you wanted me more than her. The simple answer is that she’s jealous of me. I think it would be a very good idea if you and her had a long talk, Nel. All I could manage was calm her down a bit, but you’re the one who needs to ‘really’ explain the whole thing to her. Going by what she said, the two of you were really close, and I would honestly like to see the two of you be partners again.”

Nel sighed heavily, then picked up the figure and turned to face him. “So do I, Tim. I really do miss the talks her and I used to have. I never expected that she would become jealous of you. I’ll have a talk with her this evening. But right now, it’s probably best to start our search around the city for what Ulquiorra was up to.” She advised.

He nodded again in agreeance. “Sounds good. I’m gonna head out and get started after I grab a bite to eat. I think Renji should be here soon to pick you up, then you two can get started. That reminds me, when did Rukia get here? I thought she would have gone straight to searching around.” He inquired.

The woman’s face dropped a bit. “She came here a couple hours ago. She said that she was very displeased with how she handled her fight with the Arrancar, and asked if the two of us could have a match. That way, she could get some more practice in fighting Arrancar. I was a bit hesitant about it, thinking that the Captain would likely become very upset with the idea, but she was very adamant. I had come upstairs for something to drink and cool off, and that’s when…earlier happened.” she informed, now scratching her cheek with embarrassment.

Timothy’s eyes widened a bit. “That’s actually a great idea, Nel.” He stated.

She stopped her scratching and looked back at him curiously. “What is?”

The Lieutenant crossed his arms loosely. “What if we talk to the Captain, and suggest having regular spars between the members of the team and you?” he suggested.

Her eyes widened. “Are you serious, Tim? You really think that’s a good idea, considering how the Captain currently feels towards me?” she asked in worry.

He nodded back firmly. “I do. And I think ‘you’ should be the one to suggest it to him. Think about it; if you walked up to him, and offered to risk yourself, so that his team could get better training in dealing with the Arrancar, it could very well put you in a higher standing in his eyes. It could help him to trust you more.” He pointed.

She dropped her chin to her hand and hummed in thought. “It sounds good in theory Tim, but what if it doesn’t turn out? You know he’s more than likely to decline, right?”

Timothy simply shrugged a shoulder. “If he declines, oh well; you tried. He can’t hate you for trying to help him and his men, Nel. Besides, we already have Rukia to use as a testament that the training would work, seeing as how you two have already had a match.”

Nel dropped her hand and sighed. “I guess you’re right. Do you think I should speak to Renji about it while we are out?”

He nodded with a smile. “I think it would help greatly. And while you’re at it, it might not be a bad idea to talk with him and get to know him better.” He advised.

The woman smiled back and nodded again. “Alright. I’ll speak with the Captain the next time I get a chance.”

Rukia flashed into place next the pair, where they turned to her. “Renji’s here, Nel. He’s mooching breakfast off of Kisuke right now, so you’ve got a few minutes to finish up here.” She informed.

Timothy shrugged his shoulders. “We’re pretty much done, we were just discussing another matter. I was telling Nel that it would be a good idea to offer to train with the Captain and the rest of the team, like you did earlier.”

The short woman turned to the taller. “That would be very helpful. I’m sure Captain Hitsugaya won’t like the idea at first, but I think we can convince him to accept the idea. After spending just a few hours with Nel, I already feel a little more confident for the next fight with the Arrancars.” She assured.

“Not only that…” Timothy opened, getting the womens’ attentions. “…but you guys would also be training with the former Quinto Espada. So, if you guys are able to beat Nel, that means you should be able to handle at least the higher half of Aizen’s Espada.” He pointed out.

Rukia nodded firmly. “That’s true, and I don’t think Captain Hitsugaya would turn down an opportunity to see exactly what we’re up against. When were you planning on talking to him?” she asked.

“Sometime later today, if I get the chance. If not, then soon.” Nel answered.

The short woman nodded again. “Let me know when you do, I’ll give you a hand in trying to talk him into it.” She offered.

Timothy chuckled a bit. “Yeah, we discussed that one already. She’s gonna talk to Renji while they’re out searching. Anyway, we should get going. What part of the city were you heading to, Rukia?”

She looked back at him. “The Captain said we should each start where we had our battles last night, and slowly work our way around before closing in towards the center. So I’ll be heading to the southeast, towards the docks and warehouses. You’ll be heading north, while Yumichika takes the area where Rangiku fought, seeing as how she’s still recovering. He wants us to take our time and search every inch until evening. Afterwards, we’ll all meet back here and discuss any findings.”

The Lieutenant nodded in affirmation. “Got it. I guess I’ll head out then. See you guys this evening.” He said, then vanished.

Rukia then turned to Nel and crossed her arms. “So tell me, were you really about to try and kill Kit over ice cream?” she questioned with a serious face.

Nel’s own face dropped with a low moan. “I am never going to hear the end of that…am I?” she whined.

The shorter woman smirked at her. “Don’t worry, Nel, I’m not evil like Kit is. But that doesn’t mean I don’t find the whole thing funny. You do realize that you can always get her back, right?” she stated.

Her friend rose a brow at her. “Rukia…this is ‘Kit’ we’re talking about here. If I retaliate against her, it’s only going to become worse for me. And to be honest, I really don’t know how much more of her teasing I can take.” She warned.

Rukia rose a brow back. “So, you’d rather sit in a corner and not fight back? Sounds like you you’re scared, Nel.” She taunted.

The woman narrowed her gaze and growled very deeply. “I am ‘not’ scared! What do you have in mind?” she hissed.

The short woman then walked up closer, and gestured with her finger for Nel to bend down. Cupping a hand to her mouth, Rukia whispered lowly into the Arrancar’s ear, giving the woman very explicit instructions.

The teal-haired woman’s eyes went wide before she backed away and stared at the short woman with shock. “That’s mean Rukia!” she declared, but a second later, grinned evilly. “But I like it.” She said in a dangerous tone.

Rukia chuckled as she turned to leave, but stopped and glanced back over her shoulder. “By the way, I have nothing to do with this.” She asserted, then vanished.

Nel shook her head slowly with closed eyes. “I’m sorry Tim, but I’m going to get that fox back at least once. I hope you’ll forgive me for this.” She mumbled, then buzzed away.

** Northeast Side of Karakura Town, 5 Hours Later **

Renji walked out of a small convenience store, a small plastic bag in his hand and turned to see Nel walking up to him. He reached inside the bag and retrieved a small pre-packed sandwich and a can of juice.

As the woman stopped next to him, he held the two items out to her. “Here. Not sure what kind of stuff you like, so I hope this’ll work.” He offered.

Nel took the juice and sandwich from him and smiled. “It’s fine. Thank you, Renji.” She returned, then started pulling the wrapper off her food.

“See anything?” he asked.

The woman took a bite, then shook her head. She took a moment to chew and swallow her food before speaking. “Sorry, but I didn’t see anything. There were a few humans talking about some broken buildings, and possible ‘gas explosions’, but I think they are talking about what happened last night.” She informed.

Renji opened a can of soda and took a quick drink. “Yeah, I’m not surprised. That’s usually the excuse they come up with when we cause accidental damage while doing our jobs. But the team’s mission budget pays for the repairs. The soul society usually transfers the funds to a construction company, along with the work orders, and the companies fix the buildings.”

Nel turned back to him with a curious face. “So, all the damaged buildings from last night are paid for by the soul society?”

The Lieutenant nodded and took another drink. “Yeah. It’s our jobs to protect the souls of the living, not disturb their lives. So it’s only fair that we fix up anything that we break.”

She turned back front and hummed. “I see. It makes me wish I had gone to the soul society instead of becoming a hollow after I died.” She said in a mumble.

Renji glance at her with a raised brow. “Do you remember anything from when you were alive?” he inquired.

Nel shook her head slowly. “No. I just know that it was a long time ago that I died, at least a few decades. Besides that, I don’t remember anything.” She answered, then raised her hand to take a bite of her sandwich.

The man looked at her intently. “Do you regret being a hollow?” he questioned with a low voice.

The woman stopped with the sandwich and inch from her mouth, frozen in place for a moment. A second later, she lowered her hand and sighed lightly. Renji rose a brow when he saw a frown come to the woman’s face.

“Why do you ask?” she wondered aloud.

Renji turned to her fully and rest his free hand on his hip. “You always seem to get upset whenever the fact you’re a hollow is mentioned. Like you hate the fact that you are one.” He pointed out carefully.

She moved her head to look at him, and he could see sadness in her eyes. “I do hate it. I hate being what I am. As long as I can remember, I’ve always felt empty inside, and I despised it. The other Arrancar all think the feeling is just natural, like we were meant to be this way. But I always thought different. Even before I became an Arrancar, I knew that this feeling was wrong. It just wasn’t who I was. Eventually, I gave up, and accepted the fact that I am what I am, and that there was nothing I could do about it.”

The woman turned her head to look at the random humans walking about. “I envy you, Renji. I envy all of the soul reapers. You all have a purpose in your life, a meaning, something to fight for. But hollows have nothing. Besides feeding on human souls, and surviving, there is no purpose in our lives. We’re essentially useless. Nothing more than a hindrance to the world.”

She then returned back to the Lieutenant. “That was the main reason why I joined Aizen. He promised me a purpose. A reason to live. At the time, I honestly didn’t care what his mission was, I just wanted my life to have meaning.” The woman lowered her head a bit. “But it proved to be nothing more than a mistake. Once I saw Aizen for what he truly was, I instantly regretted joining him. If Aizen had not turned on me when he did, I would have likely left him anyway. I was already a monster, and I didn’t want to become something worse, evil.” She finished.

Renji’s face drooped a little as he began to pity the poor woman. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to make ya feel bad.” He offered.

Nel lightly scoffed and smiled. “It’s okay, Renji. I just wish there was a way that I could change what I am.” She then chuckled lowly, making the Lieutenant raise a brow. “Who knows…if I ‘had’ gone to the soul society instead, I might have ended up being a soul reaper myself.” She admitted.

The man’s other brow rose in shock at her statement. “Well…I can honestly say I never expected an Arrancar to say that. That’s a new one for me.” He returned.

The former Espada laughed at that. “Yes, I guess it is a bit dumb, isn’t it? Someone like me being a soul reaper?”

His face then dropped to seriousness. “I didn’t say that, Nel. I wasn’t making fun of you, just pointing out that it’s not something you hear every day. And you seem to be forgetting something.” He started.

Nel looked at him with a tilted head. “What’s that?”

“The fact that you don’t ‘have’ to be a soul reaper to have a purpose in life. You may be a hollow, but you’ve chosen to look for a purpose in your life. You were given a shitty deck to deal with in your life, but at least you’re fighting to make it better for yourself. I mean damn, you’re a hollow, and you’re friends with a bunch of soul reapers, in a relationship with one of them. You can’t fix the fact that you’re a hollow Nel, but at least you’ve chosen to make the best of it. And who knows, there ‘still’ is that possibility that the soul society might accept you and let you be.” The man said firmly.

The woman sighed heavily. “You and I both know that won’t happen, Renji. I’ll admit that possibility does exist, but the simple fact is that it just won’t happen. The best I could hope for, is imprisonment. I am not trying to say anything against you or the soul society Renji, I am merely seeing things how they are.”

Renji shook his head in disbelief. “Even so, don’t you think that it’s still worth trying?” he pressed.

She nodded firmly. “I do. Why do you think I’m trying so hard to earn the Captain’s trust? I’m not doing it for me, Renji. I am not afraid to die, nor anything else the soul society can do to me. I am doing this for Tim, so that when I am discovered, he might not be punished as harshly.”

The man continued to stare in to her eyes. “You care for him that much?”

Nel again nodded firmly. “Very much. It seems that you are the one who is forgetting something now, Renji. I am essentially the walking embodiment of loyalty. There is literally nothing that I wouldn’t do for Tim. And not just because of my loyalty towards him, but also because of my feelings for him. Tell me Renji, is there not someone that ‘you’ care deeply for?” she questioned.

Renji’s cheeks flushed red a bit as his eyes widened. “Uh…I guess…you can say that.” He half answered.

The woman furrowed her brows. “I’ll take that as a yes, and I will also take it that you understand exactly what I am saying, correct?”

He nodded. “Yeah…I do. But tell me something, just how much ‘do’ you care for Tim? And I swear I’m not going to say anything to anyone.” He asked calmly.

Nel closed her eyes with a loud exhale. “Does it matter?”

The man shrugged a shoulder as he finished his drink. “Just curious is all. It’s not like I’m gonna tie you down and torture you for the answer, or anything.” He stated.

She chuckled at his comment. “I think we both know that that would be one of the worst mistakes you could make, Renji. Tim would kill you for that.” She teased.

He snorted with a roll of the eyes. “Can’t argue on that one. And to think that I thought Ichigo had the worst temper.” He droaned.

Nel chuckled even more. “He does get upset very easily, I’ll admit that; but we can both agree that he does it for the right reasons.” She pointed.

Renji sighed with a nod. “Yeah, I can’t really argue that one either. But ‘you’ can’t deny the fact that his temper is going to get him in a lot of trouble someday.”

The woman smiled warmly at him. “Well, that’s why he has friends like you and Rukia; to help keep him out of trouble.”

A beeping sound broke the pair’s conversation, where Renji pulled out his soul pager from his back pocket and flipped it open. He pressed a button on the keypad to silence the alarm as he looked at the screen.

“Speaking of trouble, there’s a hollow attacking nearby, and I’m the only one close. We’ll have to finish this later.” He said, and quickly swallowed one of his soul pills, ejecting his soul form from his faux body.

“I’ll come with you.” She offered.

Renji shook his head. “You can’t use flash step, or rather sonído while you’re in your gigai; and the instant you get out of it while outside Kisuke’s barrier, the soul society would likely find out about you. It shouldn’t take more than a few minutes, so you can wait here if you want, or you can keep looking around.”

Nel rose a brow at him. “You trust me to be left alone? I seriously doubt the Captain will be happy about that.” She pointed.

The man smirked slyly. “Don’t worry about it. I won’t tell him if you won’t. The mod soul will follow behind you, so that I can find you when I’m done. Be back in a few.” He said, then vanished.

The woman sighed before turning to the artificial soul. “Well, I guess we’ll keeping searching.” She stated, getting a nod from the soul.

The two of them resumed walking while Nel continued eating her sandwich. Every now and then, she would stop and enter a random store; listening to the conversations of the humans inside to see if they had heard anything.

It was as she was walking out of one of the stores, that she turned and saw Orihime with her back to the woman and walking away. Nel’s face lit up as she entered a brisk jog to catch up to the orange-haired teenager.

“Orihime!” she called out.

The young woman stopped walking and turned around with surprised eyes. “Nel?”

Nel caught up to her and stopped her run, smiling brightly at the teen. “Afternoon, Orihime. How are you doing?” she asked.

Orihime smiled back. “I’m fine. And what about you?” she returned.

The older woman shrugged a shoulder. “Alright I guess. Me and Renji were just doing our search around this part of the city, but he had to leave and take care of a hollow attack.”

The teen then looked at Nel with concern. “Don’t you feel…upset that he’s…” she opened, unable to finish.

Nel shook her head slowly. “No, it doesn’t bother me, Orihime. That’s because I know Renji’s not actually ‘killing’ the hollow per se, but he’s actually ‘purifying’ it’s soul and sending it to the soul society.” She reassured. She then sighed heavily. “That hollow is actually quite lucky that it’s gets to go to the soul society. If it were me…I would simply vanish.”

Orihime lowered her head in sadness. “I’m sorry that you have to live like this, Nel. I feel so bad for you.”

The woman looked at the teen firmly. “Don’t be, Orihime. None of this is your fault, and you shouldn’t feel sorry for something you have no control over. It might not be possible for my soul to be purified, but I have chosen to make the best from what I have. But enough about that, how was school?” she asked with a smile.

The teen smiled back. “It was okay, though I was a little late for my second class.”

Nel’s smile fell. “I’m sorry we made you late, Orihime.” She offered.

Orihime quickly shook her head. “No, it’s fine. I just told the teacher that I wasn’t feeling well this morning. It’s just a little extra homework after school is all. I was just on my way to get something sweet to eat. Would you like to come with me?” she offered.

The woman’s eyes went wide. “Can we go for ice cream?” she pleaded.

The girl quickly nodded. “That sounds great! There’s another place nearby that has some!” she responded gleefully.

Nel rose a curious brow. “They wouldn’t happen to have cookie dough flavor, would they?” she inquired.

Orihime touched a finger to her chin with a hum. “I think so…Why, is it your favorite?”

The woman shook her head slowly. “I never had the chance to try some, but I would like to get some for Kit as a peace offering.”

The teen tilted her head. “Peace offering?”

Nel waved the girl off gently. “It’s nothing. Kit and I just had a little…confrontation this morning, and I thought it would be a good idea to give her something as an…apology.” She assured.

Orihime straightened her head with a worried look. “Did you two…get into a fight?” she wondered.

“You could say that. But we have already settled our differences, and we are friends again. So, shall we get going? Our heavenly treats await.” Nel teased.

The girl nodded quickly. “Yes, let’s go.” she affirmed.

Renji then appeared next to them and swiftly returned to his gigai; coughing up the soul pill before turning to the teen. “Hey Orihime. You done with school?” he asked.

She nodded with a smile. “Hi Renji, and yes, school is over for the day. Nel and I were about to go get some ice cream. Would you like to join us?” she offered.

He held up a hand to her. “No thanks, ice cream’s not really my thing. But you can go ahead, Nel. I’ll check a few more blocks, then come back to pick you back up.” He stated.

The woman smiled and nodded. “Thanks, Renji. I’ll see you in a bit.”

The man nodded back, then turned and started walking away, where Nel turned back to her friend. “Ready to go?” she asked.

Orihime smiled warmly. “Ready.” She affirmed.

The pair then started walking down the sidewalk towards their scoops of heaven.

** Urahara Shop, 3 Hours Later **

The sun was beginning to set when everyone returned to the shop, and they now found themselves sitting around the dining room table and were delivering their reports, one after the other.

Nel was sitting next to Timothy, while a materialized Kitsune sat at his other side with closed eyes while she rested. The Lieutenant was busy giving his own report, which was essentially just like the others: nothing. Nel leaned back against the wall and reached behind Timothy to tap the spirit on the shoulder.

The woman turned to her, where Nel gestured with her finger to lean closer. They both lean in when Nel cupped a hand over her mouth and spoke softly.

“I wanted to apologize for earlier, Kit; so, I got something for you. It’s in the freezer.” She offered.

Kitsune’s eyes went wide. “Really?!” she asked in surprise, getting a nod in affirmation.

The spirit quickly shot to her feet and bolted to the kitchen. Timothy stopped his report, and looked at Nel with a raised brow.

“What’s that about?” he inquired.

The woman smiled warmly. “I got her something for what happened this morning. I think she’ll enjoy it.” She answered.

Kitsune then came running back to the table and sat back down, turning to Nel with a wide smile. “Thank you so much, Nel!” she said swiftly.

The woman nodded as Timothy turned around to see a small, pint-sized bucket of cookie dough ice cream in one hand, and a spoon in the other. The lieutenant quickly turned back to the teal-haired woman with a skeptical face.

“That fight was ‘over’ cookie dough ice cream, and this is how you apologize…‘with’ cookie dough ice cream?” he asked in confusion.

Nel nodded firmly. “I wanted to get her something for what happened, and I thought that this would be the perfect thing.” She offered, then turned to Rukia to see a knowing grin on the short woman’s face.

The lid was off of the bucket in an instant, and before it could possibly don on the spirit that something was off, she was already shoving spoonful after spoonful of Nel’s token of ‘apology’ into her mouth.

It wasn’t until after six or seven spoonful’s that Kitsune suddenly stopped eating, pausing with the spoon still in her mouth. Her eyes went wide as saucers, before she spit the contents of her mouth back into the bucket.

The woman started yelling out in pain as she held her throat, quickly jumping back up and running as fast as she could, trampling Timothy in route, back into the kitchen. The whole table watched as the spirit ran away, then turned back to Nel with mixed emotions.

Rukia’s grin grew even wider. “I wonder what’s wrong with Kit…what do you think Nel?” she asked slyly.

Nel gave the woman a faked look of concern. “I’m not sure, Rukia. All I did was give her some ice cream.” She responded. She then cupped her chin in her hand. “Though I did add a little bit of ‘flavor’ to it.” She offered.

Timothy growled with a dropped face. “What did you do?” he moaned.

The woman reached into her pants pocket and pulled out a small bottle with a red, powdery substance inside. She held it out to show him and tilted her head.

“It says that it adds ‘savory flavor’ to your food, and I just wanted to make sure Kit enjoyed ‘her’ ice cream.” She answered.

Everyone’s eyes went wide when they saw the bottle’s label that read ‘Red Hot Smoking Pot Chili Seasoning’. Timothy’s eyes rolled up to Nel to now see a very sly, and evil grin plastered on the woman’s face.

“Is this not meant for ice cream, Tim?” she inquired.

Renji, Rukia, Ikkaku, Yumichika, Rangiku, and Kisuke all burst out laughing, while Toshiro slapped a hand to his face with a very loud moan; along with Timothy, who was now staring at the Arrancar with annoyance.

“Why did you have to do that?” he whined.

Nel turned to Rukia with a raised brow. “What was the term you said earlier, Rukia?” she asked. The other then rose. “Oh, that’s right…” she started, then looked towards the kitchen to see Kitsune with her mouth held open under the running faucet. “…‘revenge is bitter sweet’, or in this case, spicy sweet.” She stated with a devious smile. “Did you enjoy your ‘ice cream’ Kit?” she yelled out.

The spirit lifted her head from the sink and glared at the woman with her long tongue hanging out the side of her mouth. Nel could hear the animalistic snarl that was radiating from the woman’s throat.

“I guing tha kell hou fa hat!” she slurred.

“Actually…” Timothy started, causing everyone to turn and see an approving smile on his face now. “…I think you deserved that one, Kit. I’m surprised that Nel actually had the guts to do that; and frankly, I’m glad she did. Maybe that’ll teach you a lesson not to go overboard with you teasing anymore.” He stated.

The sprit stomped her foot hard on the floor. “I hay hou!” she ‘declared’.

His smile grew wider.

**_“…You do…realize…that…her teasing…will only…become…worse now…correct?”_** ‘Johnny’ pointed.

Timothy’s smile instantly fell. _“…Fuck…”_ He then turned back to Nel with a distraught face. “Nel…now that I think about it…I think the only thing you’ve done, is trade a playful vixen, for the devil’s handmaiden.” He informed.

Everyone immediately stopped laughing as Kisuke’s eyes widened to extreme proportions. “My dear Nel…what have you done…” he said in a very fretful voice.

The woman swallowed hard as sweat began pouring from her forehead. “Dug her own grave.” Ikkaku answered, earning swift nods from everyone at the table, including Toshiro.

“I believe you may want to consider imprisonment in the soul society, Nel. It seems that may be the only thing that can save you now.” The Captain stated.

Nel rolled her eyes to him. “I think I would rather prefer the execution instead, Captain.” She corrected.

Renji then looked at his empty wrist. “Oh, look what time it is. I think I’ll head out for the night.” He stated, then swiftly stood up and vanished.

“I think I’ll turn in as well.” Rukia followed, instantly jumping to her own feet before vanishing as well.

“Same here.” Ikkaku added, then he and Yumichika both vanished.

Rangiku turned to her Captain with a pleading stare, where he nodded. “I would rather not be present for the hell that is about to come, so I must retire as well.” He informed, earning a quick shake of the head from his Lieutenant.

They two officers disappeared, where Kisuke stood up. “I think I’m gonna check the lab to make sure everything is tied down.” He said, then walked away.

Timothy and Nel both stared at the now empty seats in front of them with fallen faces. “…Traitors.” He moaned.

Kitsune then walked out from the kitchen, stopping in front of the table and crossing her arms firmly as she looked down to glare at the teal-haired woman. Nel sunk her head into her shoulders under the vixen’s evil stare.

Timothy was no better, as he had to sit there and try to figure out a way to stop, or at the very least reduce the fight that was sure to come. He slowly looked up at his zanpakutō spirit as she stood solid as a statue.

They both backed away a bit when the spirit suddenly grinned widely. “You got me.” She said in a, shockingly, very calm voice. “You actually got me.” She repeated, then chuckled, causing Timothy and Nel to both raise a brow.

“Huh?” he choked out.

Kitsune then started laughing. “I honestly expected something from you Nel, but I never thought you would do something so devious as sabotaging my favorite food. You’re almost as devious as I am. Well done.” She offered.

Nel swallowed hard again. “So…are you mad…or not?” she hesitantly asked.

The spirit laughed harder before shaking her head. “I’m mad that you ruined a perfectly good bucket of cookie dough ice cream Nel, but not at the fact that you finally got the courage to trick me back. So, I’m willing to give you a choice, Nel.”

It was Timothy’s turn to swallow hard, knowing that whatever the evil fox had in mind, it was ‘not’ going to be beneficial to his health.

“Oh no.” he fretted.

“Join me, and help me in my endeavors of torturing Tim…” she started, then held up a finger. “…or, accept responsibility for your actions, and become my new target.” She offered.

Both of their eyes shot wide open before turning to each other in shock. “You wouldn’t! Come on Nel, I thought you had feelings for me!” he said in a frightened voice.

“What’s it going to be, Nel?” Kitsune pressed, causing the woman to look at her.

Nel began sweating profusely as she struggled to determine the better choice. **_“Her! Choose her! I am not going to sit in here and pay for your stupid mistakes, Nelliel! Don’t make me take over again! The brat will get over it! I won’t!”_** Gamuza yelled in her head.

The woman then turned back to Timothy, who was giving her very pleading eyes. “I’m…I’m sorry Tim…” she started, causing his eyes to widen further.

“You…you would do that to me?!” he asked in shock.

She quickly shook her head. “No…I mean…I would never torture you like that.” She stated, then looked at Kitsune and narrowed her eyes.

**_“Fool! You’re going to kill us both!”_** her inner hollow screamed.

Nel growled at the spirit in front of her with a firm glare. “I choose to side with Tim, not you.”

Timothy nearly passed out from the sudden relief, but Kitsune rose a dangerous brow at the teal-haired woman. “So, you’re saying you would rather be the victim, than have the easy way out?” she questioned.

The woman nodded firmly. “Do what you want Kit, I am not going to turn against Tim!” she answered.

The spirit kept her stare at the woman for a moment, then finally sighed with slumped shoulders. “I’m not going to do anything, Nel. Tim’s actually right that I deserved that, so I can’t really get you back for it. And I did promise Tim that I would avoid teasing you as much as I could. So I’ll let you off the hook this time. I’m glad to see that you’re willing to put yourself out there for Tim, and I’m also glad that the two of you are together.” She stated.

The spirit turned and walked toward the hallway to the bedrooms, stopping in the doorway and looking back at the pair with a sly grin.

“Just do me a favor and hold off on having kids for a while, would ya?” she teased.

Nel’s face turned beat red with embarrassment, while Timothy’s went red with fury. “I’ll kill you!” he yelled.

The spirit took off into the hallway, followed very closely by a fuming Timothy as he shook a fist at her.

“You damn fox! Get back here now!”

** Karasu River, Present **

Toshiro stood silently at the edge of the river, close to the main bridge that spanned across it. He stared down into the water, watching as the occasional fish or two swam by with the river’s current.

It was a moment later when he closed his eyes, taking a deep and calming breath with his head lowered.

“My my, it sure is a beautiful night tonight. Don’t you agree, Captain Hitsugaya?” a calm, and friendly male voice asked to his right.

The Captain opened his eyes again and side-glanced the owner of the voice, who was standing in the shadows of the bridge supports. His gaze narrowed with annoyance towards the man as he sighed heavily.

“I agree, although I didn’t ask you to come here to talk about the weather; I asked you here because I have something very important I wished to discuss with you, Captain Kyōraku.” Toshiro returned.


	32. New Problems

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 32

**(New Problems)**

** Karasu River, Present **

The Squad 8 Captain smiled warmly as he walked out from the shadows, his right arm tucked under his pink kimono that hung over his shoulders, and his left hand holding the brim of his large straw hat that he always wore.

“Come now, Captain Hitsugaya, you should take a moment to relax. After the Captains got word about what happened last night with the Arrancar, many of us were quite worried about you and your team; you in particular, seeing as how you rarely take any time for yourself.” Shunsui stated warmly.

The shorter man sighed again and crossed his arms. “I don’t mean to be rude, Captain Kyōraku, but I would strongly prefer that we conclude this conversation quickly. I’m sure it won’t be long before the soul society finds out you came to the world of the living without authorization. And the last thing I need at the moment, is people getting suspicious.” He informed as calmly as possible.

Toshiro really had no quarrels with the playful and lazy Captain of Squad 8, he actually liked the man, but it always irked him that the man had a bad habit of trying to make simple conversation when there were far more important matters at hand.

Shunsui chuckled lowly as he smiled more. “I guess you’ve got a point there. So, what is it you wanted to discuss, Captain? Considering that you asked me to come without anyone knowing, I assume it doesn’t have anything to do with the Arrancar attack, am I right?” he inquired.

The short Captain nodded firmly. “You’re correct. Although, before we begin, I need you to promise to keep everything we discuss between ourselves, Captain Kyōraku.”

The kind man rose a brow, surprised at the very young Captain’s secrecy. “Alright, I’m listening.” He affirmed.

Toshiro sighed heavily before turning and walking up to the tall Captain. “It’s regarding Lieutenant Durn.” He started.

“The new kid?” Shunsui asked, getting a nod.

“Yes. It seems that, during his mission to deal with that energy absorbing hollow, he came across a strange woman.” Toshiro continued.

Shunsui grinned a bit. “A woman you say? Is she a looker?” he teased.

Toshiro growled in annoyance. “Would you ‘please’ be serious about this, Captain? Because of…certain circumstances, I cannot discuss the full details regarding the woman; however, it can be said that this woman would very easily be viewed by the soul society as a threat.”

The Squad 8 Captain rose his brow again. “A threat? As in she’s currently dangerous to us, or that she is somebody that is a ‘part’ of something that is dangerous?” he questioned.

“The latter, at least in past tense. As I said, I cannot go into details about her. But the problem, is that Lieutenant Durn has promised to protect her, and is extremely adamant in doing so.” The shorter man added.

“I see. And I’m sure that the kid is aware that if she is considered dangerous by the soul society, that he’s putting himself at risk by protecting her, right?” Shunsui asked.

Toshiro nodded. “He’s fully aware, but he has made it very clear that he is not concerned about it. He firmly believes that she is not who we think she is, that she is a kind person.”

“Interesting. But what about you, Captain Hitsugaya? Seeing as how you and your team has been here for three weeks, I can assume that you have been around her at least a few times. So, what is your opinion of the woman? Do you think she is a threat to the soul society?” the taller man inquired calmly.

The shorter man turned to the river with a small exhale. “I can’t say. I admit that she has yet to do anything that could be viewed as a threat, and the rest of the team seems to have accepted her. But considering her circumstances, I have no doubt that the soul society would likely try and have her executed if she were discovered, and Tim would be severely punished.”

Shunsui rose both brows in surprise. “Executed? Why would the soul society want to execute the woman just by discovering her? Just who ‘is’ she, Captain Hitsugaya?” she asked quickly.

Toshiro looked back at his peer. “I told you, I cannot go into details regarding her. I am breaking my promise towards Tim by even having this discussion with you as it is.”

Kyōraku pulled his right hand out from under his kimono and held it up. “Alright alright, I just find it difficult to believe that you would think that the soul society would just execute the woman like that.” He placated, then returned his hand.

The short Captain turned back to the river. “That’s not the only problem. It would also be safe to say that, if the woman ‘is’ discovered, Tim would side with her.”

The Squad 8 Captain tilted his head a bit. “Are you saying that the kid would turn against us if we were to do something against her?”

Toshiro nodded. “That’s why I asked you to come here. I could use some advice from someone of your stature. I know I need to report her, but as much as I hate to admit it, I’m starting to think that the Lieutenant may be right; that the woman is not who we think she is. I’m also starting to think that she could be valuable to us in the war against Aizen. So tell me Captain…” He paused to turn and face the taller man. “…what would you do in this situation?”

Shunsui lowered his left hand and placed it inside his kimono as well. “That’s a tough one, Captain Hitsugaya. You do realize that if she’s viewed as dangerous by the soul society, you could also get in serious trouble for not reporting her, right?”

The smaller Captain sighed and nodded. “I am. Tim stated that he would not openly fight against the soul society, but if I report her, we lose a powerful Lieutenant, one with a Bankai. Not only that, he is the only soul reaper in the soul society that has fought against an Espada, two of them, so his experience is greatly needed. We simply cannot afford to lose him as an asset.”

Kyōraku nodded back just as firmly. “I would have to agree with you. Since you’re asking for my advice, and that’s if you are willing to take the risk, I suggest trusting the kid.”

Toshiro rose a brow. “So, you’re saying to ‘not’ report her?” he questioned.

The Squad 8 Captain smiled a bit. “I’m saying, you should hold off reporting on the woman until you can say with full certainty that she is either with us, or against us. Like you said, we can’t afford to lose the kid as an asset. And if the kid is right about her, we’ll have gained another asset for the war. So, are you sure you can’t tell me more about who she is? I may even be able to give you a hand.” He offered.

Hitsugaya shook his head slowly. “I’m sorry, but it would probably be better if you didn’t know, Captain. Just promise me you won’t say anything.”

Shunsui chuckled. “I’m not exactly sure what you’re talking about, Captain Hitsugaya. I just came here for some fresh air, and maybe acquire a little sake. My stores are a bit low at the moment, and personally, I prefer the stuff they have here in the world of the living above what they sell in the soul society. I can’t exactly help it if I just happened to run into you while I am here, can I?”

Toshiro breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank you for your help, Captain Kyōraku.”

The man waved him off. “What are fellow Captains for? If you need any more help with your situation, don’t be afraid to ask. But I should warn you though, after last night, Squad 12 has been paying much closer attention to anything that happens here in the world of the living. So, if you plan to keep them from finding out about the woman, I suggest you keep her indoors as much as possible.” He stated firmly.

“Thank you for the warning. I appreciate the help, Captain.” Toshiro said with a bow.

Shunsui again waved him off. “Anytime, kid. I should get back now. My sweet Nanao is probably worried about right about now.” He joked.

The man then drew his short zanpakutō and stuck it into the empty air, half of the blade disappearing, before twisting it a quarter turn clockwise, then turning it back. As he pulled it back, a large, double-door portal appeared in front of him.

The two doors slid apart, revealing a blinging white space beyond, where a hell butterfly flew out and hovered around the Captain’s head. Shunsui took a step forward into the light as he sheathed his zanpakutō, but stopped and glanced back over his shoulder.

“Oh yeah, I almost forgot; Lieutenant Hinamori woke up a few days ago.” He informed, causing Toshiro’s eyes to widen.

“Momo?! She’s awake?! Is she alright?!” he asked in worry.

Shunsui smiled warmly. “According to Retsu, she’s fine. It might be a while before she can resume her duties as Lieutenant, but she’ll recover just fine. I’d give her your regards, but then I was never actually here now, was I?”

Toshiro sighed very heavily in relief. “Thank very much for telling me, Captain Kyōraku. I will make an inquiry about her when I deliver my finalized reports to the Head Captain. Thank you for your time.”

The taller man smiled wider with a nod, before turning and walking into the while portal. As he cleared them, the doors slowly slid shut before the portal slowly faded from existence; leaving the short man staring into the empty air it left behind.

The Captain turned back towards the river and breathed slowly as he stared at the starry sky above him. He was absolutely relieved to learn that his longtime friend from before he even became a soul reaper was finally awake and getting better.

But at the same time, that relief was countered by the advice the Squad 8 Captain had given him. Shunsui had told him to trust Timothy, basically also telling him to trust Nel as well. He couldn’t deny that the woman was trying her hardest to prove herself, but after Aizen had very nearly killed his childhood friend, he found it exceedingly difficult to trust anyone; especially an Arrancar.

He felt bad that he had gone against his promise in a way by telling the man about Nel, but he was so lost on what to do that he ‘needed’ a second opinion from someone who was not involved. And Captain Kyōraku was only person he could trust to keep the matter a secret.

Toshiro took another deep breath before letting it out slowly. “I suppose I should deliver my report.” He mumbled to himself, then flashed away.

** Orihime’s Apartment, 10 Minutes Later **

The Squad 10 Captain was now waiting patiently before the large, staticky screen in the spare room of Orihime’s apartment, waiting for the connection to the soul society to be completed. As usual, he didn’t have to wait long as the image became clear to show a large, short, green-skinned man.

“Good evening, Captain. Where can I transfer your call?” he asked calmly.

“To the Head Captain’s office. I have my finalized reports for him.” The Captain answered.

The green man nodded. “One moment please, Captain.” He returned.

The screen then went dark and fuzzy for a moment, then swiftly lit back up with the figure of Head Captain Yamamoto standing in his office. Toshiro could tell right away that the powerful man seemed agitated about something, and decided it was best to make his report as quickly as possible.

“Captain Hitsugaya, I am pleased to see you are alive and well after the Arrancar’s attacks. I trust that the rest of your team are well?” the man asked kindly.

Toshiro nodded. “Yes, Head Captain, although it can be said that we were very fortunate the matter didn’t turn out far worse. It seems that we have greatly underestimated the Arrancar’s capabilities. Had it not been for Kisuke Urahara and Ichigo Kurosaki’s intervention, it’s safe to say that my team and I would have likely been defeated. Please forgive my boldness Head Captain, but why was our request for the removal of our limiters not approved?” he questioned.

Yamamoto stared firmly at the short man. “What do you mean, Captain Hitsugaya? That request never came before me.” He stated with surprise.

The short man’s eyes widened. “Our request never made it to you?! Are you saying that you were never made aware of our request?!” he asked in shock.

The Head Captain hummed in thought. “No, as far as I am aware, your request was never made. If it had, I would have approved the removal of your spiritual limiters. Are you sure that the request was made?”

Toshiro nodded firmly. “Rangiku assures me that she had insisted heavily that we needed those limiters removed, and I believe her, Head Captain. Did the request even make it to Squad 12?”

Yamamoto turned to his side for a brief moment, then back to him. “I am having my Lieutenant look into the matter as we speak. We will determine what happened with your request and deal with this lack of responsibility immediately. In the meantime, I am hereby approving the release of your spiritual limiters, should you again feel the need for it. But we will discuss more on this at a later time. What of your report on the Arrancar that were present during the battle?”

The young Captain crossed his arms tightly and lowered his head. “As I had said, their powers have been greatly underestimated. There were six of them, one of them being an Espada, whom Lieutenant Durn had fought against.”

The powerful man on the screen raised a brow. “Are you saying that our new Lieutenant was the one who fought against this Espada? Why was it he, and not yourself who fought against this foe?” he questioned.

Hitsugaya rose his head to the man. “Lieutenant Durn did not have a limiter placed on him at the time, making him the strongest one here. He was also the closest one to the Espada when they arrived. Considering the circumstances Head Captain, he was the best person to fight against the Espada. But that is not what concerns me at the moment.”

Yamamoto’s brow dropped. “Please explain, Captain Hitsugaya.”

The man took a deep breath. “At the end of the battle, a second Espada appeared. But what is concerning, is what the Espada had said before they left to return to Hueco Mundo.”

The powerful man hummed. “And what did this Espada say?”

“He said that their mission was complete. At this time, the other five Arrancar had already been defeated, leaving only the two of them. They had effectively been beaten, but he somehow believed their mission was still a success. We have all come to the conclusion that the attack was actually a distraction, while the second Espada was doing something else inside the city. I am having my team search the entire city to try and determine what that Espada’s mission might have been, but so far we have not found anything.” He informed.

Yamamoto hummed again as he stroked his long beard in thought. “This is very concerning indeed. I want you to continue with your investigation, Captain Hitsugaya. If Sōsuke Aizen is willing to sacrifice five of his Arrancar, and nearly one of his Espada for this mission, we need to find out what that mission was. I am giving you full authority to do what you feel to be best in order to discover this Espada’s true purpose.”

Toshiro nodded in understanding. “Yes, Head Captain. However, there one more thing that I believe you should be aware about. Lieutenant Durn stated that during his fight, the Espada had possibly tried to use the zanpakutō sealing device on him again. But for some reason, it didn’t seem to work this time.” Yamamoto rose a curious brow. “Urahara is running some tests to see if either the Lieutenant has somehow become immune to its effects, or if the device was simply broken at the time. I will keep you informed of what he discovers.”

The powerful man nodded. “See that you do. We have also been having Squad 12 look into this strange device as well; however, they have not made any progress on the matter. Thank you for your report, Captain Hitsugaya. You are dismissed.”

The man held a hand up. “If I may, Head Captain.” He started.

“What is it, Captain Hitsugaya?” the Head Captain pressed.

Toshiro dropped his hand. “I was hoping if I may inquire to the condition of Lieutenant Hinamori.” He asked.

Yamamoto hummed lowly. “Lieutenant Hinamori has regained consciousness, and is recovering well. Although, Captain Unohana reports that it will be some time before she will be well enough to return to duty. I will have my Lieutenant send her your regards. Is there anything else?”

The Squad 10 Captain gave him a respectful bow. “Thank you, Head Captain. I have nothing further to report.” He said, then rose.

The man nodded, then the screen went dark. The man took a long, calming breath as he thought back on his conversation with the Head Captain. Most notably, the fact that his request for the limiter release was never delivered.

When a soul reaper was on assignment to the world of the living, or basically anywhere that took them outside the Seireitei, any and all communications went through the communication department at Squad 12.

His request for the removal of his team’s spiritual limiters would have gone to them, and then transferred over to the Head Captain’s office for the final approval, before being sent back to his team.

But if the Head Captain never received the request, that meant that somewhere within Squad 12 his request had gotten lost. Either that, or there was somebody within the communication department that was loyal to Aizen, and had kept the request from the Head Captain.

But then, there was also the very unlikely possibility that Rangiku’s transmission could have been intercepted by Aizen. Unlikely, because the frequency the soul reapers used for their communications was very secure, designed by Captain Kurotsuchi himself.

As much as the short Captain hated to admit it, the crazed scientist knew exactly what he was doing, and would never allow his own creations to be used against him. But considering that it was Aizen they were fighting against, it was still possible that the traitor may have found a way around the security of their communications.

The Captain didn’t have more time to ponder on the matter, as he was disturbed by a light knock on the door to the room. He lightly growled in annoyance as he turned his head around to the door with an agitated look on his face.

“Yes?” he answered.

The door slowly opened, and Orihime poked her head inside the room. “I have dinner ready, if you’re hungry, Toshiro.” She informed.

The man sighed as he closed his eyes. “It’s ‘Captain Hitsugaya’, and thank you. I will be out in a moment.” He returned.

The teen smiled a bit with a nod. “Alright.” She answered, then closed the door.

Toshiro then sighed again. “Something just isn’t right about all this. There must be something that we’re missing here. But what is it?” he mumbled under his breath.

“Ooohh! Red bean casserole with wasabi sauce! That looks good, Orihime!” Rangiku’s voice sounded out from the living room.

The Captain’s eyes shot wide open. “Oh no!” His gaze swiftly turned to the door. “What is it with that woman and her atrocious cooking?!” he wondered in fear.

The door then opened, where Rangiku stepped inside. “Hey Captain, dinner’s…” she started, but stopped when she saw that the room was empty. “…ready? Hey, Orihime, I thought you said the Captain was in here.” She said over her shoulder.

The teen looked at the woman in confusion. “Huh? What do you mean? He was there a second ago. Is he not there anymore?” she questioned.

Rangiku looked back into the room for confirmation, but saw no one. She simply shrugged a shoulder and closed the door.

“Oh well, more for the two of us.” She stated, then sat down across from the young girl.

** Urahara Shop, Present **

Nel sat quietly and calmly on the front porch of the shop, her eyes closed, legs folded underneath her with her hands resting in the space they created. Her breathing was slow, and relaxed as she meditated deeply.

She found herself standing in the familiar wide open, grassy plains of her inner world. The snow from the mountaintops in the far distance gave off a small glint as the sun above her reflected off the white substance.

The woman stared at the rocky ‘superstructures’, studying them intently and admiring the incredible view they offered; something that she always liked to do whenever she came to her inner world.

“It’s changed since you were last here, Nelliel.” A voice spoke to her right.

Nel nodded lightly. “I’ve noticed, although I can’t quite place what it is that’s different about them. They somehow seem less…imposing…as they were before.” She affirmed.

The centaur-like spirit walked up to her and stopped next to her, joining the woman in looking at the scenery out in the distance. Nel looked slightly up at her to see, surprisingly, that the hollow spirit had a calm look on her face.

“I don’t too much like it, but whatever.” The spirit stated, then turned to Nel. “A lot of things have been changing around here lately, and while they may seem good at a glance Nelliel, I can assure you that they are not.” She warned.

Nel tilted her head a bit. “What do you mean?”

The centaur spirit took a few equine steps backwards as she turned her body to face the woman. “I can’t give you a straight answer, because I really don’t know myself. There’s something wrong with your soul, Nelliel, and whatever it is, it’s affecting your powers, as well as mine.”

The woman’s eyes widened a little. “I still don’t understand, Gamuza. Affecting our powers how?” she pressed.

Gamuza rose a brow. “Let me tell you a little secret, Nelliel. When I took over your body, and fought the brat…”

“His name is ‘Tim’, Gamuza.” Nel corrected quickly.

The spirit’s brow dropped as she gave the woman a deathly glare. “Until I can trust him fully, I’ll call that soul reaper whatever the hell I want. Now, as I was saying, when I fought…‘Tim’…I used Justa Subsónica against him.”

Nel’s eyes turned wide as saucers. “Are you mad, Gamuza?! That could’ve killed him!” he screamed.

Gamuza again rose a brow. “I believe that was the point, Nelliel. Now can you please let me finish?” she insisted, getting a growl from her partner, but also a nod as well. “Thank you. Again, as I was saying, I used Subsónica against him. There’s no ‘could have’ to it Nelliel, it ‘should’ have killed him. But he somehow survived. At first, I pegged it that I simply underestimated his durability, but it still pretty much left him near dead. But that thought kept weighing on my mind, I couldn’t get the notion out of my head that that attack should have killed him. So, I did a little experiment.” She informed.

Her partner’s head tilted more. “Experiment?”

The spirit nodded, then pointed to her left. Nel followed her gesture, and saw the small rocky outcropping that Gamuza liked to climb and exercise on. At the base, were numerous rocks and boulders of various sizes; some of the larger ones had chucks blown out of them.

“While you were out searching for whatever Ulquiorra was up to, I’ve been practicing the Subsónica on those rocks. See the condition they’re in?” Gamuza questioned.

Nel nodded. “Yes, and I can see that a lot of them are quite damaged. So…what is the problem, Gamuza?”

Gamuza folded her arms tightly and gave the woman a concerned look. “I hit those rocks at max power, Nelliel. Those boulders should not even exist anymore, with half of the area becoming nothing more than a crater, and you know it. My powers have become heavily weakened, Nelliel. The fact that the soul reaper is still breathing is a testament to that.”

The teal-haired woman’s head quickly shot to the spirit with a glare. “Don’t you dare blame this on Tim!” she hissed.

The centaur scoffed heavily. “I never said I did, Nelliel. I’m fully aware that the kid has nothing to do with this…at least not directly. But that’s not the only thing that’s wrong, Nelliel; you’ve changed too.” She informed.

Nel blinked in confusion. “I have?”

Gamuza pulled an arm out and pointed at the woman’s head. “I’m surprised you haven’t noticed yet Nelliel. Why don’t you take a feel around your mask?” She offered.

The woman was now completely baffled, but did as instructed. She reached up with her right hand and started feeling around on the top of her rams-skull hollow mask. Her confusion only got worse when she felt nothing out of the ordinary.

“What are you talking about, Gamuza? My mask is fine.” She stated.

The spirit scoffed lightly. “Wrong side, idiot. Try your ‘left’ side.” She corrected.

Nel was starting to grow concerned, dropping her right hand and raising her left to the adornment on her head. She started at the long teeth of the mask near her eyebrows, and slowly felt around as she worked her hand back.

“Further.” Gamuza instructed.

She did as she was told, and placed her hand further back on the mask, near the area where the curved rams’ horn protruded from the mask. But as her hand reached to touch the boney horn, she instead felt something soft, something silky.

Her eyes went wide again with a gasp when she actually ‘felt’ her hand pressing down. Although the mask was a part of her body, it possessed no nerves; meaning that regardless how hard something hit the mask, she wouldn’t feel anything, besides the force of the hit on the skull underneath.

She closed her hand around the silky substance, and started pulling gently towards her face. As she did, it felt like something was being pulled through her fingers. She finally brought her hand in front of her, and gasped again when she saw her teal-colored hair in her grasp.

“What?!” she choked.

Gamuza pointed over to her right, at a small pond nearby. “See for yourself.”

Nel didn’t need any further encouragement, as she was already running the short distance to the small collection of water and was kneeling down at the pond’s edge, leaning her upper body over the water and looking straight down into it.

She turned her head this way and that, trying to get the right angle; but she finally found it and gasped loudly at what she saw in the water’s reflection. While the rest of her mask was just fine, the entirety of her left horn was completely gone, vanished.

“What?! What happened?!” she yelled out. “I don’t remember getting hit there! When did this happen?!” she yelled further in absolute shock, before turning back to the spirit. “Why didn’t anybody say anything?! Surely ‘someone’ should have noticed!” she fretted.

Gamuza crossed her arms again as she started walking forward. “That’s because this body, and your real body are two separate things, Nelliel. The body outside of here is your ‘physical’ body, while this one is the body of your soul.” She informed as she came to stand next to her. “Nothing in regards to your physical body has changed. If you were to leave now, and touch that exact same spot, you’ll find that your whole mask is actually intact. That’s why no one said anything out there; and I didn’t say anything, because I simply didn’t know. I can’t exactly see your soul’s body if you’re not in here, Nelliel.”

Nel turned back to the reflection and closely studied the missing portion of her mask. “How did this happen? How can my mask just break like that?”

The spirit scoffed with a roll of the eyes. “Look again, Nelliel. Look at the edges where the piece is missing.” She instructed.

Nel looked back at her reflection, and studied the edges of where the chuck of her mask was missing. Instead of jagged edges, that would have resulted if the mask had broken, they were instead even and smooth.

“Tell me, does that ‘look’ like it broke? If you ask me, it looks more like it dissolved, or just simply vanished.” She corrected.

The woman then stood up and glared at the spirit. “That still doesn’t explain ‘how’ it happened, Gamuza. What the hell is happening to me? Please, tell me.” She begged.

Gamuza scoffed again. “How the hell am ‘I’ supposed to know what the hell’s going on, Nelliel? I’m the embodiment of your hollow powers, not your soul. I’m just as lost as you are on this. All I can say is that a chuck of your mask is just…gone, and your powers have weakened. I know nothing in regards to all this nonsense. As much as I hate the man, you’re better off asking that Kisuke guy. But to be honest, I doubt that even he would know.”

Nel clasped her head in her hands as tears began to form. “What is going on…Why is all this happening?” she mumbled.

The spirit rested a hand on her shoulder and sighed. “I told you, I’ve got no idea, Nelliel. But this is serious, so I really think you should talk to that scientist about this. Now you need to leave; that damned soul reaper Captain just showed up and is trying to get your attention.” She informed.

The woman nodded and wiped the tears away. “Please…if you notice anything else, please tell me immediately.” She pleaded.

Gamuza nodded firmly. “I’m a part of you, Nelliel. So whatever happens to you, happens to me as well. I’ll let you know if I notice anything else, but you really need to get going. That Captain is just staring at you, and it’s beginning to get on my last nerves.” She stated.

Nel nodded once more, then closed her eyes and pushed herself back out from her inner world.

She opened her eyes again, and was almost surprised to see Toshiro standing in front of her and giving her an odd look. She quickly reached up with her left hand and touched the area where her mask had vanished in her inner world.

The woman breathed a sigh of relief when she felt the bone-like piece was there, causing the man to raise a brow. “Something wrong?” he inquired.

Nel shook her head. “No, you just startled me is all, Captain.” She lied, then looked at him. “Is there something you needed?”

Toshiro lowered his brows just a bit. “Not really. I just found it a bit odd to see you sitting there like that. What were you doing?”

“I was talking with Gamuza. Her and I had some things we needed to discuss about what happened the other day.” She answered.

“…I see. So, does that mean you have it all straightened out?” he pressed.

She sighed and shook her head slowly. “Not yet. It will still take a little more time, but she has calmed down quite a bit since then. So why are you here, if you don’t mind me asking, Captain?”

The man’s face instantly fell. “Saving myself from an agonizing death. I honestly can’t understand how Rangiku can stand that woman’s cooking.” He moaned.

Nel’s face dropped as well. “If you’re talking about Orihime’s cooking, trust me, I understand your pain, Captain. She brought some of her cooking over one time to cheer me up…It didn’t work. I like her, but I think the world could do without such a…unique style of cooking.”

Toshiro rolled his eyes to her. “At least we can agree on one thing, Nel.”

“That reminds me, do you have a moment, Captain? There is something I would like to ask you.” She inquired.

The Captain nodded. “I’m listening.”

Nel took a deep, slow breath as she prepared her words. “I’ve been thinking about last night, about how the fracción had nearly killed you and your whole team, no offense…”

He narrowed his gaze dangerously. “Your point?” he questioned.

She took another calming breath before going on. “I was thinking, if you and your team had better training in fighting Arrancars, the situation might not have ended the way it did. So, I wanted to propose something to you, if you would hear me out.”

The Captain crossed his arms. “Go on.”

“I was thinking…what if your team trains with me? Use me as an opponent in your matches?” she offered, causing the man to raise a brow in surprise. “I know it sounds odd to you Captain, but I really want to help you and your team. And what better way than to let your team fight against me, an Arrancar and former Espada?”

Toshiro closed his eyes and sighed. “Let me see if I have this straight…you are offering to let my men train, using ‘you’ as a target?”

Nel nodded firmly. “Yes. There’s not much else I can do to help, besides walking around during your search of the city. Think about it Captain, where else are you going to get combat experience against an Espada, besides waiting for one to show up? At least this way, you can control the fight and ensure that nothing bad happens.”

The man opened his eyes to her. “I suppose you will be wanting you zanpakutō for this as well?” he questioned.

She sighed heavily, but shook her head. “Considering that me and Gamuza still have some things to work out, I don’t think it would be a wise idea to use my Resurrección right now. And I am a far better fighter if I use my fists while sealed. So, unless you prefer otherwise, it would be best to not use my zanpakutō.”

Hitsugaya watched her closely, trying to determine if there might be an ulterior motive to her request. But the calm look in her eyes told him that her words were genuine. And the fact was that she was right; he and his team ‘did’ need more experience in dealing with Espada. As much as he disliked the idea, it was simply too good of an opportunity to pass up.

The man sighed heavily in defeat. “Very well. You and I will have a match in the morning before we continue our search. ‘If’ I am satisfied with the results, I will allow it.”

The woman smiled warmly and nodded. “Thank you, Captain. Please understand, I’m just trying to help however I can.”

He nodded back. “If you will excuse me, I am going to see if Urahara has anything left over that I can eat. I would rather die than be a victim of Orihime’s cooking.”

Nel grinned at him. “There’s still some of Kit’s ‘special’ ice cream.” She teased.

Toshiro growled in annoyance. “I honestly have no idea how Tim can stand the two of you. He may have a temper, but he clearly has more patience than I do.” He moaned.

She chuckled at his remark. “There’s leftovers in the fridge, Captain. Tessai made some chicken potpie, and it was pretty good. There’s also some tea on the table, if you want some.”

The man nodded, then walked past her and into the shop. Once he was gone, her face dropped as she turned back forward and rested a hand on the spot where her ‘inner mask’ was damaged; feeling the boney structure.

_‘I need to talk to Kisuke soon. Real soon. I pray that he can tell me what’s going on, or at least give me some idea on what’s happening to me and Gamuza. Please…let it be something simple.’_ She fretted.

“Hey Nel.” A voice to her side.

The Arrancar turned to the voice as Timothy sat down next to her, leaning his head back against the wall with a relaxing sigh.

“Hi Tim.” she returned with a smile. “Did you find Kit?”

After the spirit teased them about them having kids, Timothy had spent the past half hour chasing the conniving fox all around the shop. But time after time, when he would get so close to catching the elusive vixen, she would dart out of the way and run the opposite direction.

After the first twenty minutes, he had lost sight of the spirit and was completely unable to locate her again.

“No, the damn fox is ‘somewhere’ close by though. She’s not in my inner world at the moment, and she can only go so far before she’ll collapse and be forced back inside. I’ll find her, I just gotta think of where I haven’t checked yet.” He informed.

“Can’t you sense her?” she inquired.

He moaned lowly. “No, and that’s what’s making this so damn hard.”

The woman chuckled as she grasped his hand in hers, where he grabbed back. “I’m sure you will.”

He rolled his head to her. “I still can’t believe you got her back like that, Nel. I never would have thought of using ice cream to get back at her. That was just too good.” He complemented.

She nodded slowly. “Thanks, but the idea was Rukia’s. She’s the one who told me what to do, I just thought it was a good idea and went with it. Anyway, how are your injuries, the ones Orihime couldn’t get to in time?”

He shrugged a shoulder. “Still sore, but I’ll live. I saw the Captain inside; did you get a chance to talk with him about what we discussed?”

Nel nodded again. “I did, and he surprisingly accepted…for the most part. Him and I are going to have a match in the morning, so he can determine if it is worth it or not.”

“That’s good. I’m sure he’ll approve of it, Nel. At least you’ll be able to help us in your own way. And what about Gamuza? You talk with her?” he asked further.

The woman sighed. “I started to, but then the Captain arrived, and I had to cut our conversation short. I’ll try again tomorrow though. But for now, I think I’m going to turn in for the night.”

Timothy nodded slightly. “Before you do, I was thinking that maybe we could go to the arcade again tomorrow evening. Perhaps grab some dinner afterwards. Wanna go?” he offered.

Nel smiled brightly and nodded. “I’d like that.” She said, then leaned over and planted her lips to his.

He returned the gesture as he wrapped his arm around her shoulder in a side hug. They remained in that position for a few moments, before she broke the kiss and leaned even closer to where her mouth was next to his ear.

“She’s on the roof.” The woman whispered, causing Timothy to go wide eyed.

“That witch!” he growled very lowly.

Nel then kissed him once more and swiftly stood up. “Good luck on your ‘fox hunt’, Tim. Let me know how it goes, okay?” she teased with a smile.

He glared at her and nodded firmly. “Oh, I will.”

They released hands where she waved to him. “Night Tim. See you in the morning.”

Timothy slowly lifted his head to look at the ceiling with a deathly glare. “Night Nel, sleep tight.” He returned in a ‘calm’ voice.

The woman chuckled and walked inside the shop. She proceeded to her room, quickly changing before lifting the covers from her futon and climbing into bed with a relaxing sigh. But the instant her head touched the soft pillow underneath, she heard a loud banging sound coming from the roof.

“There you are! You think you can hide from me?! Think again, you damn fox!” Timothy’s muffled voice sounded out from above.

“H…How the hell did you know I was here?!” Kitsune’s voice followed, quite obviously in a very panicked state.

“It don’t matter how the fuck I found you, all that matters is that I ‘did’; and now that I have, you’re dead!” he followed.

This was followed by numerous bangs and crashes, along with several series of rapid footsteps as Timothy chased the poor spirit all over the roof of the shop.

“Come here, you fucking fox! Pay for your crimes! Take it like a man!” he yelled.

“I’m not a man, I’m a woman, you idiot! And I’m not going to sit there and get beat on by you!” she defended.

“It’s a figure of speech, you moron! And you’re not a woman, you’re a ‘witch’! Stop running like a coward and accept your punishment!” he screamed back.

The room shook when a very loud thud rang out right above Nel’s room, followed by rumbling and tumbling; telling her that Timothy must have finally caught the elusive fox.

“No! Mercy!” the spirit pleaded.

“Oh, I’ll give you mercy, the same mercy you’ve shown me and Nel! Now quit squirming!” he commanded.

“No!”

There was one, loud, final thump on the ceiling, then everything went quiet. The only sound anyone inside the house could hear, was the very evil sounding snicker that was coming from the former Quinto Espada’s room.

** Underground Training Area, The Next Morning **

“Cero”

Toshiro flashed out of the way several yards at the last second, letting the powerful beam of raw, pink spirit energy sail through the spot where he was just at. The beam crashed into a distant boulder, obliterating the top of it.

The Captain immediately turned to face his opponent, but froze when he saw that the person was no longer there.

“Still too slow, Captain.” A voice stated from behind. “Cero.” The voice followed.

Hitsugaya quickly turned around to face his opponent to see Nel standing behind him, a dangerous glare in her eyes as she held her two outstretched fingers to the Captain’s back. He looked down to see that the woman didn’t actually have a Cero charged.

He then looked back into her eyes where she narrowed her brows. “Had I actually charged my Cero, Captain, you would be dead right now.” She stated in a deathly voice.

He glared right back with slightly widened eyes as she dropped her hand and took a step back. The woman then crossed her arms firmly and sighed.

“You’re not taking this serious enough Captain, and I can see why.” She informed in a calmer voice.

The man growled slightly at her comment. “And what is that?”

Nel closed her eyes and took a breath. “I can tell you have not been a Captain for very long, and I’m sure it would safe to say that you only have experience in fighting regular hollows.” She observed, causing him to growl even louder at her accurate assumption.

She opened her eyes back to him. “I know you’ve noticed that this is a whole new level, Captain. You are not fighting simple hollows with mediocre intelligence and abilities anymore, you are fighting against Arrancars and Espadas. So stop trying to approach me like you are fighting regular hollows.”

“I’m not!” he asserted. “I still have my limiter on me, per your demands. And I still fail to see how you believe I stand a chance against you, when I couldn’t stand against the fracción.” He stated further in anger.

Nel rose a brow at him. “Sometimes, the smallest prey can kill the largest hunter. The hunter is quite obviously bigger and stronger than the prey, yet the prey can still manage to kill said hunter. How do you think that is, Captain?” she questioned.

He narrowed his stare at her. “The only way is if that prey somehow outsmarts the hunter.” He answered.

She rose a finger next to her head. “That’s right. In this situation, you are the prey, while I am the hunter.” She pointed out, then crossed her arms. “You are correct, Captain; with your limiter, you have absolutely no chance in beating me in terms of power. But is power the only thing you have? If you can’t beat your opponent in one way, then fight them another way. Stop trying to fight their power with your power, and force them to fight on a level that you know you can beat them on.”

The woman held a hand out to her side. “The small prey uses its small size to outmaneuver the larger hunter…” she said, then held out the other hand. “…the larger hunter uses up all of its energy trying to catch the smaller prey, and collapses from exhaustion.” She finished, then crossed her arms again. “You may not be able to beat me in terms of power Captain, but I’m sure you can figure out another way to fight me that would work in your favor. The problem you have to solve, is what that way is.”

Nel then entered a combat stance with her fists clenched tightly. “Now stop trying to overcome me with your limited strength, and figure out another way to beat me.” She demanded firmly.

The Captain nodded before vanishing and reappearing right in front of the woman, delivering a series of quick attacks with his blade. Nel shifted arms around this way and that, blocking the man’s attacks with her forearms, using her enhanced Hierro to protect her.

In the distance, Timothy stood on top of a large boulder with his arms crossed, watching the match with deep interest. Standing next to him was Kisuke and Rukia, her with her own arms crossed, and him with his fan over his mouth.

“I must say, miss Nel is really giving the Captain a run for his money.” The shop owner commented. He then rolled his eyes to the Lieutenant. “Don’t you agree, Tim?”

The younger man nodded slightly. “Yeah, she is. Considering that the Captain’s never faced an Espada before, it does make sense that she would go all out on their first match, just to show him exactly what he’s up against. But I’m also a little concerned that if she pushes him too hard at once, he may think twice about trusting her; ‘really’ start viewing her as a threat.” He fretted.

Rukia turned to the man as well. “Don’t be so quick to think that, Tim. The fact that he’s even accepted her offer to train, without any of us having to get involved, shows that he trusts her at least a little. Besides, now that’s the Captain is witnessing what an Espada’s strength is like firsthand, he’s far more than likely to want all of us to get in on this.” She pointed out.

“I have to agree with her, Tim. And if this all works out, we would at least have Captain Hitsugaya to testify in miss Nel’s defense, if the soul society discovers her.” Kisuke added.

“What the hell is going on here?” a fourth voice asked.

The group turned around to see Renji and Ikkaku walking up while staring at Nel and Toshiro’s match. The two men stopped next to Timothy, where the red-headed Lieutenant turned to him with a confused look.

“Nel offered to train with the Captain, so that he could get some experience in fighting against an Espada.” Rukia answered.

Renji rose a brow in surprise. “And he accepted? Well that’s unexpected.” He remarked.

Ikkaku chuckled lowly. “Yeah, I just hope he lets the rest of us have some of the fun. She must be pretty tough if she’s taking on the Captain’s Bankai with her bare hands.” He said with a wide grin.

Timothy glanced at the 3rd seat. “Don’t worry Ikkaku, I’m sure you’ll get your turn. It still amazes me though that you managed to beat your opponent the other night. But then again, you’re in the same squad as that brute of a Captain, Kenpachi. So I guess it would make sense that you’re stronger than you look.” He commented.

The 3rd seat glanced at the man. “I’m still waiting for our ‘real’ match, Tim. Not one of the Captain’s play sessions.” He taunted.

The Lieutenant scoffed with a roll of the eyes. “Keeping running your mouth like that, and I’ll gladly oblige you. You haven’t met my Bankai yet, Ikkaku.” He shot back.

“Yeah, and I can’t wait until I do. I just hope you won’t hold back on me.” Ikkaku said with a wide smile.

Rukia then sighed before stepping in between the two men. “Alright boys, break it up. Save your insults for another time.” She instructed.

Timothy rose a brow at her. “They weren’t insults, Rukia; just some…friendly words between adversaries.” He corrected with a grin of his own.

A loud crashing sound in the distance brought everyone’s attention back to the fight between Nel and Toshiro. The two combatants were each standing on top of their own boulder, Nel in a crouched position with one hand on the ground, and Toshiro with the tip of his blade pointing at her.

“You think she’s noticed yet?” Renji inquired.

Timothy turned his eyes to him. “Noticed what?”

Rukia then raised her head to the younger man. “Over the past few minutes, the Captain’s been slowly pulling all of the moisture in the room into a small area above them. Haven’t you noticed that the air around us has become much drier?” she questioned.

The man rose a brow in surprise, then took in a deep breath of air. His nostrils started to itch and sting as the dry air was pulled through them. His eyes then widened a bit before he shot back towards the two combatants.

“Wait, he can do that? Absorb the moisture?” he inquired.

The woman nodded firmly. “The Captain’s zanpakutō is an ice-type. Not only that, it basically also gives him full control of any water around him, turning it into ice and using it as a weapon.”

Timothy turned back to her. “So…why would he gather all of the moisture into one area?”

Rukia grinned at him before returning to the fight. “You’ll see.”

Her friend turned to look at the teal-haired woman in the distance, now starting to fret on what the Captain could have in store for the woman.

Back with the fighters, Nel was patiently waiting, watching the Captain closely. After seeing him fight in the past, and experiencing it herself, she knew that the man was slightly faster than she was. And after her ‘words of advice’, it was likely he would try to use that to his advantage.

But deep in her mind, she knew that something just wasn’t right. She couldn’t determine why, but it seemed to her that the Captain was waiting for something. Considering that he only had four of his original twelve ice petals that hung above his head left, time was obviously not a luxury he had. So why wait?

She tilted her head a bit at him curiously. “Is something wrong, Captain? Are you having a hard time finding a weakness?” she taunted.

Toshiro furrowed his brows at her. “Nothing is wrong, I am simply determining my next strategy.” He corrected.

“I see. Well, if you won’t attack, then I will.” She stated.

The woman suddenly launched herself from the boulder she was standing on, flying through the air at speed towards the Captain. He narrowed his gaze at the incoming woman, then twisted and swung his blade up and across at her.

“Hyōryū Senbi!” he commanded, sending a wave of ice at his attacker.

Nel quickly stopped her charge, flipping back and away from the attack. As the wave reached its max range, coming to a stop and floating in the air, Toshiro punched straight through it in his own charge at the teal-haired woman.

She came to a stop on the side on the boulder she was standing on previously, and held her arm up. The Captain’s blade hit her forearm and pushed it back a few inches, allowing the two of them to come face to face.

“You need to do better this, if you want to have even the slightest chance at beating me, Captain.” She stated in a cold voice.

She then threw her other fist out at his exposed sternum. Her fist hit him square in the chest, but her eyes immediately went wide with shock when the appendage not only hit him, it ‘broke’ him.

The man’s torso split apart from his lower body as her hand continued through him. Her shock became even more evident when the two halves suddenly stopped falling and started freezing back together, with her clenched fist now stuck inside.

“What?!” she asked in low tone.

The Captain’s body then became transparent, his bodily features quickly fading away as ice began traveling up her stuck arm at a very rapid pace. She watched in horror as the ice swiftly started going around her body, and freezing her to the boulder behind her.

“What is this?!” she asked aloud.

“I’m aware that I can’t beat you in that manner, Nel.” The man’s voice spoke, but not from in front of her, but ‘above’ her.

Nel gasped as she lifted her head to the sky. Her eyes went even wider when she saw ‘another’ Toshiro several feet in the air directly above her. His body was facing her fully, and his zanpakutō held at his side with the tip pointing at her.

“That’s why I forced you exactly where I wanted you.” He finished.

Several dozens of icy daggers began forming all around him, each one with its tip aiming right for her.

“Guncho Tsurara!” he called as he thrusted his blade forward.

Every one of the daggers suddenly shot forth towards the trapped woman at an incredible speed. Nel knew that she had no time to try and break free from her icy shackles. The woman closed her eyes and awaited the oncoming pain.

The daggers rained down on the boulder like a hail storm, destroying everything in the area. In all, the intense barrage of ice lasted for nearly five seconds, before the attack finally finished and left a small cloud of dust in its wake.

It confused Nel when everything stopped, but she didn’t feel anything. Besides the coldness of the ice surrounding her body, she felt no pain, not even the force of impact from the multiple weapons of ice.

She slowly opened her eyes halfway, then quickly opened them fully when she saw that the entire area, except for the exact spot she was in, was littered with the numerous daggers that where stuck in the ground.

“If I did not have my limiter, and had I been trying to actually hit you, Nel, that attack would have killed you.” He mocked with a firm glare.

The woman looked up at him with a shocked look on her face. She stared at him for a few moments, then slightly smiled.

“You made a copy of yourself with the ice, and I assume you switched out with it while your ice wave was blocking my view?” she observed.

He nodded at her, then flicked his zanpakutō. The ice around the woman’s body instantly shattered and freed her from the ‘prison’, where she started rubbing the arm that was trapped to warm it back up.

“And I guess it would be safe to also assume that while you were waiting earlier, you were gathering the moisture around us into that one spot. You then used your copy to pin me in place, so you could use that attack, right?” she inquired further.

Toshiro sealed his Bankai and returned his zanpakutō back to its scabbard on his back. “Correct. It’s as you said, the prey runs around until the hunter can no longer hunt him. In this case, I lured you to where I could trap you, and then use a high-powered attack to defeat you while you were unable to defend yourself.”

Nel folded her arms loosely and gave him a warm smile. “It was a nice trick, Captain. However, and I hope you can forgive me for saying this, but even at full power, that attack would not have killed me. It would have easily hurt, and done a lot damage, but not kill me.”

Her smile then turned to a frown. “That is what you are up against, Captain. You may not choose to believe it, but the fact is, is that the Espada are easily more powerful than a Captain. Not only in terms of power, but also in terms of combat abilities. Remember what I said, Captain. Fight them in the way that best works for ‘you’, not them. Ignore the methods and rules of combat that the soul society teaches you, and fight ‘your’ way.”

Toshiro narrowed his eyes at her. “Are you telling me to fight like a coward?” he questioned.

“I’m telling you to fight to win. Granted, there are a couple of the Espada who would fight with honor, me being one of them, but even they would abandon that in order to win. They do not care how others view them, what they think of them. As long as they win the fight, they simply do not care.” She informed, then sighed lightly. “So, are you pleased with this training, Captain?” she asked calmly.

The captain crossed his arms tightly with a low growl. “I do not approve of your methods of fighting the Espada. They generally go against the ways of the 13 Court Guard Squads doctrines. However, I cannot deny that our methods are somewhat ineffective against them. With that in mind…” He paused to take a deep breath. “…I’ll allow you to train the others in fighting against the Espada. How this training is conducted, I will leave to you. Now, if you will excuse me, my men and I need to continue our search of the city.”

The man then vanished, leaving Nel behind to stare at the empty space above her. The woman closed her eyes and took a deep and calming breath, letting it out slowly to relax her nerves just as Timothy, Rukia, and Kisuke flashed into place next to her.

“Good fight, Nel. So, what did the Captain say?” Timothy asked with a bit of worry.

She turned and opened her eyes to him with another smile. “Well, he’s not too happy about the methods of fighting, but he did accept.”

He smiled back and rested a hand on her shoulder. “That’s great, Nel. I’m glad. Hopefully by you training the team, he’ll start trusting you more.”

The woman nodded. “I hope so.”

Rukia turned to the Lieutenant with a firm face. “We should get going and get started on the search, Tim. Renji went back upstairs and is waiting for you, Nel.” She informed, now looking at the woman.

Nel started rubbing the back of her head sheepishly. “Actually, I have a few things I need Kisuke’s help with, so could you tell him to go on without me?”

The short woman nodded. “If you insist. Everything alright?” she inquired.

“Yes, everything’s fine. Just a few simple matters is all. I can help him out again tomorrow, or later today if he is willing to come pick me up.” Nel replied.

“I’ll let him know. See ya.” Rukia finished, then vanished.

Timothy gave Nel a look of concern. “You sure everything is alright?” he pressed.

Nel sighed in annoyance. “Tim, I’m fine. I’m not a child, and I can take care of myself. So please stop worrying so much.” She pleaded.

Kisuke chuckled as Timothy held both hands up in surrender. “Okay okay, I just don’t want anything to happen to you, Nel. You know how protective I get towards others, so it’s only right if I did the same for you. Right?”

The woman smiled again and nodded. “You’re right, sorry about that. But really Tim, everything is fine. It’s just a few simple things I need Kisuke’s help with is all. Promise.” She asserted.

He dropped his hands and nodded back. “Alright. See you this evening then. Later, Nel.” He said then turned to leave.

She waved at him as he walked away. “Bye Tim.”

The man then looked over his shoulder as he walked. “Oh, by the way, thanks for your help last night with Kit.” He remarked.

It wasn’t even a second later when the said spirit materialized beside him, her face contorted in pure anger. “It was you?! You traitor!” she yelled.

She moved to charge at the woman, but was stopped and pulled backwards when Timothy swiftly grabbed her tightly by the scruff of her neck, dragging the spirit behind him as he continued walking towards the ladder.

“I don’t think so. You got what you deserved, and I’m glad she told on you. Now shut the hell up and get back inside.” He demanded.

The spirit then started kicking and screaming like a child, yelling words that Nel couldn’t understand, but had assumed to be insults with very ‘colorful’ words involved, as she was dragged on.

Nel chuckled loudly at the sight, until Kisuke turned to her with a serious face. “I assume that whatever it is you wish to speak with me about is serious?” he asked.

She instantly stopped and looked back at him with a similar face. “Yes…and to be honest…I really don’t know how begin.”

The man nodded slowly. “How about starting from the beginning?” he offered.

The woman sighed heavily and crossed her arms with a worried look on her face. “I don’t really want to tell you this, but I don’t know what else to do. There’s something wrong with me, Kisuke.” She started.

The shop owner rose a brow behind his fan. “In what way, might I ask?” he pressed.

“In the way that something is happening to my hollow powers, and my soul.” She informed.

His other brow rose in surprise. “Care to elaborate?”

“My powers are starting to weaken, according to Gamuza. You saw the fight between her and Tim, didn’t you?” she asked, getting a nod. “Do you remember seeing her use an attack where she charged at him with my lance at an incredible speed? It would have been much faster than a sonído or flash step.”

“I do. If I remember correctly, she almost killed Tim with that attack.” He affirmed.

She swiftly closed her eyes to avoid thinking about it. “Yes, well, that attack ‘should’ have killed him, Kisuke.” She then opened her eyes back to him. “It is easy to miss with it, but Justa Subsónica is exceedingly powerful. Even at reduced power, Tim should not have survived that. Hence why I say that my powers have somehow gotten weaker.”

Kisuke started fanning himself slowly. “Have you noticed any change in your basic powers, like your Ceros?”

Nel turned away a bit. “I have not noticed anything yet, it seems that my Ceros and sonído are unaffected at the moment. But I don’t know how long that will last though. My powers are not the only thing that have changed, Kisuke.” She looked back at him with a very concerning look on her face. “You may not see it here in the real world, but in my inner world, a portion of my mask is missing.”

The shop owner’s eyes widened. “I’m sorry, but did you say that in your inner world, some of your hollow mask is gone?” he asked in shock.

The woman nodded firmly. “Yes.” She affirmed, then raised her left hand to the left horn of her mask. “This entire area of my mask is gone in my inner world. And it does not look like it was broken. Gamuza stated that it looked like it dissolved, or simply vanished.”

Kisuke stared at her for a few moments, before dropping his fan hand to his side with a heavy sigh. “I was hoping to avoid telling you this, at least until after we have dealt with Aizen. Not to mention that it would very likely make Gamuza very upset. But the fact is, is that I’ve been closely watching you for a while now. And during that time, I’ve noticed that your spiritual pressure has been very steadily changing. So slow in fact, that had it not been for your change in personality, I would have likely missed it.” He informed.

Nel rose a brow at him. “What do you mean ‘change in personality’? I haven’t changed.” She insisted.

Urahara rose a finger. “Oh, but you have, miss Nel. You just haven’t realized it yet.” He corrected, then dropped his hand again. “Think about it; over the past few weeks, you’ve slowly grown more and more docile. And I’m not talking about adjusting to a new life miss Nel, I’m talking about how you have gone from being a killer, to a lover. From being a dangerous Espada, to a warming and caring woman. Your personality, who you are, has over time been changing, and it seems that my hypothesis is correct that your soul is the cause.” He stated.

The woman closed her eyes again. “Kisuke…please…just stop dragging all of this out, and just tell me what is wrong with me…please.” She begged.

Urahara sighed again. “Basically, miss Nel…your soul, essentially ‘you’, is becoming more and more human.”

Her eyes instantly shot wide open to him. “What?!” she asked in absolute shock.

The man nodded slowly. “I honestly can’t say with full certainty ‘how’, or ‘why’ this is happening miss Nel, but your human side is slowly becoming the dominant part of your soul. That would explain why a portion of your mask is missing. Your hollow half is slowly being subdued by your human half. That’s also why your powers, and through you, Gamuza’s as well, are slowly diminishing.”

**_“This is bullshit! There is no way I am going to let that happen! You are a hollow, Nelliel! Not a pitiful human!”_** Gamuza yelled.

Nel quickly slapped a hand to the side of her head in slight pain from the spirit’s yelling. Kisuke gave the woman a knowing stare.

“Judging your actions, I can assume that Gamuza is quite furious about this, right?” he inquired.

The woman swiftly nodded. “She is very mad about it. Is there any way to reverse this, Kisuke? Or at the very least stop it?”

He shook his head. “Without the means to conduct more research on the matter, I can’t give you a solid answer, miss Nel.”

**_“It’s that damn brat’s fault! He did this! I should have just killed him!”_** the spirit raged.

Nel held a hand to her head again. “Gamuza, please stop! It’s not his fault!” she defended.

Kisuke narrowed his eyes a bit. “I see that Gamuza must be blaming Tim for this. Well, I can assure you Gamuza, that Tim is ‘not’ the cause of this. In fact, I’m willing to bet that this started even before miss Nel met him. This is not something that started just recently, this is something that has been going on for quite a while. Granted, being around Tim could have possibly accelerated the rate of change, but Tim is in no way responsible for what is happening. I strongly believe that this was caused by your exposure to the Hōgyoku.” He stated firmly.

“What will happen to me if this continues, Kisuke? What will happen to Gamuza? I can’t lose her.” She insisted.

The shop owner shook his head. “And you won’t. You and Gamuza are two halves to a single soul. The two of you ‘are’ the same soul, just simply split apart with two different personalities. I seriously doubt it’s even possible for one of you to live without the other. If one of you were to die, the soul would basically kill itself, known as soul suicide. So I guess it would no longer surprise you to know that if you ‘had’ killed miss Nel when you took over her body, Gamuza, you would have died as well. Tell me, besides her powers weakening, is there anything different about Gamuza herself, miss Nel? Such as appearance?” he questioned.

Nel shook her head slowly. “Not that I saw of. As far as we know, it’s only her powers that have been affected.”

“I see. That does make sense. As I had said, the two of you are individual halves to a single soul. Gamuza is one hundred percent hollow. You however, miss Nel, used to be half hollow, and half human. Therefor, your soul was basically three quarters hollow, and one quarter human. That human part is basically your overall appearance, and your human emotions. As the human part of you becomes more and more dominant, the soul itself becomes less and less hollow-like. Because of this, both of your powers are steadily becoming weaker. Gamuza is the essence of your powers, miss Nel, but she draws her energy for those powers through you. So as your half of the soul becomes more human, you hollow powers will steadily become weaker as a result.” He educated.

The woman scratched her head in confusion. “Wait, so you’re saying that as ‘I’ become more human, the soul that Gamuza and I share becomes more human and less hollow?” she asked for clarity, getting a nod back. “So…what would happen to us if I became…full human? And is that even possible?” she asked further, not in worry.

“Normally, it shouldn’t be possible. None of this should be happening. But it is. As far as what would happen if you became a full human, I can only give you a hypothesis. I believe the most likely result would be you being in a similar situation as Ichigo.” He offered.

Nel rose a brow. “Ichigo? But…Ichigo’s a soul reaper.”

The man nodded. “Who also just happens to have an inner hollow.” He added, causing her eyes to widen. “Ichigo ‘is’ a soul reaper, with a zanpakutō spirit residing within his inner world. But along with his zanpakutō spirit, is also an inner hollow. That is where Ichigo has been for the past few weeks, training with some acquaintances of mine to control that inner hollow. If you, miss Nel, were to indeed become a full human spirit, you would be one with access to an inner hollow. Again, this is all just a theory. Without anything to use as research, I cannot give you a definitive answer.”

She sighed heavily and closed her eyes. “So…you’re saying that…I’ll lose my hollow powers?”

“I can’t answer that either, miss Nel. It’s possible, but I can’t say for sure that will be the case. As far as Gamuza, I seriously doubt that this will affect her in any way. It’s likely that it won’t even have any effect on you two’s relationship regarding your soul.” He reassured.

Nel opened her eyes back to him. “Use me, Kisuke. If you need to run tests, or whatever, use me. I need to find out exactly what will happen to me. More specifically, Gamuza.” She asserted.

“I’m afraid it’s not that easy, miss Nel. Understand that this is not a sickness, or injury; this is a complete reconstruction of your entire being. Your being is somehow crossing a boundary that is simply impossible to cross, from a hollow to a human. Kit may have been in a similar situation, but her particular situation had a simple solution. Yours on the other hand, may not even have a solution. There may be absolutely nothing that ‘can’ be done to stop this.” He fretted.

**_“Bullshit! You mean to tell me that I’d be stuck in a ‘human’s’ inner world?! Not happening!”_** Gamuza screamed.

Nel growled in heavy annoyance. “What the hell are you complaining about?! ‘I’m’ the one who’s changing here, Gamuza! Not you! I’m the one who’s going to end up becoming useless! Not you!”

“I beg to differ, miss Nel.” Kisuke interrupted.

“What do you mean, Kisuke? If I become a full human, that means I can’t use any of my powers, meaning that I would be useless to all of you, especially Tim.” she returned.

“This’ half of you, perhaps; however, you and Gamuza are still linked to each other by your soul. You have already proven that either of you can inhabit your body, but you can also inhabit each other’s powers. True, you may not possess any powers if you did become a human spirit, but you would likely still be able to access Gamuza’s. Now, if she does not mind, I have a question for Gamuza herself.” He finished.

**_“Heh. What does that man want now?”_** the spirit hissed.

Nel sighed heavily at her. “She’s listening, Kisuke.” She affirmed in a depressed tone.

Kisuke stared at the woman for a moment before continuing. “If a solution cannot be found, and miss Nel does indeed become human, how would you respond to it, Gamuza? Would you try and kill her again? Try to go after Tim again, even though this is clearly not his fault? What exactly ‘would’ you do?”

Nel was starting to become worried when the spirit didn’t answer. The seconds ticked by, and the spirit was dead silent. But after a few moments, she finally spoke up.

**_“What’s it to him? What the hell does he care? He’s not the one who has to suffer here. He’s not the one who has to be stuck in a human’s inner world, like a reject. Hollows and humans don’t mix, so why the hell should I be the one to be a slave to one?”_** she hissed dangerously.

The teal-haired woman dropped her head. _“You are not a slave, Gamuza. We are partners. We’re supposed to work together, regardless of what I am. Now answer the question. Do you intend to take over again?”_ she asked inwardly.

The spirit scoffed heavily. **_“That would be pointless. I may hate the kid, but if what that Urahara guy says is true, what’s happening to you isn’t his fault; so I still have to keep up my side of the deal to him. And it’s like he said, if you die, ‘I’ die. So unfortunately, I have no fucking choice in the matter, do I? He’s dead certain that this shit ain’t gonna affect me in any way, except my powers getting a little weaker?”_** she demanded.

“Kisuke…you’re sure that what’s happening to me will have no effect on Gamuza?” she transferred.

The man lifted his hand and fanned himself slowly with a serious face. “As I said, there is no way to know for certain until it happens. I am simply saying that while your being is changing miss Nel, Gamuza’s seems to be so far unaffected. I doubt that I need to stress to you how important it is that you keep me informed on everything that happens with you, right?”

Nel nodded firmly. “I let you know everything that happens, Kisuke.”

Gamuza scoffed again. **_“That didn’t answer my damn question, Nelliel. But if the guy doesn’t know, then I guess I really have no choice but to ride this shit out for now. But know this Nelliel, I am in no fucking way pleased about any of this shit. And to answer the guy’s question about what I plan to do, as long as you don’t become a weak and pathetic being that I have to keep saving, I’ll deal with it. But that does ‘not’ mean that I am not expecting him to keep trying to find a solution to this…problem, as he calls it. He had better work his ass off in trying to find a way to reverse this, or so help me, I will ‘give’ him a reason to work hard.”_** She threatened.

The Arrancar shook her head slowly. “Sparing you from her insults Kisuke, she basically said that she won’t do anything as long as I don’t become weak. She also insists that you find a way to fix this problem. And I’m sure you know by now that she does not make idle threats.” She warned.

The shop owned nodded firmly. “I can’t promise either of you two anything, miss Nel, but I’ll do what I can. Again, it’s paramount that you notify me of any changes either of you experience, both here and in your inner world.”

“Kisuke…please…don’t tell Tim.” she pleaded with a saddened look in her eyes.

He nodded again. “Not a word. Now, with all that out of the way…” he began, then covered his mouth with his fan. “…I believe you should get to work on fixing up the roof of my shop.” He instructed.

The woman’s eyes turned to saucers. “What?! That wasn’t me, Kisuke! That was Tim and Kit!” she defended, her fists clenched at her sides.

“They may have actually done the damage, but ‘you’ instigated it, knowing how the two of them would act when you told him where she was. Therefor, it becomes ‘your’ fault. Or would you rather have Tim pay for it out of his pocket? I’m pretty sure he would be quite upset at that.” he twisted.

Nel clenched her teeth and growled. “Damn it! Fine! I’ll fix your damn roof!” she hissed lowly.

Kisuke snapped his fan shut, revealing a very wide smile. “Excellent! Thanks for your help, miss Nel! I’ll have Tessai bring the tools for you to use!” he said very joyfully.

**_“I hate that man! If it weren’t for the fact that we need him for our little problem, I’d kill him!”_** Gamuza sneered.

Nel turned around and started walking swiftly towards the ladder. _“You’re not the only one Gamuza, and that’s only if I don’t kill him first! Tim’s lucky that I love him, or I’d…”_

She instantly stopped with wide eyes as she slapped a hand to the side of her head in shock of what she just said to the spirit. In the woman’s inner world, Gamuza had wide eyes on her own.

**_“Excuse me?”_** she demanded.

The teal-haired woman dropped her head a bit as she brought her other hand up to her head. _“Did I…just say that…I loved him?!”_ she asked in shock.

Gamuza nodded in her head. **_“Yes, you did. Please tell me that you didn’t ‘actually’ mean it.”_** She demanded further.

Nel grabbed her hair in her hands loosely. _“I…I don’t…I don’t know, Gamuza! It just…It just came out! I didn’t even think about it! The words just…jumped at me! Like I knew exactly what I was saying, and meant it! I care for him a lot, and he’s told me he loves me, but do I…really love him back?! Is what Kisuke said really true?! Am I really becoming…a human?!”_ she fretted.

The spirit narrowed her eyes dangerously. **_That Kisuke guy had better find a way to fix this, and ‘soon’. If your stupid feelings for that soul reaper wasn’t bad enough, now you’re openly admitting that you ‘love’ him? My patience is wearing exceedingly thin, Nelliel, I hope you’re aware of that.”_** She stated.

The woman closed her eyes tightly. _“Why are you so against us being together, Gamuza? I admit that I’m just as shocked as you are about me saying that just now, but is it really such a horrible thing to you that he and I want to be together? Would you be the same way if Tim were a hollow?”_ she interrogated.

Gamuza scoffed. **_“Don’t give me that shit. That’s an entirely different situation, and you know it.”_**

Nel was now starting to get very annoyed. _“Different to you perhaps, but not to me. I would have the same feelings for Tim even if he was a hollow. Are you jealous that you can’t have the same happiness I do?”_ she accused.

The spirit rose a brow in disbelief. **_“Me? Jealous of the brat? Please tell me you’re fucking joking, Nelliel. Why the hell would I ever want to have feelings for the brat, or anyone else for that matter? A bolt of lighting could strike the fool, and I would ‘happily’ stand there and laugh at him. And I’ve already told you, provided the brat doesn’t do anything to hurt you, or cause you pain in any way, I’ll let him be. You openly stating that you ‘love’ him, is just making the very thin line he’s walking on several times thinner. Now, if that damn man doesn’t stop looking at you like that, I’m going to take over and beat him senseless.”_** She warned.

The woman turned around with raised brows to see that the shop owner was indeed staring at her with a very intent look in his eyes, hiding his lower face with his fan again.

“Are you alright, miss Nel?” he inquired.

Nel dropped her hands and nodded. “I’m fine…considering everything we discussed. I was just having a talk with Gamuza is all. Sorry to worry you.”

The man nodded in acknowledgment. “It’s fine, miss Nel. Just remember what I said; if you notice anything different, regardless of how minor it may seem, please be sure to let me know. I need to keep an accurate record of everything, that way I may be able to discern something.” He instructed.

She nodded back and turned back to the stairs, hiding the deep scowl on her face. _“Tim may be walking a thin line to you Gamuza, but to me, Kit is walking on noting but empty air. She breaks that damn roof, and ‘I’ have to fix it? It makes me want to kill her.”_

Gamuza rose a brow with a grin. **_“I’d be more than happy to do that for you.”_** She offered.

Nel rolled her eyes as she began her ascent up the ladder. _“No Gamuza, you’re not going to kill her. Kisuke ‘did’ have a point; this was, in a way, my fault as well. I knew that those two would get destructive once he found her, and I still told him. I just find it completely unfair that they don’t have to help.”_

The spirit scoffed at her. **_“Bullshit. It don’t matter whether you knew it or not, you were not the one who ‘actually’ damaged his ‘precious shop’. He should be making ‘them’ fix it. Are you trying to piss me off? Cause I gotta tell ya Nelliel, it’s working very well.”_** She warned.

The woman came to the top of the ladder and turned to see Tessai standing in the kitchen making tea. She sighed heavily before walking up to the large man and tapping him on the shoulder. He turned around and rose both brows.

“Miss Nel, can I help you?” he asked.

She sighed again, but in a deep growl. “Do you have some tools I can use to fix Kisuke’s stupid roof?”

Tessai nodded. “Of course. One moment.” He answered, then walked out of the kitchen and out of sight.

Nel held an arm across her chest while rubbing her temples with the other hand. _“No, I’m not trying to piss you off, Gamuza. Now will you please drop the subject? I really don’t want to do any arguing about this.”_ She pleaded.

Gamuza scoffed once more. **_“Whatever, Nelliel. If you wanna keep cleaning up after the brat’s messes, fine by me. But you better not complain to me about it, because I am not going to listen to you when I’ve warned you several times about the brat.”_**

Tessai then walked back into the kitchen, carrying a small tool box in his hand. “Here you are, miss Nel. If you require any assistance, please let me know.” He instructed.

The woman offered him a warm smile. “Thank you, but I think I can manage it…hopefully.”

The man nodded, then returned to his previous task, while Nel walked out of the room and towards the front door. As she stepped out the front door and into the empty lot, she turned around to get a first look at the damage.

She suddenly froze in place, her eyes widened to great proportions as the toolbox slipped from her grip and landed on the ground; the lid popping open and dumping the assorted tools on the ground.

While there were no actual holes in the roof, there was still a very considerable amount of damage to the exterior. The wooden sign for the shop was split in two, with one of the halves lying on the sloped surface of the roof.

A large number of the clay shingles were either shattered, or outright missing on both levels, and the gutter system for the second level was in multiple pieces, each one hanging on by only a few nails.

**_“Holy shit! What the hell did those two fools do?!”_** Gamuza yelled with wide eyes of her own.

_“…Gamuza…is your offer to kill the fox still on the table?”_ she inquired, her face fallen into despair.

The spirit growled. **_“Why? Are you wanting me to kill her now?”_** she questioned.

Nel sighed heavily as she closed her eyes and tilted her head back and to the side. _“…I am…seriously starting to consider it, Gamuza.”_

She breathed a sigh of defeat, then started picking up the tools and placing them back in the box. “Stupid…perverted…annoying…demon fox…” she grumbled, placing the last tool back into the box.


	33. A Day on the Town

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 33

**(A Day on the Town)**

** Las Noches, Present **

A steady and rapid sound of tapping echoed through one of the large palace rooms of the Arrancar’s fortress of Las Noches. In the room were three women, one of average height, and the other two a bit on the short side.

The tallest one, with dark skin and green eyes, was standing next to the doorway to the room’s balcony that overlooked a small portion of the east side of Las Noches, leaning against the wall with her arms crossed and head leaned back.

The middle-sized woman, who had chin-length black hair, and interestingly, two different colored eyes, was sitting at the six-seat, rectangular table; her upper body was hunched over the furniture with her arm outstretched and her fingers tapping on the table in sequence.

The last one, and the shortest of the three, was sitting on the wide couch near the dark-skinned woman with her legs tucked underneath her. Her long, olive-colored hair was pulled in front of her over the right shoulder as she stared out of the open doorway to the balcony.

The dull, but persistent tapping of the black-haired woman’s fingers continued to echo in the room nonstop, and it was very quickly tugging on the last of the taller woman’s nerves. As the tapping went on, she folded her arms tighter and tighter.

Finally, it was too much. The dark-skinned woman growled loudly and snapped her head to the shorter woman.

“Damn it, Apacci! Knock it off with your tapping! It’s starting to drive me insane!” she demanded.

Apacci lifted her head and turned to her with bared teeth. “Oh, shut up, Mila Rose! It’s boring as hell in here, and we can’t do anything until mistress Harribel comes back from that damn meeting!” she shot back.

Mila Rose pushed herself off the wall and stood straight with fists balled at the sitting woman. “Then find something else to entertain yourself than annoy me!”

The shorter woman scoffed and rolled her eyes. “Why would I do that? Annoying you is about the ‘only’ thing there is to do here.” She mocked.

“Keep doing it, and ‘see’ what happens, idiot!” Mila Rose mocked back.

Apacci was on her feet in an instant, her own fists balled while glaring back at the taller woman. “What the hell did you call me, you damn cow?!”

As she normally tended to do, the third woman was holding the sleeve of her shirt in front of her face, only exposing her eyes from behind, as she turned to look at the two arguing women with a calm face.

“Must you two always bicker so much? It really is so unappealing for two ladies to fight with one another over trivial things. So unbecoming of lady Harribel’s fracción. And besides Apacci, Mila Rose is right; your continuous tapping is quite vexing. Almost as much as her snoring.” She stated in a quiet voice.

The other two women snapped their heads to her. “Shut up, Sung-Sun!” Mila Rose yelled back.

“Yeah! No one asked for your opinion, so stay out of it!” Apacci followed.

Before Sung-Sun could respond, they heard a knocking sound come from the door. The ‘calm’ woman turned to it with a raised brow.

“Come in.” she answered, causing Apacci to growl.

“Why don’t you ask who it is first, instead of just ‘inviting’ random people into lady Harribel’s room?!” the black-haired woman growled.

Sung-Sun rolled her eyes to the woman as the door opened. “Because it is quite obvious who it is, Apacci. All of the Espada are in the meeting with Lord Aizen, leaving only the fracción. And who among them would want to come see us besides, Lilynette?” she observed.

Apacci instantly turned her head back to the door to see that is was, indeed, the small girl who was at the door. The girl closed the door behind her before waving at the three women in front of her.

“Morning guys, whatcha doing?” she asked in a cheerful voice.

Sung-Sun again turned her eyes back to her two comrades. “Attempting to end a fight before it starts, it would seem.”

Mila Rose and Apacci snapped back to her. “Shut up!” they yelled in unison.

The former then turned to the small Arrancar. “What do you want, Lilynette? Looking for Stark again?” she inquired.

Lilynette shook her head. “No, he actually went to the meeting on time today.”

“That’s surprising.” Apacci and Mila Rose mumbled in unison.

The small Arrancar snickered gleefully. “I know, right? Anyways, I’m actually here to talk with you guys about something.” She corrected.

Apacci scoffed and sat back down with her arms crossed. “Whatever, just spit it out already.” She demanded.

Sung-Sun turned her head to her. “Must you be so rude, Apacci? At least now you have something to do.”

The black-haired woman glared at her. “I wasn’t talking to you, Sung-Sun! So be quiet!”

Lilynette chuckled under her breath. Although she would never say it in front of them, she always found the arguing of the Tres Espada’s fracción to be very amusing. Just a single word, or even an odd look, would set them off, which was something that the small Arrancar would do on occasion just for entertainment.

She was actually highly tempted at that moment to make the three of them argue even more, but with what she had to discuss with them at the moment, it was better to let them calm down instead.

“Actually, I’m hoping we can keep this between the four of us.” She informed, causing the three other women to look at her with mixed faces.

Sung-Sun was looking at her with a raised brow. “Oh? Then this should be interesting. What is it?” she questioned.

Lilynette sighed with slumped shoulders. “I was…hoping to talk to you guys about…Lady Nelliel.”

The women’s expressions instantly soured. “What the hell do you want to talk about that traitor for?” Apacci demanded sternly.

Mila Rose nodded. “I agree. There should be nothing to discuss about her, besides the worst death we can give her.” She added; earning, surprisingly, a nod of agreement from Apacci.

Lilynette sighed again. “Guys…I know this is going to sound stupid, but…I think that…she might actually be innocent.” She informed.

Their eyes went wide. “Excuse me?! Did you just fucking say you think she’s innocent?!” Apacci sneered.

Sung-Sun looked at the seething woman. “Now now Apacci, calm down. Let’s at least hear what Lilynette has to say.” She placated.

Mila Rose glared at her. “I don’t think so, Sung-Sun. We ‘all’ saw that video that Aizen showed us, even you, and it ‘clearly’ shows the woman killing her ‘own’ fracción. She’s obviously guilty, and we have nothing to talk about when it comes to her.”

Lilynette shook her head sternly. “I don’t think so guys, I think she was tricked.”

Apacci rolled her eyes. “Yeah, sure she was. And just ‘how’ do you think that’s the case, Lilynette?”

The girl shrugged her shoulders. “Aizen must have used one of his illusions.”

Mila Rose narrowed her eyes at the small Arrancar. “You better watch what you say, Lilynette. You know Lord Aizen sees and hears everything around here. And you also know that his illusions can’t fool cameras. She ‘obviously’ killed Pesche and Dondochakka. Or do you think the cameras are lying too?”

Lilynette dropped her head. “I can’t deny that Pesche and Dondochakka were killed by Nelliel’s hands, Mila Rose. But what if she was tricked into doing it?” she said, then lifted her head back. “We all know that Pesche and Dondochakka were very loyal to Nelliel, not Aizen. You know without any doubt that they would have followed her, regardless of what she was doing. They may have tried to talk her out of something, but they ‘still’ would have done what she asked. You all know this. And even if they didn’t, she would have ‘never’ harmed them.”

The taller woman sighed. “I’ll admit that she was kind to everyone, especially us. And that she cared a lot for her fracción, just like Lady Harribel does. But regardless, she killed her two fracción, and turned against us. Didn’t you hear the report from Ulquiorra? She fought against the Espada, twice. She ‘helped’ the soul reapers, Lilynette. Even ‘if’ she was tricked, she is still a traitor to the Arrancar. I know the two of you were very close, but she is gone now. So I strongly suggest you get that in your head and drop the matter before Lord Aizen finds out.” Mila Rose warned.

The girl dropped her head again and nodded. “Yeah, I guess I’ll see you guys later then.” She said in a defeated voice.

The tiny Arrancar then turned and walked back to the door, leaving the room and closing it behind her. Sung-Sun turned to face her two comrades who were staring at the door, both with agitated looks on their faces.

“You know, she did have a point.” She stated, gaining their attention.

“Don’t you start too, Sung-Sun. She’s just upset that her best friend and ‘sister’ is gone.” Apacci warned.

Sung-Sun rose a brow at the two of them. “Do you not find this whole thing a little…off? You two know that she is right, that Pesche and Dondochakka would have sided with her. That she would simply kill the both of them, knowing that they would follow her, I actually find that to be a bit odd. Surely you two must feel that something is missing?” she questioned.

Mila Rose sighed heavily. “It doesn’t matter what we feel, Sung-Sun. Our loyalty is to Lady Harribel, and her loyalty is to Lord Aizen. And besides, she sided with the soul reapers, so that makes her an enemy, regardless of what happened. Lilynette needs to just forget her and worry about doing her job as a fracción. Now just drop it.”

“Agreed.” Apacci followed, then folder her arms on the table and rested her head in the space they created.

Sung-Sun watched the two Arrancars for a moment, then turned to the door with a narrowed gaze.

_“I doubt that will happen.”_ She thought.

** Northeast Side of Karakura Town, Midday **

Timothy flashed into existence on the rooftop of the shopping mall he had taken Nel to days before; followed almost immediately by Renji, where the younger Lieutenant walked up to the older.

“Nothing?” Timothy inquired.

Renji sighed and closed his eyes as he shook his head. “Not a thing. I checked just about every inch of the area, and I haven’t found a single thing out of place. You?” he returned.

The younger man shrugged his shoulders. “Pretty much the same for me. I think I’m starting to have doubts about that Ulquiorra guy’s mission. Maybe he wasn’t part of it, or maybe he was just an observer.”

Abarai nodded. “That’s true, but we haven’t checked towards the center of town yet, so we shouldn’t count out our original thoughts just yet. I was about to get started, but I thought I’d check with you first.”

Timothy rubbed the short hair of his chin and hummed in thought. “Sounds good to me, but what do you say we catch something to eat first? There’s a place nearby that serves some pretty good barbeque.”

His peer rose an amused brow at him. “How do you plan to eat there without our gigais? Yours is back at Kisuke’s, and mine’s at Chad’s place. It would take close to twenty or thirty minutes to grab em and get back here. I doubt Captain Hitsugaya would be very happy about us taking time off just for barbeque.”

The blonde man rose a brow of his own in return. “So? That’s an easy fix. We checked our areas, and now we’re jumping into our gigais to talk to the humans about anything odd. We just so happened to pass by the place and grab something quick to eat.” He stated with a grin.

Renji thought about it for a second, then grinned back. “Yeah, asking the humans some questions is a great idea, Tim.”

“Is that so?” a third voice questioned.

The two Lieutenants flinched before snapping their heads towards the voice to see Toshiro standing a few yards away with his arms crossed, clearly annoyed.

Timothy rolled his eyes with a scoff. “Oh, come on, Captain. Both of our outer areas are done, and I thought we could grab something to eat before moving towards the center of town. An hour isn’t going to kill us. If anything, you should join us. Hell, I’ll even pay for you guys. Ever had barbeque?”

The Captain furrowed his brows a bit. “No, I haven’t. And that’s besides the point. We have a job to do, and spending an hour to retrieve your gigais just to eat is not going to get it done.”

Timothy sighed with slumped shoulders. “Captain, I want to find out what the Espada was up to just as much as you do, but seeing as we’ve been at this almost non-stop for a day and a half, I think an hour break to just sit, relax, and clear our heads will do a lot of good.” He pressed.

Renji turned to the shorter officer. “He’s got a point, Captain. Besides, we can also discuss our search patterns for the deeper parts of the city.” He added.

Toshiro moaned loudly in annoyance. “Fine. Contact the others, and tell them to meet up back here in their gigais. And since Tim was so kind to offer, he’ll be fronting the bill…for ‘all’ of us.”

Timothy’s eyes went wide. “Hey, I said I’d pay for ‘yours’ Captain, not ‘everyone’s’!” he defended.

The Captain rose a brow. “If I remember correctly, you said you would for us ‘guys’, you never said how many. Thank you for the offer, Lieutenant.” He stated, then flashed away.

Renji turned to his friend, who now had his head dropped. “He had a point as well, Tim.”

Timothy glared at the man. “You’re supposed to be ‘helping’ me, you traitor.”

The red-haired man walked over to him and rested a hand on his shoulder. “Tim, I’ll always help you, except when it comes to free food. You’re on your own on that one.” He said with a wide smile.

The younger man growled. “I hate you.” He hissed.

**_“I thought you hated me and Kisuke?”_** Kitsune teased.

_“Don’t you dare start with your stupid games, Kit. You’re already grounded from ice cream, you wanna add alcohol to the list?”_ he threatened.

The spirit snarled back. **_“Damn you! Conniving bastard!”_**

“Ha! You’ve got balls to call ‘me’ conniving, you damn fox.” He said aloud.

Renji rose a brow and crossed his arms. “Let me guess, Kit acting her normal self again?” he observed.

Timothy turned his head slowly to give the man a cold gaze. “Is that a rhetorical question, or are you actually expecting an answer? I can’t really tell.” He mocked.

The older man threw his hand to the air. “Forget I asked. Anyway, I better get back and get my gigai. See ya in a few.” He said, then vanished as well.

Timothy sighed and shook his head. “Idiot.” He mumbled, then shunpoed away.

** Urahara Shop, Present **

“Ow! Damn you, you stupid, useless, evil tool!” Nel hissed as she held the index finger of her right hand.

After hitting her own finger, rather than the nail, for the tenth time, the woman was starting to go well beyond angry. She had already nearly thrown the accursed tool through the nearby window twice, and thrown it off the roof once, forcing her to climb back down to retrieve it.

She had been up on the shop’s roof for close to four hours now, and the only work the poor woman had to show for it was several broken shingles from missing with the hammer, and well over a few dozen crooked ones.

The woman placed her sore finger in her mouth and began sucking on it to help alleviate the pain, not that it was doing much good. She had hit that same finger three times now, while hitting her thumb five times, and the back of her hand twice.

Basically, her entire hand was throbbing.

“Damn that Kisuke. Stupid fox. Stupid roof.” She ranted on with her finger in her mouth.

After a moment, she removed her hand and grabbed another nail from the box next to her, growling in slight pain as she did. She picked up one of the nails and positioned it where she had last attempted to hammer one in.

Picking up the hammer with her other hand, she held it resting on top of the nail head. Lifting it up and lowering it down a few times to make sure her aim was right, she reared the tool back and brought it back down on the metal object.

“Nel?” a voice called.

The voice distracted her just enough that it threw her aim off, right on top of her hand again. Her whole body tensed at the flash of pain as she gritted her teeth tightly, before quickly yelling out loudly in pain as she held her hand again.

“Damn it! Again?!” she yelled, then glared at the owner of the voice. “What do you want, Tim?!”

The Lieutenant stood in the empty lot, his shoulders slumped, and a very confused look on his face. He stared at her for a moment, then tilted his head to the side.

“What the hell are you doing? Why are you up there working on the roof?” he questioned.

Nel gritted her teeth tighter with a growl. “What the hell does it look like, Tim?! I’m fixing all the damage that you and Kit caused!” she answered.

Timothy continued to stare at her unmoving. “…And…who told you to do that?”

She furrowed her brows evilly. “Who the hell do you think?!”

His eyes widened for a split second, then narrowed as he turned to the front door. “Kisuke!” he hissed in a low voice.

**_“…He made ‘Nel’ fix it?! What the hell is wrong with that man?!”_** Kitsune yelled in his head.

He growled lowly before walking towards the door. _“I ‘very’ strongly suggest you keep that mouth of yours shut, Kit! Afterall, it was your mouth that caused all this! Like always!”_ he pointed out.

**_“You’re the one who was trying to kill me! ‘You’ caused all that damage! Don’t blame this one on me!”_** she defended.

_“Shut it!”_ he demanded as he slid the door open. “Kisuke!” he yelled inside.

As if on cue, the shop owner stuck his head out from around the corner of the kitchen. “You rang?” he inquired with a smile.

Timothy thrusted a finger up to the ceiling. “What the fuck do you think you’re doing making Nel fix your damn roof?! I ‘told’ you that I would fix it this evening after the search was over for the day!”

Kisuke fully came out from around the corner and stood there waving his fan at himself. “Ah, but miss Nel is my assistant, right? So, I thought I would have her work on the roof as her job for the day.” He answered in a cheeky voice.

The Lieutenant dropped his hand to his side in a fist. “I don’t give two shits if she’s helping you out or not, you don’t make a woman climb the fucking roof when you or Tessai can do it! Especially when, again, I said ‘I’ would do it! Get her off that damn roof, you damn fool! Now!” he demanded.

The shop owner dropped his hand with a sigh. “You need to calm down, Tim. I gave her something that would be simple to do so she can get used to working like a human would. There’s not really much else she can do inside, and it’s not like she can leave the shop for employment somewhere else, right? What if she was attacked? You think it wise for her to leave her gigai while outside now that the soul society is paying very close attention to the area?”

Timothy rose a brow at him. “But did it ‘have’ to be the roof? Are you seriously telling me that you have no other jobs that she could handle outside?” he questioned.

“Jinta and Ururu take care of the daily cleaning, so besides the roof repair, not really. She’s a former Espada, Tim; don’t you think that she can handle something simple as roof repair?” Kisuke returned.

The Lieutenant’s other brow rose as he gestured outside with his thumb. “I don’t know, why don’t you go outside and take a look and see for yourself?”

Urahara then rose a brow himself, and began walking towards the door. The two men walked out to the empty lot and turned around to look at the roof, where Kisuke’s eyes went wide at the sight of the Arrancar’s repair job.

Nearly all of the, so far, replaced shingles were either crooked or deformed, there were small patches of the underlying wood exposed, and the large sign that, originally, read ‘Urahara Shop’, was now put back together and read ‘Uraha Shop’; the whole sign canted heavily to the right.

Timothy folded his arms and side-glanced the shop owner. “Still think it’s a good idea to have Nel fix your roof, Kisuke?” he pressed.

Kisuke rolled his eyes to him. “Point taken.” He said, then returned to Nel. “That’s fine, miss Nel. Tim here will take the rest from there.” He yelled out.

The woman glared at him. “What’s wrong, Kisuke? You don’t like my work?” she challenged in a very dangerous tone.

An evil, yet brilliant idea came to Timothy’s mind, where he turned to her and grinned. “I think it looks great, Nel. You’re doing a nice job. In fact, it looks so good that I think you should replace the whole thing.” He yelled back.

The shop owner’s eyes became saucers at the thought of the what state his roof would be in if he allowed that. The man swallowed hard and offered a very weak smile at the woman.

“No no, that won’t be necessary, miss Nel. You did a fine job, I just think Tim here should take care of the rest; seeing as how he and Kit were the ones who caused the damage in the first place.” He offered.

The Lieutenant turned back to him. “Are you sure? I’m sure Nel wouldn’t mind giving your roof an overhaul, Kisuke. I’d even make sure she pays ‘careful’ attention to the area above your room.” He said in a tone loud enough for her to hear.

Nel caught on to what he was implying and nodded with a ‘smile’. “No, I don’t mind at all, Kisuke. I mean, I am staying here, so the least I can do is make sure your shop is in ‘perfect’ shape.” She added.

Kisuke quickly waved her off with his fan. “Please, that’s not necessary, miss Nel. It looks just fine as it is. Thank you so much for your hard work.” He said rather quickly.

Timothy and Nel exchanged knowing grins at each other. “Well, I guess it’s his loss then, Nel. Since you’ve got nothing else to do right now, you wanna join me and the others for lunch?” he offered.

The woman smiled and nodded. “I’d like that. I’ll be down in just a minute, Tim.” she returned.

He nodded back and turned to the still stunned shop owner. “Look Kisuke, I’m sorry about your roof, but just because I can’t get to fixing it right away, doesn’t mean you pawn it off on Nel. I get that you were having her learn a new skill, but have her do something that doesn’t involve someone else’s mistakes. Alright?”

Kisuke glanced at him and continued waving his fan. “As I had told miss Nel, she is also to blame for the damage to my roof, Tim. While it’s true that you and Kit are responsible for the actual damage, miss Nel brought the cause of the damage on by telling you where to find Kit. So all three of you are responsible. And while we’re on the subject, you do realize that you owe me a substantial amount of money for the damages Kit and miss Nel have caused so far, right?” he said with a grin.

Timothy’s face dropped instantly. “Don’t remind me. I still haven’t been payed yet, so I’m still stuck with using the squad’s mission budget. You’ll get your damn money, Kisuke. I always pay my dues, just ask Kit. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve gotta go get my gigai so I can meet back with the others.” He concluded, then turned to leave.

The shop owner waved his fan at him. “One more thing, Tim. If you don’t mind, you think you could pick up a few things while you are out? Nothing big, just some things for the shop.” He inquired.

The Lieutenant scoffed lightly. “Yeah, sure.”

Kisuke smiled widely. “Perfect! Here’s the list, Tim.” he said, holding out a small piece of paper to the man.

Timothy accepted it and gave it a quick glance before raising a brow in confusion. “Kisuke…you do realize that if I get this, that it’s not going to be a good day later…right?” he questioned, now side-glancing the shop owner.

“Well, then I suggest you keep a close eye on your two female companions.” He advised.

The Lieutenant shook his head with a sigh. “Easier said than done.” He mumbled to himself.

He then turned to see Nel walking up to them, carrying his gigai on her back. “Here you go, Tim. I’m ready to leave when you are.” She stated, setting the faux body down into a sitting position next to him.

“Thanks, Nel.” He returned with a smile.

The man kneeled down and pulled himself inside the body as Nel turned to Kisuke. “Are you sure you do not want me to finish your roof, Kisuke?” she asked with a low, and threatening voice.

Urahara began to sweat as he shied away from her a bit. “Oh yes, I’m sure miss Nel. Thank you so much for your…hard work.” He assured, hesitantly.

She squinted at him slightly. “Very well. If there is anything else you would like some help with, please let me know, Kisuke.” She ‘insisted’.

The shop owner swallowed the lump in his throat as he fanned himself even faster. “Of course! I’ll be sure to let you know if anything comes up, miss Nel!” he said rather quickly.

Timothy then stood up and rotated his shoulder a few times. “Why wait for him to ask, Nel? If you see something that needs ‘work’ done to it, just do it.” He pressed, making the shop owner sweat even more.

He simply couldn’t believe that the two of them had somehow managed to turn the tables on him. And now he was finding himself to be very fearful for the wellbeing of his beloved shop.

“Please, that is ‘really’ not necessary, Tim. Now, if you will excuse me, I have some…things to take care of. Enjoy your get-together you two.” He said, then swiftly walked back inside the shop.

After he was out of sight, Timothy snickered while Nel chuckled. Kitsune on the other hand, couldn’t help but raise a brow at her partner’s behavior.

**_“Wow…You really are conniving, Tim. I starting to feel bad for Kisuke now.”_** She admitted.

He scoffed at her. “You should, seeing as how you’re the one who started all this. Did you at least learn your lesson last night?” he questioned.

The spirit growled back. **_“Leave me alone. It was just a stupid joke, Tim. You know, ha ha?”_**

“The only ‘ha ha’ I’ll be giving is when you finally learn your lesson. Now be quiet.” He instructed.

Nel chuckled at him. “I’m sure I know what she’s saying right now, so I won’t ask. Are you ready?”

Timothy moaned, but nodded. “Yeah, we should get going. The Captain didn’t even like the idea about lunch in the first place, and being late is only going to make him that much more annoyed. Not to mention the fact that you’re coming too.”

The woman nodded lightly as they began to walk. “I know he still doesn’t trust me that much, but he doesn’t seem to mind me being around anymore.” She observed.

“Well, after saving his ass from that fracción, he’d be stupid to not trust you at least a little. But, I guess we’ll see how far that trust is when we all sit down to eat.” He returned with a hand gesture.

She nodded again. “I guess. So where are we going this time? That steak place again?” she inquired.

Timothy chuckled at her question. “No, we’re going somewhere else that I think you’ll like. Once we’re done, I guess you can join up with Renji and help him out with the search again. You two seem to be getting along much better than when you first met.”

Nel hummed in thought a moment. “Yes, he and I have gotten a lot closer to each other. To be honest, it still feels a bit strange that I’m a friend to a bunch of soul reapers. But I’m actually glad that I am though. Everyone, especially you Tim, has helped me so much, and shown me that not everything is as it seems. I’m glad that I saved you that day in the park.”

The Lieutenant gave a breathy laugh. “Yeah, me too, for obvious reasons. And the Captain will eventually come to trust you, he just needs more time is all. But right now, I think he’s far more concerned about the difference in power between us and the Espada. The training you did with him this morning really worried him, I can tell.”

The woman stopped walking and lowered her head, causing him to stop as well and turn to her. “He should be worried, Tim.” she stated, then looked up at him. “As much as I don’t want to say it, the Espada are far more powerful than even a Captain. Even without his limiter, he would be very hard-pressed to defeat one. I can’t just outright tell him that he is no match for an Espada alone, it would be insulting to him. And with my particular situation, the last thing I want to do is insult him. That is the main reason why I wanted to train with him, to ‘show’ him just how outmatched he would be.” She enlightened.

Timothy sighed before walking up to her and resting a hand on her shoulder. “Nel, anyone would be upset for being doubted; but I know the Captain would rather be doubted than outright defeated. He’ll take what you’ve shown him and use it to better himself and his men. I mean, he did allow you to train with the others, right?”

She nodded slightly. “He did, although I could tell he was very hesitant about it. I honestly don’t blame him, as I am sure the thought of me still working with Aizen is still on his mind. I know that it will take a bit more time to convince him otherwise, but with Ulquiorra and Grimmjow showing up like they did, I’m not sure that we have that time. Grimmjow always does whatever he wants, but Ulquiorra ‘always’ has a purpose behind anything he does. If he was here, there was a reason for it.” She assured firmly.

He nodded back. “That’s why we’re going through so much trouble searching the city to find out what that purpose was, Nel. Whatever it was, we’ll find it. Now, let’s hurry up and meet with the others. The Captain is already making me pay for everyone’s meals, and I don’t want to see what he’ll do if we’re late.” He lightly moaned.

Nel rose a brow at him in puzzlement. “He’s making you pay for everyone? Isn’t that a little…wrong?” she questioned.

The man sighed as he turned to continue walking. “Personally, I don’t really mind buying lunch for everyone once in a while, but I would rather do it on my own accord than to be told to do so. It just sucks that I’m still using the squad’s mission budget for now. I’m surprised I haven’t gotten an inquiry or anything from the Captain yet. But we really need to get going; we’re already late as it is now.” He insisted.

She nodded and rejoined him at the side as they continued walking at a brisk pace. They continued down the narrow street for a short while, and it wasn’t until they turned onto a two-way road that he turned to her again.

“Have you chatted with Gamuza today, or are you two still trying to settle differences?” he inquired.

The woman lowered her head a little bit with a low sigh. “I spoke with her today, actually. She still has her…thoughts about you and my situation with the others. I’m afraid it may be a while before she and I will be able to talk like we used to.” She fretted.

He tilted his head. “Is there anything I can do to help?”

Nel raised her head back to him with a shake. “I don’t think so. I think the best thing would be not to do, or say anything that might upset her for right now. You have to remember Tim, that Gamuza is my instincts, my primal self before I became an Arrancar. It’s natural for her to hate and despise you and the others, especially our…relationship.” She said as she turned her head.

Timothy turned back front, then stepped closer to her and wrapped an arm around her waist with a sigh. The action slightly surprised the teal-haired woman, causing her to turn back to him to see a saddened look on his face.

“I understand what you’re saying, Nel. Gamuza made it blatantly obvious that she hated us being together when I finally managed to calm her down a bit. I’m trying my hardest to show her that I’m not trying to take you away; but just like you and Captain Hitsugaya, I have to show her that she can trust me. It’ll probably take longer for me to get her trust, than you getting the Captain’s.” he pointed.

She nodded in agreeance. “I think you may be right, Tim. Gamuza can be calm when she wants to, but she is very stubborn on certain things.”

Timothy’s face then dropped. “Like someone else I know. At least she’s not perverted like the demon in ‘my’ head is. It would probably give me nightmares to imagine a perverted Gamuza.” He offered.

Her face fell as well. “I really don’t want to imagine that either.” She admitted.

The hollow spirit rose a brow. **_“Excuse me? And just what is that supposed to mean?”_** she questioned dangerously.

Nel sighed heavily as she shook her head. _“It wasn’t supposed to mean anything, Gamuza. You’ve seen how bad Kit is yourself; do you really want to picture yourself as a hollow version of her?”_ she returned.

Her head was silent for a while until the spirit sighed back. **_“…Good point. I seriously have no idea how the brat can handle that stupid fox.”_** She commented.

The teal-haired woman chuckled inwardly. _“Neither do I, Gamuza.”_

“Nel?” Timothy called.

She snapped back to reality and turned her head to him, seeing a curious look on his face. “Yes?”

His face didn’t change when he spoke again. “Talking with Gamuza?” he inquired.

Nel gave him a weak smile and nodded. “Yes, we were just discussing something that I think we both agreed on.”

He smiled back and turned to the front. “That’s good. At least she’s not trying to kill me right now. Anyway, you feel like going to that arcade place later after our search is over for the day?” he offered.

The woman gave him a slight smirk while glancing at him from the side. “Are you offering to do one of those date things with me again?” she suggested.

He simply smirked back. “Maybe.”

She then turned to him and smiled warmly. “I’d like that, but I already…promised Rangiku that I would go shopping with her and Orihime. Sorry Tim.” she said in a defeated tone.

Timothy rose a questioning brow at her. “Judging by your voice, I guess it’s safe to assume that means she backed you into a corner and forced you to go again?” he observed.

Nel’s face dropped as she turned back front and tilted her head. “Well…not exactly…”

_ Flashback, Two Hours Prior _

_Nel walked through the front door of the shop, her thumb stuck in her mouth as she gently sucked on it after hitting it with the hammer. Her index finger was already red, and the back of her hand had a pronounced red spot from where she had struck them earlier as well._

_“I can’t believe he’s making ‘me’ fix that roof of his. Stupid Kisuke.” She mumbled to herself as she entered the kitchen._

_Reaching up to the cupboard and retrieving a small glass, she proceeded to the fridge and pulled out a carton of milk; filling the glass to the brim before putting the beverage away and grabbing the glass to sit at the dining room table._

_She sat down with a huff and began drinking from the glass, before a cheerful voice broke the silence in the room._

_“Hey Nel! How you doing this morning?” a female voice spoke out._

_Nel set the glass down and turned to the owner of the voice with a small smile. “Good morning, Rangiku. I’m…fine. Thank you for asking. And how about yourself?” she returned._

_The Lieutenant sat down across from her and leaned back against the wall with a relaxing sigh. “I’m beat. All this running around and looking for what that Espada guy was up to is so boring. Not to mention the Captain won’t stop checking in on me every ten minutes.” She complained._

_The Arrancar chuckled at her. “Probably trying to keep you from taking off and going shopping again.” She observed._

_Rangiku opened her eyes to the teal-haired woman and rose a brow. “Hey, it’s not that often that I get to come to the world of the living, and this is where all the best shopping is. It’s only natural that I would try to take every opportunity to get the clothes I want, right?”_

_Nel simply shrugged her shoulders. “I guess?” she offered._

_A light bulb then went off in the busty Lieutenant’s head, causing her to smirk. “I know, you should go out shopping with me and Orihime later, Nel.” She said in a cheerful voice._

_The other woman started to sweat a bit, remembering the last time she went shopping with the Lieutenant. Reaching back and rubbing the back of her head, Nel hummed lowly in thought._

_“I’m…not so sure…that’s a good idea, Rangiku. You remember what happened last time. And besides, I don’t have any money, and I’ve made Tim pay for far too much as it is already. I can’t do that to him.” She pointed out._

_Rangiku only waved her off with her hand. “Details, details. You don’t have to worry about paying for anything, Nel. I’ll take care of it, you can just pay me back some other time.” She said, dropping her hand to her lap._

_Nel lowered her head a bit and moaned. “But still, I would rather not have a repeat of what happened last time, Rangiku. Tim was very upset after what you and Yoruichi said in the store, and I had to talk to him and calm him down afterwards, with Orihime’s help.”_

_The Lieutenant smirked even more when she noticed a very faint, almost unnoticeable, blush form on Nel’s cheeks at the mention of his name. She then leaned forward and propped her head up with her hands, her elbows resting on the table._

_“Speaking of which, how are you two lovebirds getting along? You two sleeping together yet?” she asked with a flash of her brows._

_The redness in Nel’s cheeks grew even redder as she backed away from the woman. “N…No! We are ‘not’ sleeping together! Don’t start teasing me as well, Rangiku!” she pleaded._

_The woman chuckled lightly. “I’m not trying to do anything Nel, I was just asking a simple question. So, how far ‘have’ you two gone then? Has he gone all ‘lovey dovey’ with you?” she pressed harder._

_Nel turned her head away as she closed her eyes with a frown. “W…Well…he has…” she started, but froze._

_Rangiku waited for her to finish, but after a few seconds rose a brow. “Go on…Has what? You can tell me, it’s just the two of us here, you know.”_

_The Arrancar grew even redder before taking a deep breath. “Well…we’ve…kissed.” She said in a very low voice._

_The Lieutenant moved her right hand to cup her ear. “I’m sorry, I didn’t catch that Nel.” She said with a grin._

_Nel growled lowly before turning back to her with a frown. “We’ve kissed. Happy?” she asked in a growl._

_Rangiku smiled before leaning back and crossing her arms. “Well, good for you, Nel! I was starting to think that it would be an eternal stalemate between you two! So, who kissed who?” she asked further._

_The teal-haired woman dropped her head with a hint of a smile as she remembered the day her and Timothy first went shopping; when she had him laying down on a bench with his head resting in her lap._

_She remembered how she had admitted her feelings to him, and how she worried about what he thought about her being a hollow. She smiled even more as she remembered him leaning up and pressing his lips to hers, telling her he didn’t care what she was, only ‘who’ she was._

_“He kissed me.” She finally said in a low tone. She raised her head back up to the Lieutenant to see her eyes slightly widened as she closed her own with a warm smile. “I finally told him how I felt about him, and how I wanted to try and have a relationship with him. But I was still fearful that he might not want to, because I’m a hollow. That’s when he kissed me, and told me he didn’t care what I was, but only who I was.” She said as a lone tear ran down her face._

_Rangiku stared at her for a moment, then smiled just as warmly. “Well well, I’m surprised he managed to find the guts to make his move. Judging by the kind of guy he is, I was under the assumption that it would be ‘you’ who kissed first. I’m happy for you, Nel. So, I guess that means you two are officially together then?”_

_Nel opened her eyes and nodded. “Yes, in a way, I guess. I am still unsure about a lot of things on this subject, but Tim said that he would wait before we moved further, until I get a better understanding on these matters. Actually, if you don’t mind, could I…could I ask you for some help regarding this? Orihime has been helping me out a lot, but…I’m hoping to get a second opinion on things. Afterall, I can’t really ask Yoruichi…at least not without her endless teasing.” She added with a dropped face._

_The busty Lieutenant gave her a toothy grin. “Of course! I’d be more than happy to give you a hand, Nel! So, why don’t you join me and Orihime, and the three of us can have our little ‘talk’ about all this? While we’re at it…” She paused and leaned over the table closer to the Arrancar, speaking in a very low voice that only she could hear. “…we can pick up something nice and juicy for you to wear for him.” She hinted._

_The woman across from her leaned back away from her and gulped. “Um…what did…you have…in mind?” she hesitantly asked, her cheeks turning red again._

_Rangiku simply grinned more as she shook a finger at her. “Nah uh, you’re just gonna have to wait and see for yourself. All I can tell you, is that it’ll be something that he’ll ‘never’ forget.”_

_Nel began to sweat as many possible scenarios, all of them dangerous to her humanity, began to flood through her head._

_ Flashback End _

Nel sighed heavily as her head lowered a bit. “Let’s just say that…she was very ‘persuasive’. Sorry Tim.”

Timothy sighed as well and waved her off gently. “Don’t be. In truth, even though the damn woman is quite annoying, I’m glad you and her became friends. It shows that she’s not judging you for what you are, and has chosen to see you for who you are. Orihime as well. I noticed that she’s also very fond of you, Nel.” He stated.

The woman raised her head back to him with a smile. “Yes, I’m very fond of her as well. She’s a very sweet girl, and very caring. Like you, she has been very helpful in my adjustment to being here, as well as helping me with understanding my…feelings towards you.” She admitted with a small blush.

The man held her a bit tighter around the waist before leaning over and giving her a quick kiss on the forehead, causing her to widen her eyes a bit. He gave her a warm smile with a light chuckle.

“I’m glad she’s helping you out, Nel. But remember what I said, we’ll only take this as far as you’re willing to go. I am more than content with waiting until you have a full understanding about all of this. So you can take your time to learn everything you need to.” He assured.

Nel smiled back and nodded before kissing him back on his own head. “Thank you, Tim. I just hope I don’t have to make you wait too long.”

He nodded as well. “For you, I’ll wait as long as it takes, Nel.” He stated, then held her a bit tighter as he turned back front.

** 20 Minutes Later **

Timothy sat down with a relaxing breath before taking a quick glance at the menu that laid before him. The others were about to do the same, but the man swiftly waved them off as he set the menu down.

“No need guys, I’ve got the perfect thing for all of us.” He stated, earning nods from a few of them.

It was only a minute later that the waitress walked up to their large table, her pen and notepad already out to receive their orders. Timothy glanced at her and held up a finger.

“One brisket platter…” he started, then raised a second finger. “…and one rib platter.” He added, then dropped his hand. “Eight sweet teas, and one bottle of sake.” He finally concluded.

The woman took a moment to write everything down, before smiling and collecting the menus from everyone. Once she had all of the menus in hand, she gave a quick bow.

“Yes sir, I’ll have your drinks in just a moment.” She informed, then left.

Timothy then turned back to the group. The table that they were sitting at put four of them on each side; with Timothy, Nel, Rukia, and Ikkaku on one side, and Renji, Toshiro, Rangiku, and Yumichika on the other.

Toshiro was currently sitting directly across from Nel and looking at her with cautious eyes. She leaned back just a tiny bit, but still kept her composure as she stared back at him. Everyone’s eyes shifted between the two for a few minutes, until Timothy sighed and crossed his arms.

“Do you have a problem with Nel being here, Captain?” he questioned, gaining the short man’s attention.

“Not necessarily, though I do wonder why you brought her. I was hoping we could discuss this without her being present.” He stated calmly.

Timothy closed his eyes and sighed again. “Do you really think it would have mattered? Either way, she would have found everything out in the end.” The Lieutenant pointed out.

The Captain crossed his arms as well with a raised brow. “Did you consider the possibility that there are things she should not hear, seeing how I still do not trust her fully?” he returned.

The Lieutenant was about to reply, until a hand rested on his leg, causing him to turn to the teal-haired woman next to him. “It’s fine, Tim. If it is something important, I can leave.” She offered.

Timothy then turned back to the Captain and shook his head slightly. “No, it’s fine Nel. Whether Captain Hitsugaya wants to accept it or not, you’re a part of the group, and are entitled to hear what he has to say as well.”

Rukia quickly leaned forward with a deathly glare pointed at him. “Tim!” she called.

The man sighed heavily as he dropped his arms and rubbed his temples. “Look Captain, I get that you still don’t trust Nel yet, but even ‘if’ she was trying to trick us or whatever, what harm could she possibly do? You do remember that she did save your life, right?”

Toshiro nodded, then looked at the woman. “I do, and I am thankful for that. But she still has a ways to go before she can fully earn my trust. As I have said before, I have nothing against you Nel, but considering…past circumstances, you will have to forgive me for taking my time in ensuring that you are someone that I can trust. I’m sorry.” He admitted.

Nel shook her head at him quickly. “You don’t need to be, Captain. I fully understand how you feel. I was almost the same way with Tim at first, but he has earned my trust, and I must do the same with you.” She reassured.

Renji turned to the Captain with a firm stare. “What can it hurt to let her sit in on this, Captain? She ‘is’ helping us with the search afterall, right?” he defended.

The Captain side-glanced him with an agitated look on his face. “That is besides the point, Renji.”

Timothy finally sighed and stood up, using a hand under Nel’s arm to gesture for her to do the same. When she finally did, Timothy pulled out several bills and tossed them on the table before turning to leave with Nel in tow.

Toshiro turned back to him with a raised brow. “Where do you think you’re going, Tim?” he questioned.

The man simply glanced over his shoulder with a neutral face. “I’m heading back to the shop with Nel, Captain. If the information you have to put out is too important for Nel, who is a member of the team, to hear, then it’s too important for me to hear. That should be enough to cover the cost of the food. See you guys later.” He said, then turned and started walking away.

A tick mark appeared on the Captain’s forehead, then he growled lowly and shook his head. “Fine. She can stay.” He informed, causing the Lieutenant and Arrancar to stop and turn back to him. The Captain raised his head back to them with a firm glare. “But it’s on your head, Lieutenant. Now please, return to your seat.” He instructed.

Timothy nodded, then did as told; both of them sitting back down with a relieved sigh. “Thank you, Captain.” He said.

Toshiro closed his eyes and took a long breath. “Don’t thank me, I am only allowing this because what I have to say is important for you to hear, and I realize that you would tell her regardless.” He admitted.

The younger man nodded in agreeance, while Nel lowered her head. “I know you don’t trust me, Captain, and I am doing everything I can to show you that I mean no harm.” She stated.

Timothy placed a hand on her shoulder while Toshiro gave her a firm, but calm look. “I understand that, but once you hear what I have to say, you will fully understand why I am still hesitant to trust you.”

Renji rose a brow at him. “What do you mean, Captain? Did something happen?” he inquired.

Toshiro nodded firmly before crossing his arms on the table and leaning forward a bit. “It would seem that there are a few collaborators within Squad 12 that are loyal to Aizen.” He stated, getting surprised looks from everyone.

Rangiku quickly turned to him, giving him a worried look. “Is that why our seal removal request didn’t go through, Captain?”

The small Captain nodded. “Yes. While I was retrieving my gigai from miss Inoue’s apartment, I received a call from the Head Captain. Apparently, members of the stealth force have apprehended two lower ranking members of Squad 12; more specifically, members who worked in the communications department.” He alerted.

Timothy narrowed his gaze and crossed his arms. “So that answers the question as to why the request never made it to the head Captain like you said. One of them must have been the person Rangiku talked to, and never sent the message through the channels.” He observed.

Toshiro nodded again. “And that is what worries me. We have only found two of them, and it is a very safe guess that there would be more; and not just in Squad 12, but in the other squads as well. Due to the breach in security, Captain Kurotsuchi has been forced to lock down Squad 12, while Captain Sui-Fēng and the stealth force search everything. Needless to say, standard communications have been cut off until they can confirm if the security of the transmissions have been compromised or not. So, until further notice, the video screen in miss Inoue’s apartment is the only means of communication we have, considering that it is a direct link only.”

Ikkaku rose a brow at the man. “So…does that mean one of us needs to be there at all times in case someone tries to contact us?”

The Captain glanced at him. “Yes, we will have to work in shifts and stand by in case someone attempts to reach us. Our communicators still work when talking to one another, but we cannot use them to reach the soul society. If a message comes through, that person is to contact myself, or one of the Lieutenants.” He instructed, earning nods from everyone.

“So, what about our search in town?” Renji asked.

Toshiro turned to him and nodded. “We will continue the search, until we have covered every inch. Everyone is to head in the general direction of where they were searching before, and simply work your way in. Kuchiki will take the first communications watch at miss Inoue’s apartment. Nel…” he paused, looking at her and getting her full attention. “…now’s a chance to try and prove yourself. Do you recall Aizen saying anything about inside personnel within the soul society?”

The woman shook her head slowly at him. “I’m sorry, but Aizen never really told the Espada much of anything about his plans, or any measures he took regarding it. If there are any more of your people who are loyal to him, I am not aware of them. All I can offer you is that, knowing Aizen, those two within your Squad 12 are more than likely not the only ones he has hidden. If I had to guess Captain, I would assume that if he had anymore people loyal to him, they would likely be placed somewhere where they would be easily overlooked, but still in a position to cause damage when needed.” She offered.

The man nodded firmly. “I would have to agree. And that brings me to a question that has dawned on me recently. You are capable of opening a garganta to just about anywhere you please, correct?” he questioned, earning a nod back. “Then tell me, if you are so willing to help us defeat Aizen, why have you not offered to use that so that we can attack him directly?” he challenged.

Nel narrowed her gaze at him. “Simple Captain, because it is suicide. My garganta can only accommodate so many individuals at a time; and unlike your precipice world, where time is heavily compressed while inside, it is not the same for a garganta. Time flows normally inside. This means that, even if I made several trips with as many people as I can safely transport, it would take several minutes between trips. The moment my garganta opens in Hueco Mundo, Aizen and the Espada would be aware of it, and would very quickly respond to it. The first group to arrive would be dead before the next could possibly arrive.” She warned.

Toshiro furrowed his brows in agitation. “I see. That does make sense. Is it possible to track where another Espada’s garganta has been opened?”

She shook her head slowly. “After a garganta has closed, it leaves behind some residual spiritual pressure, and you can use that to determine a rough area of where the exit was placed. However, that residual pressure fades quickly, and can only be sensed if you are at the location of where the entrance was made. Seeing as how we have no idea where Ulquiorra’s initial garganta was opened, if it was even here in the world of the living, there is no way to tell where he went. Even if we did, the residual pressure is long gone by now.”

Timothy then turned to the Captain with a raised brow. “Can’t the soul society track gargantas?” he inquired.

Toshiro shook his head. “Not fully, we can only track, and determine the point of where they were opened. And seeing as how the soul society was not actively looking for any sudden appearances, we don’t know where they had entered the world of the living at. And even if the soul society ‘was’ tracking for any appearances, it is safe to assume that the two individuals working with Aizen could have covered it up.”

“You know, this could all be just a ruse, like we thought at first.” Ikkaku stated. “The guy may not have even had a mission, and the whole thing was just to keep us running around like idiots and focused on something else.” He pointed out.

Rukia held her chin in hand with a hum. “That’s true. Aizen could be trying to keep us distracted while he is actually up to something else.”

“I doubt that.” Nel said suddenly, gaining everyone’s attention. “Aizen sacrificed five Arrancar for whatever it is he had Ulquiorra do. There are many different ways he could have led you all around without having to do so. In my opinion, I believe that Ulquiorra ‘did’ have a specific mission, one that Aizen thought was well worth losing five of his stronger Arrancar for.”

Timothy nodded. “I agree. There ‘has’ to be something that we’re missing here. We’ve already covered nearly eighty percent of the city and have found nothing. The only areas we haven’t checked yet are the entertainment and business districts, and I don’t know what mission the guy could have around those areas.”

The Captain sighed heavily as he dropped his head. “The only thing we can do is keep looking. Once we have finished here, I want everyone to continue your search. Kuchiki, if you receive anything from the soul society, you are to inform us immediately.” He ordered.

The woman nodded firmly. “Yes Captain.”

“Here you are.” A female voice sounded next to Timothy.

Everyone turned to see the waitress, along with another, holding two large plates and their drinks. The original waitress set the two plates on the table, while the other walked around and set the glasses down in front of everyone.

Once they were done, they stood side by side and gave them a quick bow. “Please enjoy.” She stated, then left with her companion.

Everyone stared at the food with wide eyes, mouths dripping, while Timothy chuckled inwardly. Renji then took a moment to look around and noticed that something was missing.

“Where’re the utensils?” he inquired.

Timothy chuckled a bit louder and reached out to grab a small length of ribs. “You don’t need em. Just use your fingers, Renji. That the true way to eat barbeque.” He informed, then took a bit bite out of his food.

The redhead simply shrugged and grabbed some of the brisket, followed by everyone else. Taking a second to eye the food over, Renji bit down on the slab of meat, his eyes going wide as the savory, and very tender substance hit his tongue.

“Holy shit this is good!” he said through a full mouth, quickly swallowing and taking another bite.

“Yes, very!” Nel followed after taking a bite of her ribs.

“It’s not bad.” Toshiro added, successfully hiding his enjoyment from his face.

Timothy looked at him and grinned when he saw a large glop of barbeque sauce on the short man’s cheeks. He then cleared his throat, getting his attention, and scratched his cheek.

“You’ve got some sauce on ya, Captain.” He informed with a smile.

The Captain’s eyes widened, then he rubbed his face with his thumb, holding it up to see that the Lieutenant was telling the truth. His cheeks reddened a bit from embarrassment before Rangiku turned to him with a napkin.

“Aw, would you like me to clean it up for you, Captain?” she cooed with a smile.

Toshiro quickly rolled his eyes to her in anger. “Touch me, and I’ll make ‘you’ pay for everything.” He warned.

Everyone at the table, minus the Captain, burst out in laughter. “You sure you don’t want some help, Captain? I’m sure if you ask nicely, one of the waitresses can bring you a bib.” Timothy teased.

The Captain’s head snapped to him with an angry glare. “What was that, Lieutenant?!” he hissed.

Nel clapped her hands together next to her head with a wide smile. “Aw, he looks so cute. Doesn’t he, Rangiku?” she furthered.

The busty Lieutenant quickly nodded. “He sure does, but so do you, Nel.” She said as she pointed at the Arrancar’s mouth.

The teal-haired woman’s smile dropped before turning to Timothy to see him nod. Her cheeks went red as well when she wiped her own mouth to see that she also had sauce on her face. She quickly started wiping it off fully and glared at Timothy.

“Why didn’t you tell me?!” she growled.

He simply shrugged a shoulder. “Cause you looked so ‘cute’.” He mocked, then took a bite of his food.

Her face dropped to a scowl as she slapped him on the shoulder. “I did not! Don’t be mean, Tim!” she said in a whine.

The Lieutenant rolled his eyes and swallowed his food before answering. “I wasn’t being mean, Nel. You can’t really complain about being called cute when you just said the same thing to the Captain.”

“He’s got a point.” Toshiro added, making the woman turn to him with a glare.

“Oh, be quiet Captain.” She shot back, then returned to Timothy. “And you, how can you eat that without getting that stuff on your face as well?” she questioned.

Timothy gave her a smirk. “Practice. Lots of practice.”

Nel puffed her cheeks out with a huff. “No fair.” She mumbled, then returned to her food.

“Still, it is pretty good though.” Renji commented, getting nods from Ikkaku and Rangiku.

“Yeah, it’s too bad they don’t have something like this in the soul society.” The 3rd seat complained.

Timothy shrugged a shoulder at him. “Well, if you ever get tired of being a soul reaper, you could always start up your own restaurant.” He teased.

Renji and Rukia deadpanned. “Yeah…one can only imagine the kind of customers that would show up at a restaurant owned by someone who’s always looking for a fight.” He mumbled, getting a nod from the short woman in agreeance.

Ikkaku immediately jerked his head to the redhead. “What was that, you damn pineapple?!” he growled, sauce on his face.

The Lieutenant returned the glare with a snarl. “What the hell did you call me, cueball?!” he returned.

“You heard me! You wanna take this outside?!” the 3rd third yelled back.

“Awful quick to get your ass handed to ya, ain’t ya?!”

“Ha! Like you could lay a single scratch on me!”

Yumichika sighed heavily with closed eyes. “Really now, must you two make such fools of yourselves? In case you haven’t noticed, the entire restaurant is now staring at you two.” He pointed calmly.

The two officers immediately stopped their growls, widening their eyes before looking around to see that, indeed, the entire establishment, customers and employees, were staring at the two men like they were crazy.

A tick mark appeared on the Captain’s head as he growled lowly. “Morons.” He said in a low voice.

Renji and Ikkaku slowly slid back down into their seats while looking down at their plates in embarrassment. Nel’s lips were twitching as she tried her hardest not to laugh, while Timothy snickered with Kitsune.

Ikkaku turned to the man with an evil glare. “Something funny, shortstuff?!” he hissed in a low voice.

Nel and Rukia snorted from almost losing their battles with laughter, causing Timothy to glare at them. “I ‘dare’ you to laugh at that.” He challenged evilly.

It proved too much, and the two women, along with the others, minus Toshiro of course, burst out in laughing fits. What made it even worse, was that Kitsune, and even ‘Johnny’, were both laughing as well. This caused a tick mark to appear on Timothy’s forehead as he growled.

“Ha ha ha, laugh it up. Idiots.” He droned.

Toshiro sighed as he started rubbing his temples furiously. “I couldn’t possibly agree more.”

** 4 Hours Later **

“We’re back.” A voice called out.

Kisuke to look up from his small pile of bills and invoices with a calculator in hand, to see Timothy and Nel walk through the front door with defeated looks on their faces. The two of them walked up to the table and plopped down on the cushion seats across from him, Timothy setting the plastic bag of things Kisuke asked of him on the table.

“Judging by the looks on your faces, I assume that means you haven’t found anything.” He observed.

Timothy moaned loudly as he dropped his head back against the wall, and Nel shook her own with it hung low.

“No. We searched the entire city, and nobody found a single thing, Kisuke.” She informed.

Kisuke set the calculator down and folded his arms into his sleeves. “I see. You know the possibility that that he really didn’t have a mission is still in the air, right?”

Timothy sighed as he ran his fingers through his hair. “I really I have no idea what to think right now, Kisuke. I’m almost inclined to agree with that, but Nel did say that Ulquiorra is not the kind of person to do something without a purpose, and I believe her.” This caused Nel to smile just a bit, but it went unnoticed. “And besides…” he continued as he lowered his head to look at the shop owner. “…I just can’t get the thought out of my head that we’re all missing something, something blatantly obvious.”

Nel raised her head to him with calming eyes. “Tim, maybe you should rest a bit, it might even clear your head enough for you to figure it out.” She offered.

He smiled warmly, but shook his head. “No, that’s pretty much all I’ve been doing lately is resting. Thanks though.”

Kisuke then pulled out his fan and started fanning himself. “Actually, I believe miss Nel is correct, Tim. At the very least you should sit down and relax for a while. I’ll have Tessai make up some fresh tea for you two. However…” He paused and turned to Nel, getting her attention. “…if you don’t mind miss Nel, I was hoping you and I could discuss something in private.”

The woman nodded at him before turning back to Timothy and resting a hand on his. “It’s nothing Tim, promise. I’ll be right back.” She said, then leaned over and gave him a quick peck on the cheek.

His face reddened, but only for a brief instant before vanishing with a warm smile. “Alright. I’ll be right here.”

She nodded and stood up, following the shop keeper into the kitchen. Timothy’s eyes followed their movements until they were out of sight, then leaned back and closed his eyes as he took a deep, and relaxing breath.

Although he had kissed the teal-haired Arrancar a few times himself, it still got to him a little bit when she kissed him. But now that he had a few seconds to sit and think clearly, it made him a bit happier inside to see that Nel was getting much more comfortable at returning affections.

The man smiled a bit while thinking about her, his mind slowly drifting off into a light snooze.

Nel followed Kisuke past the kitchen and into the main part of his ‘laboratory’ before they stopped, where the man turned to face her with a serious expression on his face. The woman began to sweat as she stood in front of the man’s gaze.

“Please exit your gigai, miss Nel.” He instructed calmly.

He then lifted his cane and pressed the bottom of it to her head. Her spiritual body was immediately ejected from the faux before, where it fell limply to the floor in front of them. Nel stared at the shop owner with shock in her eyes.

“What is it, Kisuke? Why do you need me out of my gigai?” she questioned.

Kisuke’s expression didn’t change as he continued. “I am sorry to ask this of you miss Nel, but I need you and Gamuza to switch out for a moment.”

Her eyes went wide in absolute shock. “What?!”

The man closed his eyes and lowered his head a bit. “There are a few questions I have for her, and I need to ask them directly. Considering that she was able to take over before, it proves that she can temporarily inhabit your body at any time, as long as you allow it.” He informed.

Nel began to sweat even more, fearing that if she did as he asked, she may not be able to regain control again. The woman was actually starting to sweat. “You know she can hear you, Kisuke; so why do you need me to have her take over? Why can’t I just tell you what she says?”

He returned his gaze to her with an understanding look in his face. “I understand your hesitance to do this miss Nel, but I can assure you that, at the moment, your mind is the most dominant between you and Gamuza. Meaning: that if you so wish, you can force her back inside and resume control. And as I said, I have some questions for her, and they need to be asked directly. However, I cannot force you, and I’m only making a request.” He stated calmly.

The woman lowered her head in thought, but finally sighed and nodded. “Alright. So what do I need to do?”

“Gamuza, gently push and try to assume control, and you miss Nel, just relax and allow her to do so.” he instructed.

Nel nodded, then took a deep breath and relaxed her mind. Silence filled the room as the two stood there quietly. But the quiet quickly ended when the woman flinched a bit, then raised her head back and opened her eyes, giving the shop owner a deathly glare.

“What do you want, soul reaper?” ‘Nel’ asked in a cold voice.

Kisuke raised his brow. “I assume that miss Nel can still hear us, correct?” he asked in a suggestive tone, one that the spirit didn’t miss.

She raised a brow as well before closing her eyes for a brief instant, then reopening them and crossing her arms. “Not anymore, although I’m sure you can imagine that she is freaking out right now. Now what do you want? And don’t try to play your stupid mind games with me, Urahara.” She warned.

The man nodded firmly. “Very well. Now, I need you to be honest with me Gamuza, when did you first notice these changes?” he questioned.

Gamuza closed her eyes and sighed. “I can’t really tell you that one, cause I don’t know. I didn’t catch anything until my fight with the brat, when my Justa Subsónica failed to kill him. That’s when I got suspicious, and Nel’s visit yesterday confirmed it. But what you should be more worried about is her mask.”

Kisuke rose a brow in curiosity. “Care to elaborate?”

The spirit opened her eyes and gave him a, surprisingly, concerning stare. “She told you about the missing part of her mask, we discovered that yesterday.” She said, getting a nod to continue. “The last time she visited her inner world, which was only three days prior, her mask was in perfect condition.”

The man’s eyes widened. “I’m sorry, but are you saying the much of her mask disappeared in a matter of only three days?”

Gamuza nodded firmly. “I am, and I’m sure it won’t be long until she notices that, even a day later, it is worse.” She informed lowly.

Kisuke’s face went stern as well. “How worse?”

Gamuza raised her left hand and touched it to the leftmost tooth of her mask. “This tooth is now missing. I caught it just as we were switching out.” She said, and returned her hand. “Don’t you dare dodge around my question Urahara, how bad is it? How much time does she have left before…” she choked, then narrowed her gaze.

“Before she becomes a human spirit?” he filled in, getting a firm nod back. The man sighed heavily and shook his head. “I can’t say, this is progressing much faster than I had anticipated. Originally, I was under the assumption that the damage was over the course of a few weeks; but now that you tell me that this happened in the span of only a few ‘days’, it wouldn’t surprise me if her mask vanished entirely in the next couple of weeks.” He stated solemnly.

The spirit closed her eyes and emitted a low, and animalistic growl. “And you’re positive that you have no idea what could happen to us after…whatever it is, is finished? You’re sure that there’s nothing that you could have possibly missed?”

Kisuke shook his head slowly. “I’m sorry, but as I said, nothing like this has ever happened before, nor should even be possible. Tell me, you and miss Nel, even though you are both a part of the same soul, each have different spiritual pressures, correct?” he inquired, getting a nod. “One moment.”

The man turned and walked over to a distant desk, opening a drawer, and began fishing around inside. Gamuza watched him cautiously for a moment, until he grabbed something inside and started walking back.

When he returned, he held out a small, green orb to her. “If you don’t mind Gamuza, I’d like you to place a small amount of your spirit energy into this device. I’ll do the same thing with miss Nel when you two switch back, and I’ll place both samples into my computer. I’ll then gather another set of examples from the two of you tomorrow, and compare the results to look for any differences. Hopefully, even the slightest change may be able to help figure something out.”

Gamuza nodded, then took the small device from him. Closing her eyes, she forced a miniscule amount of her energy into the orb, the object suddenly starting to glow with a blueish hue. When she finished, the glowing faded, and she handed the device back to him.

“Thank you. Before you two switch back, there is one more thing I would like to ask you, Gamuza.” He started.

The spirit narrowed her eyes. “What is it?”

Kisuke waited a moment to pick his next set of words very carefully, knowing that something said the wrong way would very easily infuriate the spirit.

“You do realize that, if Tim and miss Nel’s relationship keeps progressing, the two of them could possibly end up bonding to each other…right?” he asked calmly.

Gamuza’s eyes immediately gained a deathly look in them. “What about it? And I ‘strongly’ recommend that you choose your words ‘very’ carefully, Urahara.”

Kisuke pocketed the small device and pulled out his fan, but before he had a chance to open it, the spirit snatched it from him and snapped it in two with one hand; just like how a school student would snap a pencil.

“I want to see your face ‘fully’ when you answer me, Urahara. What. About. It?” She asked as she dropped the pieces and began to emit her spiritual pressure on him.

The shop owner’s gaze followed the broken pieces as they fell to the floor, returning it to her once the last piece hit the ground. Needless to say, the man was unaffected…except for the bout of sadness at seeing his fan broken on the floor.

The man sighed in defeat with slumped shoulders. “Alright, alright. I ask this, because I’m concerned about you.”

Gamuza rose a dangerous brow. “What are you getting at? Spill it, Urahara.” She demanded.

Kisuke’s face then went stern. “What I mean, is that I’m concerned as to whether or not you will try to interfere with their lives.”

The spirit rolled her eyes at him. “I have already told you that. As long as the brat keeps his word, and does not bring harm, either physically, mentally, or emotionally, to Nelliel, I will not touch him. But if you are asking if I will be satisfied with them being together, don’t count on it. I am a hollow, and I will always view you all as potential enemies.”

The shop owner slowly shook his head. “I’m afraid you’ve misunderstood my question, Gamuza. Let me rephrase; if Tim and miss Nel decide to be together for the rest of their lives, which is quite likely with the way things are looking, they would want to spend their lives happily. So, my question is if you have any intention of disrupting that happiness?”

Gamuza glared at him as she fought the urge to strangle the annoying shop owner. “Are you implying that I would intentionally destroy Nelliel’s happiness?” she asked in an icy tone.

Kisuke kept his firm, yet calm expression. “You did try to kill Tim, who is the primary source of miss Nel’s happiness.” He pointed out.

The spirit turned away from him with a heavy scoff, realizing that the man, much to her dismay, did have a point. As much as she absolutely hated to admit it, Timothy had indeed brought her partner a great deal of happiness in her life recently.

“I see your point. Fine, to answer your ridiculous question; no, I don’t plan to interfere with their ‘happiness’.” She declared, then turned back to him. “But my statement still stands; even if they are…bonded…if the brat hurts Nelliel in any way, I will end him. Regardless of what Nelliel will think of me. Now, are we done here?”

Kisuke nodded slowly. “We are, though I would like to ask that you keep what we discussed here between the two of us. Miss Nel already has more than enough to worry about at the moment, and this would only cause her to worry more. I don’t believe that it has any effect on her transformation, but I think it would be best to prevent as much stress as we can on her.”

Gamuza nodded back. “I hate it, but I have to agree. So don’t worry, I won’t say anything to her about it. Just find a way to fix this, Urahara.”

“I can’t offer any promises, Gamuza. I recommend that you test out some of your abilities within your inner world and notify me of anything else you happen to notice that’s different.” He advised.

The woman rolled her eyes, but nodded. “Fine.” She answered, then closed her eyes.

It was only a second later that she reopened her eyes and widened them before looking around frantically. She then looked at Kisuke, and let out a relaxing sigh.

“Are you alright…miss Nel?” Kisuke asked.

Nel nodded at him and took a deep breath. “Yes, I instantly grew worried when Gamuza cut me off. What happened Kisuke?” she asked in worry.

The man smiled sheepishly and rubbed his head. “Well…let’s just say Gamuza wanted to add her two cents in while I was trying to gather a sample of her spirit energy. Needless to say…she’s still quite upset about this whole ordeal.” He half-lied.

The woman sighed again with slumped shoulders. “I see. I’m sorry about her behavior, Kisuke.”

Kisuke quickly waved her off. “Nonsense. It’s quite understandable how she would feel that way. And while we’re on the subject…” He paused and withdrew another small orb from his shirt, holding it out to her. “If you would be so kind, would you mind placing some of your spirit energy into this? It’s so I can run some tests to try and find a way to solve your little problem.”

She took the device and did the same thing as Gamuza; pouring a small amount of her energy into the object before handing it back to Kisuke. The man took it and placed it back inside his shirt.

“Thank you. I believe that’s everything I need for the moment, miss Nel. I’ll be sure to inform you if I find anything.” He comforted.

Nel smiled at him and nodded. “Thank you, Kisuke…for everything.”

Again, the shop owner waved her off. “Please, I’m more than happy to help. Although…you do own me for a new fan…” he said as he pointed to the floor.

The woman rose her brows in confusion, then looked down to see his ‘precious’ fan in multiple pieces on the floor between them. Nel slapped a hand to her face with a low moan as she mumbled curses to her hollow spirit.

**_“Don’t cry to me, Nelliel. The man should be happy it wasn’t his pretty little neck. That fool annoys me to no end.”_** The spirit returned.

_“…Okay…fair point.”_ Nel admitted.

Nel sighed again as she dropped her hand. “Fine, I’ll pay for a new fan, Kisuke. If you’ll excuse me, Rangiku should be here soon to pick me up.”

Kisuke smirked at her. “And I’m sure you’re more than happy to join her.” He teased.

Her faced dropped instantly. “…Not really…” she mumbled, then turned and left the room with him.

When they returned to the dining room, they found Timothy with his arms crossed and resting his head against the wall and his eyes closed. As Nel sat down next to him, he opened a single eye and glanced at her.

“Everything alright?” he inquired in a sleepy voice.

Nel smiled warmly at him and nodded. “Yes, everything is fine. Kisuke just wanted to make sure that my reconnection with Gamuza didn’t have any bad effects on me or her.”

Timothy nodded back and closed his eye again. “I guess there weren’t any, that’s good. Rangiku called me a few minutes ago; her and Orihime just left her house and should be here in a minute. Try not to let the woman bully you into anything, Nel.” He pleaded.

“Easier said than done.” Nel said with a deadpanned expression.

“Tim…” Kisuke called.

Timothy opened his eyes to see the man looking into the bag he brought home and shifting things around. “Yeah?”

Kisuke looked up at him and raised a brow. “You seem to have forgotten something.” He announced.

The Lieutenant shook his head slowly. “No, I didn’t forget; I simply chose not to get the last one. You know damn well what would happen if I had gotten that, and ‘I’ would end up being the one paying for it…again. If you want it, ‘you’ go get it, and ‘you’ pay for the aftermath.” He said in a demanding voice.

Nel was absolutely confused. “What did he want you to get, Tim?” she inquired.

The man pulled the list out of his shirt pocket and handed it to her. When she opened the slip of paper and read down the list, her eyes went wide and quickly shot back to him upon reaching the last item on the list.

“Why not?! You know I haven’t had a chance to have it yet!” she whined, tears threatening to form in her eyes.

He slowly turned his head to her and raised a brow. “And I’m sorry about that. But still, I am not going to go buy more cookie dough ice cream only for you and Kit to go on another rampage.”

**_“I hate you!”_** the spirit yelled in his head.

_“Shut it!”_ he ordered, causing the spirit to huff and cross her arms.

**_“Evil bastard.”_** She mumbled.

Timothy growled and shook his head while rubbing his temples. “Why me?”

“Nel!” a high-pitched voice yelled out from the front door.

Everyone turned to see Rangiku and Orihime walk in, both waving at them. Nel waved back while Kisuke nodded and Timothy moaned with annoyance.

“And the day just got worse.” He whined. _‘At least Nel’s the one who has to deal with her.’_ He thought, then raised his head to the busty Lieutenant. “Rangiku, for the love of God, ‘please’…no more exotic crap.” He pleaded.

Rangiku rose a brow and crossed her arms. “Aw…and I thought you would love to see Nel wearing some nice clothes. What’s wrong Tim, you don’t like to see Nel wearing nice things?” she teased.

Timothy narrowed his gaze at her. “Nice things, yes; revealing things…” He quickly stopped when he realized the trap that he almost fell for, causing him to growl at her. “Nice try, Rangiku. I fell for that once, and I’m not falling for it again. You know ‘exactly’ what I meant, and you better adhere to it.” He warned.

The woman tilted her head to the side and gave him an ‘innocent’ frown. “Huh? What do you mean, Tim? I’m just trying to help Nel look nice for you.” She pouted.

The man rolled his eyes. “For God’s sakes, Rangiku. Look, I’m tired and don’t have the time, nor the energy to play your stupid games. Just…go do whatever and ‘not’ torture Nel.” He said with a dismissive wave of his hand.

Nel and Orihime looked at each other and smiled before chuckling. “Don’t worry Tim, I’ll try to make sure she doesn’t do anything…embarrassing.” Orihime said, now turning a bit pink as she thought of the things she would ‘likely’ have to prevent.

Timothy rolled his head along the wall to her with a deadpanned expression. “I’d say thanks, but I think the better response in this situation would be ‘good luck’.” He moaned.

Just then, his and Rangiku’s soul pagers started peeping, alerting them to a hollow attack. Rangiku was about to use a mod soul to leave her gigai, but Timothy stood up and stopped her.

“I got it, you girls go have fun.” He said, then swallowed his own.

He left his faux body and began walking past the three women, only to be stopped by Nel. “Thanks Tim, and good luck.” She offered with a smile.

Timothy smiled back and patted her shoulder a few times. “Again, I should be saying that to you.” He returned, causing her face to drop.

“Save me.” She whined with pleading eyes.

“Nope! For the next few hours, you belong to us, Nel!” Rangiku stated proudly, now pulling the teal-haired woman out the door by her arm.

Nel was still giving him her pleading eyes as the two of them disappeared from sight. Orihime walked up to him and smiled warmly.

“Don’t worry, I’ll keep Rangiku in check. Good luck.” She said, then ran out the door after her friends.

Timothy’s face dropped with slumped shoulders. “Why am I not convinced of that?” he moaned.


	34. Dead Ends

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 34

**(Dead Ends)**

** Karakura City Center, 1 Hour Later **

Nel and Orihime stood side-by-side, their backs to each other while browsing through adjacent racks of clothes. Rangiku on the other hand was somewhere else in another store looking through their on-sale items.

When the three women had entered the mall, the first thing that caught the busty Lieutenant’s eyes was the two advertising signs for two different stores that told them of their summer close-out sales; seeing as how it was now fall and most stores needed the inventory space for the current season’s clothes.

Needless to say, any other plans the Lieutenant had immediately went out the window and she was gone, leaving behind a trail of dust as she sped off to the closest of the two stores. Nel and Orihime could only watch with deadpanned expressions, before turning to each other and shrugging it off.

Not that they really cared, seeing as how Nel wouldn’t have to worry for at least a little while before she became the woman’s ‘test subject’ again; and Orihime surely didn’t mind as that meant that she didn’t have to constantly defend Nel’s humility.

That was when Orihime thought it best to start in a simple, and ‘clean’ clothes shop to browse around. And now that the young teen found herself alone with the former Espada for what she had hoped would be a little while, now was likely the best time to ask her something that had been bugging her mind.

Returning a small, knee-length dress to its rack, the young woman let out a brief sigh as she shifted through the clothes for the next item that interested her.

“Hey…Nel?’ she called in a quiet, yet worried voice.

The woman next to her looked closely at the button-up shirt she was holding and hummed back. “Yes?” she answered, missing the tone in her friend’s voice.

“Can I…ask you something?” the teen inquired.

“Sure.” Nel affirmed, returning the shirt and sliding its hanger to the side.

Orihime picked up the next dress to look at it, but lowered it back down and sighed again. “I was…I was wondering what…Hueco Mundo was like. I mean…I remember you saying that it was boring at times, but what exactly is it like being there?”

Nel stopped browsing and lifted her head to the ceiling before scratching her cheek, humming in thought. “Well…I guess that depends. I mean…the best way to put it is Hueco Mundo is pretty much an endless desert. Besides a random dead tree, or a small boulder…there’s really not much of anything else besides sand. It’s always night there, and unlike your typical desert here in the world of the living, it’s not hot there.”

The woman paused to move her finger to her chin, tapping it and humming more. “But then, there is the Menos Forest. That’s where most of the Menos and lower hollows live. The only ones who really leave the forest are the ones strong enough to survive outside of it. I have heard of some mountainous ranges very far out to the east and south, but I have never seen them myself.” She informed.

Orihime nodded slowly before returning the dress in her hands to the rack. “And what about…where you came from?” she furthered.

Nel turned her head to the teen with a raised brow. “You mean Los Noches?” she asked, earning another nod. The Arrancar turned back to her rack and pulled out anther shirt while she thought about the teen’s question. “It was dull, and boring; but far better than the dunes of Hueco Mundo. I mean…” She tilted her head to the side to think more. “…I guess it wasn’t too bad; the living arrangements were nice, and you didn’t have to always worry about another Menos finding you and trying to consume you. The artificial dome above Los Noches was nice, it made the place…more alive, so to say.”

The teen turned to her friend in confusion. “Artificial dome?”

The older woman nodded and pulled a shirt from the rack. “Yes, it’s some kind of…kidō…or something that Aizen used. It makes the inside of the dome covering Los Noches look like the sky here in the world of the living. The sun and clouds during the day, that turned into a moon and stars at night. Of all the changes Aizen had made to Los Noches, I do have to admit that that was not a bad one. A lot of times, when I had nothing else to do, I liked to look up at the dome and watch the ‘clouds’ slowly pass by.”

She then lowered her arms a bit and raised her head with closed eyes; a calm expression on her face. “It was…soothing…in a way. It allowed me to simply stop and think about…nothing really. Stark was the same way; although, he usually went out to find a place to take a nap.” She said with a hint of a smile.

Orihime’s face fell a bit. “You miss him?” she inquired.

Nel swiftly turned her head to the teen and rubbed the back of it sheepishly. “Yeah, I do. He may have been the Primera Espada, but he surely didn’t act like it. I guess you could say he was quite lazy, to put it simple. But he was also very kind, and always took others into consideration before doing anything.”

“He sounds nice. Wasn’t he the one you considered a brother?” Orihime pressed.

Her friend nodded. “In a way; it was really Lilynette who I considered a sibling…along with Pesche and Dondochakka.” She added with a slight frown.

Orihime detected her change in tone, and frown as well. “S…Sorry. I didn’t mean to…”

Nel quickly waved her off with a weak smile. “Please, it’s okay Orihime. I know you didn’t mean it that way. But…if I may ask, why are you so interested in all of this so suddenly?” she questioned.

The teen waved her hands at her. “Oh, I was just curious, Nel. I just wanted to know a bit more about where you came from. That’s all.” She assured.

The Arrancar smiled and shrugged a shoulder. “Alright. So, did you find anything you like yet?” she asked, pointing at the clothes rack in front of the teen.

Orihime turned back to the dress in her hands and hummed a second. “I kinda like this one, but it’s getting a bit cold out for it. I could get it for next year…but I doubt I would still fit it.” She pointed with a chuckle.

Nel tilted her head to the side with a raised brow. “Couldn’t you…just get the next size up, that way it would fit you for next year?”

The teen’s face lit up in realization before turning a bit red. Placing a hand behind her head, Orihime began rubbing it in embarrassment. “Oh yeah…I somehow forgot about that! Ha ha ha!”

The older woman couldn’t help it, and she was quickly laughing along with her younger friend.

“Oh, ‘there’ you are!” another voice called out.

Nel and Orihime turned to the store entrance to see Rangiku walking in with one bag in the crook of her arm, and another in that hand. Nel sweat dropped at the sight with slumped shoulders.

“Just how much of that store did she buy…Tim would have a heart attack if he saw this.” The Arrancar commented.

Orihime chuckled under her breath before nodding in agreeance. “I think you may be right, Nel. Although, I think I’m more worried about what Toshiro would do once he finds out.”

Nel’s eyes widened a bit at the thought. “It was nice knowing her while it lasted.” She mumbled just as the busty Lieutenant walked up to them.

“Hey, why you so gloomy, Nel? We’re supposed to be having fun, right?” Rangiku half whined, but stopped when she noticed a lack of something. “Hey…where are all the clothes I’m buying you? You can’t seriously tell me that the whole time I was gone that you didn’t find a single thing you liked, right?” she questioned in a firm tone.

Nel took a single step back and held up her hands. “Uh…I just haven’t found anything I liked yet.” She defended; Orihime nodding in agreeance, and in defense.

Rangiku planted her free hand on her hip and stared the woman down, causing her to take another step back. “Oh really?” she challenged, earning another set of nods. Before Nel could react, the Lieutenant quickly snatched Nel’s wrist and began tugging her along behind her. “Well, we’re just gonna have to fix that, and quickly! There’s still a couple more stores that are having sales I wanna check out!”

The Arrancar’s face contorted in agony with a whimper. “Why did I agree to this?” she whined as she was pulled out of the store and across the mall; followed closely by Orihime who was smiling sweetly.

** 2 Hours Later **

Three stores, in two hours; to any who did not know Rangiku Matsumoto of Squad 10, that was the longest time possible to spend shopping for clothes, without having to take the time to try them on.

But to those who ‘did’ know the busty Lieutenant, it was actually a new world record.

But of course, this was only made possible because the woman wanted to visit all of the shops that were currently having sales. In fact, if it wasn’t for that they needed to stop and get something to eat, they would likely be on their ‘fifth’ shop by now.

However, even though Nel should have been glad that the woman’s shopping was progressing at a decent rate, she was actually in a very depressed mood at the moment; mainly because she was now faced with a difficult question.

Who was actually worse to shop with; Rangiku…or Yoruichi.

The three women were currently sitting down at a round table in the food court awaiting their pizza to be delivered. Rangiku was shifting through her bags and looking at her purchases, while Nel had her head resting on the table, a small storm cloud hovering above her head, and Orihime looking out to the side with a tinge of pink on her cheeks.

The first store really wasn’t that bad. Sure, they had a few clothes that slightly made Nel feel a bit shameful, but it was overall a good experience. The second store was a bit better, mostly selling jeans, t-shirts, and basic lingerie. A few ‘exotic’ pieces, but still better.

It was when they arrived at the ‘third’ shop, that everything turned from bad, to an absolute nightmare.

_ Flashback, 30 Minutes Prior _

_The three women calmly and graciously through the far end of the mall; Rangiku with five overstuffed bags in her arms, and Nel and Orihime with a single bag each right behind her._

_Nel was looking in her own bag for a moment, before she lifted her head and sighed evenly. “Well, that went so much better than I had thought it would.” She commented._

_The teen beside her nodded with a smile. “So does that mean you’re having fun, Nel?”_

_The Arrancar nodded and smiled back. “Yeah, I guess it does. And here I was thinking that it was going to be like last time with Yoruichi.”_

_Orihime’s smile faded a bit. “Is she still giving you and Tim a hard time with her teasing?” she questioned._

_Nel sighed before scratching her cheek. “Well…not really. She still teases us on occasion, but she’s not as bad as she has been…” Her face then dropped as well before turning a bright red. “…At least since ‘that’ happened.” she added, suddenly remembering the demon’s ‘payback’ for Timothy’s comments to her._

_The teen next to her tilted her head a bit. “That’? What do you mean?”_

_The older woman quickly shook her head furiously. “Nothing! It was nothing!” she shot out._

_Orihime was still confused, but chose to shrug her shoulders and let it go, much to the Arrancar’s relief. Not only was it far too embarrassing to retell, but the poor teen would very likely have a stroke at the thought of the golden-eyed demon’s actions._

_“And…here we are!” Rangiku suddenly said as she came to a stop._

_The two women behind her stopped next to her and looked at the shop she stopped at. It was only a second later when Orihime’s face turned a ‘very’ bright red, and her eyes were close to falling out of their sockets from being opened so wide._

_Nel looked closer at the store to see that all of the windows had been painted over in a very thick black paint, leaving the, also painted, door the only way to see what was inside. This confused Nel, and caused her to tilt her head to the side._

_“What’s in here?” the Arrancar asked._

_Orihime slapped her free hand to her mouth and took a step back. “R…R…Rangiku! I…I c…c…can’t go i…in there!” she yelled through her hand._

_Nel turned to look at her, only to instantly start worrying when she saw the young girl’s state. Rangiku turned around and gave her a pout._

_“Aw…come on Orihime. You don’t need to be ashamed. Afterall, we’re here for Nel, not you.” She tried to reassure._

_The mentioned woman swiftly shot her head to the Lieutenant with wide eyes. “What’s in there, Rangiku?! Why is Orihime acting like this?!” she asked in fear._

_Rangiku’s hand instantly shot out and snatched the woman’s wrist. “Only one way for you to find out, isn’t there?” she said, then started pulling the woman towards the door._

_Nel planted her feet on the floor, and tried to pull back against the Lieutenant’s grip. “Oh no, I’m ‘not’ going in there until you tell me what it is!” she tried to say in a firm voice, but instead came out in a low squeak._

_Even though the former Espada could ‘easily’ outmatch the female soul reaper in terms of strength, she was ‘still’ somehow being pulled closer to the store; her feet slowly sliding across the tiled floor of the mall._

_“Oh, don’t be such a baby, Nel. Come on, it’s time to get you some ‘real’ clothes.” Rangiku insisted, pulling the Arrancar even closer._

_Nel turned back to her teenage friend with pleading eyes. “Orihime! Save me!” she yelled._

_But the poor girl was too frozen in shock for her words to reach her. The busty Lieutenant kept pulling the Arrancar further and further, until she reached the door and pulled it open; pulling the now tearful woman behind her into the shop, and past the red, neon sign the read ‘Foxy Ladies Shop’._

_ Flashback End _

“Oh, lighten up, Nel. It wasn’t ‘that’ bad. Think of it like this, now you can ‘fully’ impress that handsome man of yours.” Rangiku said with a wink after raising her head from her bag.

Nel lifted her own hear to glare at the offending woman. “What makes you think I wanted to ‘impress’ him? You’re no better than Yoruichi.” She hissed in anger.

Orihime snapped her head to the Arrancar in shock. “N…Nel! That wasn’t nice! You ‘know’ she was only helping…” she said, then turned red again. _‘Even though she ‘did’ go a bit…far…’_

The Arrancar rolled her eyes to the teen. “And you do realize that when Tim finds out about this, he’s very liable to murder her…right?”

“Pft…” Rangiku scoffed with a wave of her hand. “Murder me? Once he sees you Nel, he’s probably going to ‘thank’ me.”

Nel sighed heavily while rubbing her temples. “What did I do to deserve this?” she mumbled under her breath.

Orihime, still a little red in the face, turned to her friend and gently rubbed her back. “It’s okay, Nel. But…Rangiku ‘does’ have a point.” She stated, gaining the older woman’s attention. The teen touched a finger to her chin in thought. “When you think about it…it’s not really ‘that’ bad. I mean…” She stopped when she once again went red. “…It ‘is’ a bit much…but…I think…Tim would l…like it.”

Rangiku rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. “Of course he’ll like it, Orihime. I’m actually wondering why ‘you’ didn’t get anything. Don’t ‘you’ have a particular someone you like?”

The teen shrunk her head into her shoulders and suddenly found twiddling her fingers very interesting. “I…It’s not that…I don’t…I just…” She found herself unable to continue, and that only peaked the Lieutenant’s curiosity.

“Oh? Well, don’t hide it, Orihime; tell us who this mystery guy is.” Rangiku pressured.

Orihime shied away even more, so Nel quickly decided to help her out. “And what about ‘you’, Rangiku? Do you plan to sit there and ask who Orihime cares for and not tell us who ‘your’ special person is?” she returned in a firm tone.

The woman’s face then fell with a hint of sadness. “It’s probably best I don’t tell you ladies. It’s…very complicated.” She said, then turned her head away a bit.

Nel’s eyes widened a bit, while Orihime returned the saddened look. “Did…something happen?” the teen inquired.

Rangiku gave a brief sigh. “You could say that. Things just…didn’t go as planned. That’s all.” She offered in a low voice.

The Arrancar woman could instantly tell that the subject was very troubling to her, so she raised her hand up in a placating manner. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to upset you, Rangiku.” She offered.

The Lieutenant smiled, albeit very weakly, and shook her head. “No, it’s alright, Nel. He and I just have some…problems to work out is all. Sorry for putting pressure on you, Orihime.”

The teen shook her head and smiled back. “No, it’s fine. I just…” she paused again and lowered her head in shame. “I just haven’t…told him or anything.”

Rangiku raised a brow at her. “If you want my advice Orihime, don’t wait too long. You never know if someone else might just jump in and take him away from you.”

Orihime’s eyes widened a bit in realization, then quickly returned to a look of sadness. “I…I know. I’m just afraid that…he won’t think the same thing. I wanna be close to him, and be with him, but…what if he doesn’t feel the same way? I don’t want to lose him.” She stated with her head lowered.

The Lieutenant gave a knowing smirk before resting her chin in her hand with her elbow on the table. “Let me guess…Ichigo’s the one you’re after, Orihime?” she questioned.

The teen’s eyes went wide again in shock, while Nel gave the Lieutenant a firm stare. “I strongly advise that you not say anything, Rangiku. I may tolerate you and Yoruichi’s habits, but I will not allow you to torture Orihime.” She warned.

Rangiku was quick to hold her hands up in surrender. “Woah woah, hold up there, Nel. I wasn’t going to say anything, promise. I was just confirming if I was right on who she was head-over-heels for. That’s all.” She defended.

Orihime lifted her head back to the Lieutenant. “Please…don’t say anything, Rangiku.”

The Lieutenant waved her off with a kind smile. “Of course not, Orihime. I only poke fun at Tim because he makes it too damn easy. That, and he’s a fellow Lieutenant, and messing with each other is kinda part of the job. But I would never do that to you. However, considering that it ‘is’ Ichigo that you’ve fallen for, I’d definitely say that you better make a move sooner than later.” She advised.

Nel rose a brow at the comment. “What do you mean?”

Rangiku simply shrugged a shoulder. “Easy, he’s such a hottie, and if girls haven’t already started lining up to go out with him, you can bet that it won’t be long before they do. Come on Nel, even ‘you’ can’t argue with that logic.”

The Arrancar leaned back and crossed her arms with a sigh. “No…I would be lying if I said that I didn’t find him somewhat attractive.” She admitted, causing Orihime to snap her head to the woman.

“Nel! You…You couldn’t…” she started.

Nel quickly, yet calmly set a hand on the teen’s shoulder and smiled warmly. “Please don’t worry, Orihime. I have feelings for Tim, not Ichigo. I was only admitting that he did look handsome. I have no intention of taking him away from you.” She reassured.

Orihime lowered her head in shame, now feeling upset that she had just, basically, accused her friend of taking her ‘potential’ boyfriend away from her. Placing her hand behind her head, she began rubbing her hair in embarrassment.

“S…Sorry Nel…I know you didn’t mean it like…like that.” The teen said in a quiet voice.

Nel smiled even more and patted her shoulder. “It’s okay, Orihime. But…Rangiku ‘is’ right.” She said, regaining the teen’s attention. “If this were Hueco Mundo, Ichigo would have likely been claimed by now, or at the very least had females fighting over him.” This caused Orihime’s eyes to widen, while Rangiku’s smirk grew a bit.

“So, you’re saying that if this were Hueco Mundo, little Ichigo would have already had a girlfriend…or two?” she pressed.

Orihime was now a bit horrified at the thought, while Nel scratched her cheek in thought. “Well…I wouldn’t exactly say that…but he would definitely have others competing for him by now. I’m not trying to worry you or anything Orihime, I am only stating that you should take Rangiku’s advice and tell him how you feel; before it’s too late.”

The teen dropped her head again, but nodded. “I…I will. Thank you both…for your help.”

Rangiku then reached over and pulled the orange-haired teen into a side hug, patting her adjacent shoulder with her embracing hand.

“Hey, what are friends for, Orihime? You’re such a sweet girl, and you deserve your own happiness. Anytime you need a hand, don’t hesitate to let me know.” The Lieutenant informed.

“Or me.” Nel added with a smile.

Orihime nodded and wiped away the happy tears that threatened to fall from her eyes. “Thank you…both of you.”

Rangiku gave a last pat to the teen’s shoulder before releasing her and reclining back in her chair. “So…with that out of the way…what about you, Nel?”

The Arrancar tilted her head and pointed to herself. “Me? What about me?”

The Lieutenant’s smirk reappeared. “Oh, don’t play dumb, Nel; you know ‘exactly’ what I’m talking about.”

Nel’s cheeks started to gain a pinkish hue as she leaned back a bit from the woman. “Uh…everything’s…going fine. Why?”

Rangiku raised a finger and wagged it side-to-side. “Uh uh uh, I know there’s more to it than that, girl. Come on, it’s just us, and Yoruichi’s not around. So you can tell us how things are going for you and Tim. You already told me you kissed him.”

Orihime’s head instantly shot to her friend with wide eyes. “You…You kissed him?!” she asked in shock.

The Arrancar’s face grew even redder while tucking her head into her shoulders. But after a few seconds, she finally gave the teen a very slight nod.

“Yes.” She admitted in a very low voice.

Orihime recovered from her shock and smiled at her friend. “That’s great! I’m so happy for you two!”

Rangiku’s smirk grew yet again and she waved the Arrancar on. “Well, don’t keep us in the dark, anything ‘else’ between you two?” she pressed even harder.

Nel sighed heavily, but shook her head. “No, all we’ve done is kiss, and sometimes we hold hands while walking. But nothing further than that. And…that’s what…I guess annoys me.”

Orihime tilted her head in wonder. “What do you mean, Nel?”

The woman sighed again while closing her eyes in thought. “Well…it’s a bit difficult for me to explain, but…even though we’ve…kissed, and have gotten closer, I still have this feeling inside that…it’s not enough.”

Rangiku rose a brow. “Not enough? You mean like you want more between you two?”

Nel nodded and took a deep breath. “In a way, yes. I’m still a bit lost on this relationship stuff, and I’ve only made it this far because Tim was the one to help me this far with his kiss. He did say that I could kiss him anytime I wanted, and he wouldn’t be upset; but…” She paused while thinking of the right words to say.

But the Lieutenant nodded and jumped in. “But you feel like you want more than that, right?”

The Arrancar flinched in embarrassment, but nodded back. “Y…Yes. Tim said he would wait, and we could go as fast I feel comfortable, taking it further as I learn more about all this. But…that’s the problem, I ‘don’t’ feel comfortable like this. I keep getting this nagging feeling that it’s just not enough. I know Tim can help me with this, but I don’t want to push him. I don’t want him to feel like I’m a burden to him; like I’m pressuring him.” She admitted, now on the verge of tears.

Rangiku nodded in understanding, then leaned closer, speaking in a very low voice. “May I ask you something personal, Nel?” she asked, getting a reluctant nod back. “If we were in Hueco Mundo, where you know how things are done in this regard, where do you think you and Tim would be?”

The woman then turned red and turned her head away. “I’ve…very likely…would have claimed him by now.” She admitted.

Orihime’s eyes widened while turning a bit pink herself. “Y…You mean you two…”

The woman nodded hesitantly. “If he and I were both hollows, and living in Hueco Mundo, I would have most likely taken him as my mate by now. That’s how different our ways, and your ways are, Rangiku. Soul reapers and humans, you all look at each other on a more deeper level; but with hollows, it’s just our instinct of procreation. I’ve explained this to you before Orihime, so you at least have a basic understanding of what I’m talking about. But I don’t want to do it the hollow way, I want to move forward with Tim the way it ‘should’ be.”

Nel finally turned back to the Lieutenant with a pleading look on her face. “Rangiku, I’m asking you as a friend, what should I do? Where do I go from here without putting any pressure on Tim?”

Rangiku couldn’t help but feel a little bad for the woman as she sighed and shook her head. “Well…I’m thankful that you’re coming to me for help, but you are sure in one tricky spot, Nel. But if you ‘really’ want my advice…”

“Please.” Nel interrupted.

The Lieutenant nodded, and her smirk returned. “Well then, just sleep with him.”

Silence fell over the three women while Nel and Orihime stared at the Lieutenant; Orihime with beet-red cheeks and wide eyes, and Nel in confusion.

“R…Rangiku! Y…You can’t…b…be serious!” Orihime almost shouted.

Nel looked at her with even more confusion, then up to the ceiling in deep thought. It was only a few seconds later when Rangiku’s grin grew wider at seeing Nel’s cheeks turn a fiery-red. The Arrancar’s head shot back to the Lieutenant.

“W…W…What?! Y…You don’t mean…” she blurted, but was stopped by the Lieutenant holding up a hand and laughing her lungs out.

“Oh my God! Your f…faces are too…too priceless!” she said between laughs, only making the Arrancar now turn red with ‘anger’.

“Rangiku!” Nel hissed through her teeth.

Rangiku swiftly waved her off, then wiper her tears away from laughing so hard. “Calm down Nel, I didn’t mean it like ‘that’. Yoruichi was right, you ‘are’ a naughty girl.”

Nel started growling as she clenched her fists on the table. “You’re lucky we’re in a public place Rangiku, otherwise I would strangle you!” she threatened.

The Lieutenant rolled her eyes with a scoff. “Chill, girl! I wasn’t talking about having any…shall we say, ‘personal’ training, I was talking about just laying there in bed with him. Seriously, you ‘really’ need to learn to lighten up, Nel. You’re gonna give yourself a heart attack living like that.”

The Arrancar rose a brow at her. “So…you’re saying to just…lie there…and sleep next to him?” she asked with a bit of skepticism.

Rangiku rolled her eyes and sighed. “Well, you could also ‘cuddle’ with him. But, if simply lying down next to him works for you, then just go with that then.”

Orihime finally recovered from her shock, and tilted her head. “But…do you think that would help?” she inquired.

The Lieutenant offered a deadpanned expression. “You can’t honestly sit there and tell me that you haven’t imagined doing the same with Ichigo, can you Orihime?” she challenged, reigniting the teen’s blush.

“W…Well…I g…guess…m…maybe I…I have…” the teen said with her head turned away.

Nel sighed and shook her head. “I don’t exactly get it. I mean, hollows will sleep with their mates, but that’s basically to ensure their protection from other hollows. So what does it mean for you guys?” she inquired, still confused.

Rangiku breathed a sigh of defeat. “This is ‘so’ much harder than it needs to be.’ She mumbled, then gave the Arrancar a calm stare. “Look Nel, for humans and soul reapers, just sleeping next to the person you like or love, is another way, a lot of times one of the more effective ways, to show how much you care for them. It’s a bit difficult to put it into words, but basically the two sleeping together do it because they want to be with them even while asleep.”

The Arrancar nodded. “So, the couple not only does it to protect each other, but to simply ‘be’ with each other?”

“Yes, for the most part. Anyway, you asked for my advice, there you have it. When he leaves to go to bed one night, simply ask him if you can join him. Or, even better…” Rangiku paused and smiled again. “…just sneak into his bed while he’s asleep. If he wakes up in the morning and has a fit about you being there, then there is ‘definitely’ something wrong with him.”

Nel started scratching her cheek with a worried expression. “I…don’t know, Rangiku. As I said, I don’t want to pressure him, and it seems that’s exactly what I would be doing if I just snuck into his bed. What if…it doesn’t work?”

Rangiku rolled her eyes. “Nel, stop worrying. If it doesn’t work, Yoruichi will ‘very’ likely kill him; and I mean that ‘very’ literally.” She stated, only to lightly snicker afterwards. “Anyway, just ask to join him one night. What’s the worst that can happen with him? All he’s likely to do is simply say no, and he’s definitely not the kind of person to get upset about it.”

The Arrancar lowered her head. “I guess so.” She said in a low voice.

“Here you are ladies; one large, extra cheese and sausage.” A young man said as he set down the mentioned food. “Can I get you anything else?”

Rangiku waved him off with a suggestive smile. “No thanks, sweetie. Maybe next time.”

The man turned a bit red before nodding, and ‘swiftly’ walking away. Orihime chuckled at the sight, while Nel shook her head with a smile.

“I am beginning to wonder if you and Yoruichi are somehow related, Rangiku.” The Arrancar commented, picking up a slice.

The Lieutenant laughed at that. “Yeah, I guess you’re right. Who knows, she and I ‘could’ have been like…sisters or something in a previous life.”

Nel and Orihime both stopped before taking their bites and looked at the woman in horror. “If that is true…I feel so bad for those that knew you two during that time.” Nel said in a pitiful voice.

“Hey!”

** Underground Training Area, Present **

“Hadō #32, Ōkasen!” Timothy yelled.

A yellow mass of electrical energy quickly gathered at the base of the blade of his horizontally held zanpakutō, before just as quickly spreading out along the entire weapon and shooting out in a large wave towards his target.

His opponent swiftly flashed away, allowing the attack to fly by and impact the boulder behind; shattering a large portion of the surface.

“Hadō #11, Tsuzuri Raiden.” A male voice chanted calmly from behind.

The blade of the man’s sword was instantly charged with similar electrical energy, random sparks flying out as he swung diagonally at the Lieutenant’s unprotected back. But Timothy was faster, and used one of Kitsune’s flames to vanish just before the blade could make contact.

The man’s blade struck the ground, creating a small explosion with the kidō enhanced attack and making a small crater in it’s wake. When the man turned, he saw that the young Lieutenant was now several yards away to his right in a low-ready stance.

“Too slow, Tim.” a female voice stated, once again behind the dirty-blonde man.

Timothy turned just in time to see his second attacker coming at him with her fist held back to deliver a punch to his lower back. Normally, most people would realize that they were screwed at this point, but Timothy only smiled at the oncoming attack.

“Gotchya!” he stated, causing the woman’s eyes to widen a bit.

Before she could figure out what he meant, her entire vision was suddenly changed; and instead of Timothy being right in front of her to receive the attack, it was now her ‘partner’ with his back to her.

She was unable to stop the attack in time, and her fist collided with the man’s upper back, sending him straight down into the small crater he had created only seconds ago. She came to a stop and stared at the downed man in horror.

“W…What the…?!” she started in shock.

A low groan was heard before the man slowly picked himself up; picking up his white and green striped hat and dusting it off before placing it back on his head. The woman quickly stood next to him and looked him over to make sure he was alright.

“You alright, Kisuke?” the woman asked in worry.

The shop owner chuckled before giving her a signature grin. “Of course, though I have to admit that was one hell of a punch, Yoruichi. You weren’t trying to ‘kill’ our young Lieutenant, were you?” he teased.

Yoruichi grinned back while crossing her arms. “Now why would you think that, Kisuke? He can’t exactly learn much if I hold ‘everything’ back, now can he?” she teased back.

Urahara gave her a quick laugh. “No, I guess not.” He admitted, then turned to Timothy, who was waiting in his previous stance where he was before. “That’s quite the nasty trick you got there, Tim. I don’t recall you using it before in our previous fights. So I guess that means that not only can you transport yourself, but also your opponents as well?” he pressed.

The Lieutenant smirked at him. “Yeah, but it’s not without its cost though.”

As to emphasize his statement, the flame behind him, as well as the flame behind the shop owner both flickered and went out, causing the man to look in surprise.

“I see, so using this technique sacrifices the two flames used for it. Quite impressive Tim…” he said, then turned back to the Lieutenant. “…but I’m afraid you revealed that card a little too early. And now that I know about it, how do you plan to use it in our fight?” he taunted.

Timothy responded with a raise of his brow. “You say that like I don’t have any ‘other’ cards up my sleeve.” He sent back.

Yoruichi smiled at him. “Oh? So does that mean you admit you were holding out on us the whole time? I thought Kisuke taught you better than that, Tim.”

The Lieutenant straightened himself and looked to the sky in thought. “Well…he ‘has’ been a bit lax with his teachings. Perhaps you might be a better teacher.” He mocked.

Kisuke frowned while Yoruichi laughed. “Tim, how could you?! I thought you and I had an understanding!” the shop owner pouted.

The golden-eyed woman laughed even harder and gave the man a ‘comforting’ pat on the back. “There there, Kisuke. I’m sure he still appreciates your teachings, just not like he does mine.”

The man then dropped down and started drawing in the dirt. “So mean…”

Timothy laughed at the scene , but instantly stopped when his soul pager started beeping. “Oh for the love of…” he started, pulling out the small phone and flipping it open. Pressing a few buttons, he then let out a relaxing breath. “Ikkaku’s close-by it, so he’ll take care of it. Ready to go on, you two?” he asked as he closed the phone and returned it to his shirt.

“No, that’ll be enough for today, Tim.” Kisuke said as he stood up and resealed his zanpakutō. “Your fighting skills have gotten much better, and your spiritual pressure has increased a fair amount as well. We’ll continue this tomorrow evening; however, I’d like to include miss Nel in our training sessions from now on.” He informed.

The Lieutenant rose a brow as he returned his zanpakutō to its sheath. “Why do you want to include Nel in this? Last time I checked, she about killed my ass when we fought…or at least ‘Gamuza’ did. But either way, Gamuza’s powers are Nel’s as well, right?” he questioned.

“Exactly!” Kisuke answered with his ‘cheeky’ smile, now holding his ‘new’ fan. “However…” he started, now fanning himself. “…as you are aware, Captain Hitsugaya is in possession of miss Nel’s zanpakutō, and she therefor does not have access to her Resurrección. So she needs to get better at fighting without her released powers.”

Timothy walked up to the two former Captains while scratching his head. “But, I thought Nel was an excellent hand-to-hand fighter. I mean, she’s probably not as good as Yoruichi is, but from the story the Captain told us, she definitely ain’t no pushover.”

Yoruichi smiled at the man’s praise. “Aw, thank you for the compliment, Tim.” she said, then went serious. “But Kisuke’s right. Nel might be a very competent fighter, but there is ‘always’ room for improvement.”

The Lieutenant thought it over, then shrugged a shoulder. “You’ve got a point there. I guess I’ll talk to her about it when she gets back from shopping with Rangiku.”

The golden-eyed woman’s eyes widened. “Wait, you let her go shopping without me?! How could you!” she said in mock surprise.

Timothy’s face dropped. “You know damn well why I didn’t tell you, Yoruichi. Last time you went shopping with her, you about gave her a stroke with what you made her buy…whatever that was. And besides, you weren’t here when they left, so quit crying.”

Before the young officer knew what happened, the former Captain was instantly at his side; grabbing his ear and twisting it forward to make him bend down.

“What was that, my young pupil? It sounded like you were suggesting I was crying, but I ‘must’ have misheard. Care to repeat that?” she said through her teeth.

“Ow ow ow! Let go, you damn demon! That fucking hurts!” Timothy yelled out while grabbing the woman’s hand.

“Oh, I’m so sorry, Tim. Maybe you’ll watch what you say around others, won’t you?” Yoruichi hissed further, twisting his ear even more.

“Ow! Alright, alight! I’m sorry! Now let go of my ear before you rip it off!” he pleaded.

The woman released him and crossed her arms. “That’s better. Now, with that behind us…” she said, then turned to Kisuke. “I’ve got a few things to take care of, but I should be back in time for Tim and Nel’s beatdown.” She informed, causing the said man to pale.

“Oh great…at least I won’t be the ‘only’ one dying.” He moaned.

Yoruichi rolled her eyes to him with a deathly glare. “What was that, Tim?”

The man quickly held his hands up in surrender. “Nothing! I said nothing! Nothing at all!” he insisted.

The woman’s glare dropped with a smirk. “I thought so. Now, why don’t you go rest up, Tim. You’ve got a busy day tomorrow, right?”

Timothy sighed heavily and nodded. “Yeah, we’ve completed our search of the city, and found absolutely nothing. Not one single thing out of place. I’m really starting to lean towards Aizen was just messing with us.”

Kisuke’s face then grew stern. “I doubt that, Tim. We may not be able to determine what Aizen is up to at the moment, but I can assure you, there ‘is’ a reason for the Quatro Espada to be here that night. Has Captain Hitsugaya determined what your team is doing next?” he inquired.

The Lieutenant shook his head with a sigh. “No, once we got done, all he said was to do regular patrols around town and keep a very sharp eye out until he figures out the next course of action. Seeing as how we don’t have direct communication with the soul society at the moment, that’s only making things harder.”

Yoruichi nodded firmly at his words. “Suí-Fēng did mention that her squad arrested a couple members from Squad 12 under suspicion of working with Aizen. But so far, that’s all they found.” She informed, then turned to Kisuke with a wicked grin. “Mayuri is quite upset with Squad 2 for basically ‘destroying’ his lab.”

This earned a chuckle from the shop owner. “I can only imagine. Anyway, go ahead and get some rest, Tim. We can talk more about this tomorrow if you feel the need to. I believe miss Nel should be back fairly soon.”

Timothy sighed briefly before nodding and flashing away, leaving the two former Captains alone in the large training area. Releasing a heavy sigh, Yoruichi crossed her arms and gave the shop owner a knowing look.

“Alright Kisuke, what is it?” she questioned.

Urahara waved his fan at her with his ‘dismissive’ grin. “Oh my, whatever could you mean, my dear Yoruichi?” he mocked.

It wasn’t even a half second later when he was sent to the ground with a chop to the top of his head from the woman.

“Knock it off with your games, Kisuke. I know you’re hiding something, so quit goofing off and spill it.” She demanded.

Kisuke moaned as he stood back up, holding the spot where she nailed him. “Alright alright, calm down. It seems that our little dilemma with miss Nel has yet again become much worse.”

Yoruichi narrowed her eyes at him. “Go on.”

The man’s face grew stern as well. “Well, this morning miss Nel approached me and told me that her soul’s body has undergone some…changes.”

The woman rose a brow. “What kind of changes?”

Urahara’s gaze then turned deathly serious. “The vanishing mask kind.”

The woman’s golden eyes were now wide as saucers. “Wait…you can’t mean…”

The shop owner nodded slowly. “I do; it would seem that miss Nel’s mask is slowly vanishing…at least on her soul body. And I’m afraid that’s not all.”

“Cut the crap Kisuke, and get to the damn point!” the woman demanded.

Kisuke gave a brief sigh before pulling his hat down to just barely conceal his eyes. “With miss Nel’s permission, I was able to have a direct conversation with her hollow spirit, Gamuza.”

Yoruichi’s eyes were once again wide in shock. “Wait, she can do that…allow Gamuza to assume control?”

The man nodded. “It would appear so. And not only that, but it seems miss Nel was still able to maintain dominance between the two of them while Gamuza was in control of her body. I still need to do a bit more research on that matter, but that is not the important thing at the moment. While I was speaking with Gamuza, she informed me that even more of miss Nel’s hollow mask is missing, and only in a length of two days.”

The woman closed her eyes tightly with a sigh. “What does this mean, Kisuke? Do you know more about what’s happening to her?” she asked in legitimate worry.

“Nothing for certain, all I have are ‘still’ theories. However, thanks to Gamuza, I was able to get a sample of her spirit energy, along with some of miss Nel’s. I plan to do the same tomorrow, then compare the two. Hopefully, I’ll be able to find something that can give us a clue as to what exactly is happening.” He offered.

Yoruichi opened her eyes again. “Kisuke, I don’t think I need to remind you that this is our friend we’re talking about here. Just make sure you find ‘something’ about her predicament.” She half-pleaded.

Kisuke smiled ‘sweetly’ at her and nodded. “Not to worry, my friend. I’ll get to bottom of this, it’s just going to take a bit of time.”

The woman nodded back. “Be sure that you do, Kisuke.” She warned, then vanished in shunpo.

The shop owner sighed heavily as he dropped his fan hand to the side, proceeding to look back towards the ladder behind him with a solemn look on his face.

“I only wish it were that easy, Yoruichi.”

** 5 Minutes Later **

Timothy, now back inside his gigai, released a long sigh as he stumbled from the kitchen towards the dining room table; his bottle of whiskey in one hand, and a shot glass in the other. A loud, relaxing moan escaped his lungs and he sat down in his usual spot.

Taking a quick breath or two, he reached over and poured himself a drink. He swiftly downed the contents before pouring another and setting down in front of him and resting his head against the back wall.

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, letting it out slowly, when he heard the front door of the shop open, then close a second later. Opening and rolling his eye to the side, he saw Renji walking into the room and holding a hand up in greeting.

“Yo, looks like you got the right idea there, Tim.” he said with a grin, now gesturing to the bottle on the table.

“Help yourself.” Timothy returned before closing his eye back and relaxing.

Renji waved his hand to the side. “Nah, don’t really care for that stuff. I prefer a ‘real’ drink.”

Timothy reopened his eyes and gave the Lieutenant a deadpanned expression. “This ‘is’ a real drink, you idiot. This is a ‘man’s’ drink, so I can understand if you can’t handle it.” He teased.

The red-headed man growled with a stare. “Hey, just because I can’t stand that stuff, don’t mean I ain’t a man, you idiot!” he returned.

The younger man chuckled and waved him off. “Sure sure, whatever you say, Renji. So, what you up to?”

Renji sat down next to him and stretched his arm over his shoulder, his back making small popping noises as he did, before reaching out and grabbing the bottle to read the label.

“Not much really. Captain Hitsugaya’s going apeshit right now after us not finding anything; not to mention that Squad 12 fiasco. Me and Ikkaku were about to head out and grab a few drinks, so I thought I’d see if you were game to join us.” He offered.

Timothy frowned a bit at the news of the Captain’s anger. “Well, I can’t really blame him for being upset about all this. To be honest, I’m a bit mad myself. Not really the fact we haven’t found anything, but mainly because we simply have no idea what Aizen could be up to. I keep feeling like we’re missing ‘something’, and it’s pissing me off because it feels like it’s something blatantly obvious.”

Renji set the bottle down and started rubbing his hair. “Yeah, I get what you mean. I have to admit that I do feel like we’re overlooking something. That’s when Ikkaku got the idea to go have a few drinks and clear our heads.”

The blonde man chuckled and waved him off. “Well, thanks for the offer, but I’m just gonna rest up here. Although…” he paused, then opened an eye to see that his bottle of whiskey was nearly empty. “…If you don’t mind, care to pick me up another bottle?”

The older man rose a skeptical brow. “Didn’t you ‘just’ buy that one?” he wondered.

Timothy turned his head to him, regaining his fallen face. “If you’re thinking that I drank all that, think again. More than half of that was Kit alone, and the rest was split between me and Nel when we have a drink or two at night to relax.”

Renji snickered at the thought of the spirit drinking the whole bottle. “So, I guess your zanpakutō spirit is a drunk, huh?” he teased.

The Squad 7 Lieutenant rolled his eyes with a scoff. “No, I don’t know how it happened, but her alcohol tolerance went through the damn roof ever since she became a zanpakutō spirit. That there is only the second bottle, and you should have seen her a week ago when she damn near chugged the entirety of the first one. Worst part, it had ‘no’ effect on her. There goes one of the few times where I could legitimately make fun of her.”

Renji then burst out laughing while holding his sides, causing the younger man to growl in annoyance and turn his head away. The Squad 6 Lieutenant calmed down a few seconds later and wiped a stray tear from his eye.

“Wow, never thought I’d see the day when a zanpakutō outdrinks it’s partner. So where is she by the way? Isn’t she usually out and about when nothing’s going on?” Renji inquired.

Timothy turned his head back straight and sighed. “She’s resting. I was doing some Bankai training downstairs with Kisuke and Yoruichi for a bit. My Bankai really puts a strain on both of us, especially her.”

Renji’s eyes widened a bit. “You mean you were training against ‘both’ Yoruichi and Kisuke? You really must want to die, Tim.” he asked in surprise.

The younger man scoffed. “They both went easy as hell on me today, I could tell. Although she was making sure they hurt, Yoruichi was ‘really’ pulling back on her punches and kicks. And Kisuke, although he ‘did’ release his Benihime, he didn’t use a single one of her attacks; only sword strikes and kidō. The training was just to help me get used to fighting multiple opponents while in Bankai. Even so, they ‘still’ ran me through a mud puddle. I got a couple good hits in, but that’s it.”

The older Lieutenant nodded in understanding. “So, your Bankai is really that tiring?” he inquired.

Timothy nodded firmly. “Yeah. Even though it’s been two days since I fought against Grimmjow, Kit is ‘still’ not back up to full strength. When I asked her yesterday evening how long it would take to fully recover, she said it would take at least a few more days.”

Renji’s eyes went wide again. “Damn! That long? Normally a soul reaper’s Bankai is fully recovered in a day, two at the most.”

“That’s one of the downsides to my Bankai. It’s powerful as hell, and like my Shikai, hard as hell to fight against, but if I use too much power, it takes a long time to recover. At least that’s what she told me. That’s why you haven’t seen her around that much recently, she’s been sleeping a lot. Right now, I’d guess she’s roughly around half of her max power; and ‘that’s’ why I was kinda holding back myself during the training earlier.”

Renji shook his head slowly. “Can’t say I envy you, Tim.”

Timothy’s face about fell to the floor. “Yeah, and you wanna know the worst part about that is? It’s the fact that, even after my strongest attack, all I did was give that blue-haired idiot a couple of scratches. Scratches, Renji. And to make it even worse, he didn’t even release his zanpakutō!”

The young Lieutenant suddenly leaned forward and slammed a fist down on the table, knocking over his glass. “A Bankai, against an unreleased Espada, and all I could manage were ‘scratches’! Where is the freaking sense in that?!” he almost yelled.

As he finished, Renji turned to see Kitsune materializing into a sitting position next to him wiping sleep from her eyes; her long muzzle wide open as she let out a long yawn.

“Jesus Tim, calm down. Your inner world is a freaking lightning storm right now.” She commented, then grabbed the fallen glass and poured herself a drink. “Even you have to understand that it’ll take a lot more training before you can ‘actually’ use my full power.” She added, then swallowed her drink. “It’s not like my Shikai Tim, you’ve gotta learn a whole lot more control when using my Bankai. And by the way, hey Renji.” She greeted as she refilled her glass.

The Lieutenant simply waved back while Timothy glared at her. “That may be, but you can’t sit there and say that with the amount of power I hit him with, it shouldn’t have done ‘more’ to him.” He growled.

Kitsune sighed heavily, but nodded. “I agree that he shouldn’t have come out of that looking as good as he did; but if you want the honest truth of the matter Tim, you actually didn’t ‘hit’ him, you missed.”

Timothy’s head instantly shot to her in shock. “What the hell do mean by ‘I missed’?! I hit that bastard head-on!” he defended.

The spirit rose a single finger. “No, you struck the ground ‘in front’ of him, not him directly. If you ‘had’ hit him, he would have easily been roasted alive. And that’s another thing Tim, with how many flames you absorbed for that attack, you’re lucky your body didn’t simply give out on you while trying to contain that much power in your gauntlets. Keep this in mind Tim, the more flames you absorb, the less time you can actually contain them for. Your gauntlets are strong, but not indestructible. My Shikai is very reliant on your timing, and my Bankai is even more so. You can’t just jump in and attack using power; even though it is quite tempting.” She informed.

She swallowed her second drink and breathed a relaxing sigh. “Now, if you’re all done with your yelling, I’m going back to sleep. I’m still tired as hell because of your stunt, stupid.” She mocked.

Timothy rolled his eyes and waved her off. “Yeah yeah, whatever. Damn vixen.” He moaned.

Kitsune smiled and reached over to pat his cheek. “I know, you love me. Later Renji, and keep this idiot out of trouble.” She said, now looking at the red-head.

Renji scoffed with a grin. “Yeah, if only it were that easy.” He mocked.

Timothy snapped to him with a scowl. “Shut your face, Renji! Or I’ll kick it into next week!” he threatened.

Kitsune and Renji both laughed before she faded away and he stood up. “Well, since you ain’t coming, I’m gonna head out. Ikkaku’s probably already there waiting for me. See ya.” He said then turned to leave.

“Hey Renji…” Timothy called out, causing the man to stop and turned his head to him.

“Yeah?”

Timothy was about to continue, but choose to shake the question off. “Never mind, forget about it. I’ll see ya later, brother.”

Renji’s face instantly fell, suddenly reminded about a particular, insane Arrancar he recently fought. “Do me a favor…‘please’ don’t call me that again.” He moaned.

This confused the younger Lieutenant, but he shrugged it off. “Whatever. See ya.”

The red-head waved and continued out the front door, leaving the man alone in silence. But the silence was not to endure, as it was only a few minutes afterwards when the front door opened again to reveal Nel, Rangiku, and Orihime with numerous large bags in their arms.

Timothy’s face fell from his skull as multiple sounds of cash registers sounded off in his head in a symphony of horror. Rangiku and Orihime set their bags down at the down, while Nel walked towards her room with the few she had.

“How much?” he whined as tears of sorrow began to flow.

Before Nel had a chance to answer, Rangiku swiftly walked over and gave the back of his head a solid slap. “Oh, quiet down, you! I already told you I would take care of everything! Nel didn’t have a spend a dime on anything!” she defended.

Nel nodded quickly in affirmation. “It’s true, Tim; Rangiku was kind enough to pay for everything.”

That at least stopped the flow of tears from the man as he turned to the orange-haired teen. “And were there any…‘issues’?” he demanded.

Orihime sunk her head in a bit with pink cheeks, causing him to begin fretting. “W…Well, not really. There was one thing…but I guess…it wasn’t…’that’ bad.” She admitted.

Timothy slowly turned his head to the Busty Lieutenant, giving her a death glare. “What. Did. You. Do?” he ordered.

The woman only slapped his head again, only ‘much’ harder. “Oh, shut up, Tim! Like the poor girl said, it wasn’t ‘that’ bad! Just a few things that I thought Nel could use, that’s all!”

The man lifted his head back while rubbing the back of it soothingly. “Knock that off, Rangiku! And why do I have the feeling that if I go look in Nel’s bags I’m going to find a whole bunch of perverted clothes in there?!”

Rangiku moved to slap the back of his head again where Timothy instantly covered the targeted area; but a quick change in direction instead sent the woman’s hand to the ‘front’ of his head and sending it back against the wall with a loud thump.

“Don’t you ‘dare’ go snooping in the poor girl’s clothes, Lieutenant Durn! A woman ‘is’ entitled to ‘some’ privacy you know.” She stated firmly.

Timothy held a hand to his forehead and growled at the annoying woman. “I really don’t want to deal with this right now. Just forget it. Did you at least have ‘fun’ Nel?” he asked, now looking at the former Espada returning from her room.

Nel smiled warmly and nodded. “I did, although I will admit that there was ‘one’ instance I would have preferred not happened. But besides that, I did enjoy myself.” The woman turned to Rangiku and gave a very brief bow. “Thank you for taking me, Rangiku.”

The Lieutenant smiled back and waved her hand dismissively. “Don’t worry about it, Nel. I’m ‘always’ more than happy to take you along. In fact, we should go again real soon.”

Timothy’s face fell once again. “Can you at least wait until ‘after’ I have been paid? I’ve already spent way more than needed with my squad’s budget, and I ‘still’ owe Kisuke for my gigai and for me and Nel’s accommodations.” He pleaded.

The blonde woman scoffed with a roll of the eyes. “Details details. Stop worrying so much Tim, or you’ll make that handsome face of yours all wrinkled and such.”

The man released a heavy sigh and rubbed his temples. “Now I know how the Captain feels on a daily basis. I really pity the poor guy now.” He mumbled.

Nel and Orihime giggled, while Rangiku slapped his head again, sending him down onto the table. “And what’s that supposed to mean?!” she hissed.

Timothy raised his head to her and glared back. “Exactly’ how I said it!” He then threw his hand out to the side. “Whatever, thanks for taking Nel around today, Rangiku.” He said in a calmer tone.

Rangiku’s smile returned with a nod. “Don’t worry about it, Tim. Even though Nel might be a hollow, she’s still a good girl, and I actually find spending time with her enjoyable. The two of you just need to learn to lighten up a bit and live a little. But anyway, Orihime and I got to get going. We’re having fried squid with wasabi and barbeque sauce!” she informed.

Timothy and Nel could both instantly feel their respective stomachs starting to do backflips. “Uh…yeah…you do that. Hope you…‘enjoy’…your food.” He said in a low voice.

The busty Lieutenant then turned and wrapped an arm around the teen’s shoulder and ‘escorted’ her back to the front door, where they picked their bags back up and left the shop. Once they left, Timothy slowly turned to a still horrified Nel.

“Do me a favor…don’t ‘ever’ let me have dinner at Orihime’s.” he pleaded.

The woman turned to him as well. “As long as you are willing to return that gesture, I’ll gladly accept.” She answered in a just as depressed tone.

Timothy gave her a firm nod, then sighed heavily. “Well…I’m beat as hell, so I’m gonna head to bed a little early tonight. Help yourself to some of the whiskey if you want, Nel.” He offered.

The man swiftly stood up and stretched his arms over his head for a moment, then turned to leave. As he was about to enter his room, Nel quickly walked over and held a hand up.

“Uh…Tim?” she called, getting him to stop and turn to her.

“Yeah?”

The woman hesitated, and lowered her hand a bit with flushed cheeks. Multiple thoughts were flooding her mind, most notably the ‘conversation’ that she had with Rangiku and Orihime back in the mall.

Even though the blonde woman was actually being serious about asking to sleep next to him, and in truth, the Arrancar actually ‘wanted’ to be closer to the man in front of her, for some reason she just couldn’t get the question to leave her mouth.

She was tired of waiting; tired of feeling like she was holding their relationship back due to her limited knowledge of the matter. But her tiredness was very easily outmatched by her fears, her fears of going too far and losing everything.

Sure, she may have Rangiku, Orihime, Kisuke, and the rest of her friends; but when it came right down to it, they were not the ones who were actually holding her together. No, the person who was responsible for that, was Timothy.

And that was why she just couldn’t bring herself to ask him the question that tortured her mind at the particular moment. All she could do was release a heavy sigh and shake her head with a forced smile.

“Sorry, I…kinda forgot what it was I wanted to ask. Sorry to bother you.” She lied.

Timothy scoffed and rolled his eyes while smiling back. “Trust me Nel, I know the feeling. I can’t tell you how many times where I had something in mind, then it suddenly goes ‘poof’ and it’s gone. It’s one of the most annoying things, I swear.”

Nel was actually very thankful that he had bought it, and forced herself to give a small laugh. “Yeah, it ‘is’ a little annoying. I’ll leave you now, good night Tim.” she said, then leaned forward and gave him a light peck on the cheek before turning around and walking back into the dining room.

The man smiled and entered his room, while Nel waited until he closed his door before she sat down with a loud huff and quickly poured herself a drink; downing it, and swiftly pouring another. She held it in front of her mouth and gave a throaty growl to herself.

“Stupid. So stupid.” She hissed through her teeth, down swallowed the second drink. “I can fight against Arrancars and half of the Espada, but yet I can’t even ask a simple question. Stupid!” she seethed further as she poured a third and downed it.

“Woah there, miss Nel; take it easy.” A low voice called out, gaining her attention.

Nel’s eyes widened a bit before she wiped her mouth and smiled. “Oh, hi Kisuke. Sorry, I was just mumbling to myself.” She admitted while rubbing the back of her head.

The shop owner nodded with a knowing smirk. “So I see. Would you…like to talk about it?” he offered.

The woman’s face fell a bit, but she finally shook her head. “No, thank you Kisuke. I’m fine. And besides…it’s not something I haven’t already discussed before.”

Urahara sat down across from her and pulled out his fan; blowing air on himself, but still holding it down low enough for her to still see the entirety of his face.

“Can I assume this has to do with you and Tim’s…relationship?” he pressed.

Nel set the empty glass down, returning her hands to her lap with a sigh. “Yes…but I would really prefer not to discuss it any further today, Kisuke. Rangiku has already pestered me enough about it while we were shopping, and while she ‘did’ give some good advice, I just can’t find the courage to act on that advice. I’m afraid I’m might lose him. I can’t lose him. He’s not like hollows or Arrancar, where they really only care about having a female in general; he actually sees me for who I am, and refuses to let ‘what’ I am get in the way.”

The shop owner didn’t respond, but did nod in understanding. Nel sighed again and crossed her arms firmly while looking at the overhead light. The two sat in complete silence for several minutes, until the quietness finally broke her resolve.

With another heavy sigh, the woman closed her eyes. “What is wrong with me, Kisuke? I’m not supposed to be feeling anything like this, but I am. Hollows are not supposed to be able to feel such deep feelings for another, but I just can’t get him off my mind.”

Kisuke continued to watch her for a moment, before he stopped waving his fan and closed it gently. “Could I ask you a personal question, miss Nel?” The woman gave him a brief nod. “Think about this carefully before you answer, but can you honestly see yourself living with him for the rest of your life?” he inquired.

The woman lowered her head to him and gave him a questioning look. “What do you mean?”

The shop owner sighed, then held up a finger. “I mean it how I said it, miss Nel. I know a bit about how relationships work for hollows. You choose a mate, and that mate essentially becomes a form of ‘property’ to that hollow. The mate is only kept around for as long as the hollow deems it worthy enough to keep around. If that hollow eventually finds the mate is not worth its time, it will either make it leave, or outright kill it.”

Kisuke lowered his hand and returned to fanning himself. “Now, as I’m sure you’ve gathered, it is quite different for humans and soul reapers. A mate, or in our terms, ‘spouse’, is treated very differently. Instead of being another piece of property, the person a human or soul reaper chooses to be their spouse, becomes their ‘partner’; their ‘other half’ as the saying goes. Think of it this way: Tim and Kit are both partners, just as you and Gamuza; however, the bond between spouses is far more in depth. You and Gamuza are partners while fighting, and for any other matters that require communication between you two. But a spouse is someone you have ‘chosen’ to be with you, to live life as a whole.”

The man closed his fan again and pointed at her. “So, with this in mind, let me ask this again; can you see yourself spending the rest of your life with Tim? Do you think that he can be your ‘other half’ in life, and do you think you can be ‘his’?”

Nel lowered her head to mull the thought over. “I…think I understand what you are saying, Kisuke. With what you said in mind…I can’t really say for sure.” This caused the man to raise a brow, and was about to ask what she meant, but she quickly lifted her head back to him. “A part of me is yelling that I can…that I can be his, as you say, other half. But…another part…I guess the part that still doesn’t understand everything fully, is not sure. I…I can’t really explain it, Kisuke.”

Kisuke nodded slowly. “There’s no need, miss Nel; I get what you are trying to say. A deeper part of you wants to be with him, but the more conscious part of you is not sure if it wants to or not.” He offered, earning a quick nod.

“Yes, and that is what’s really the most infuriating thing about this. I want him, I want to be with him, but part of me feels like I don’t know whether I want him or not. I want to move further in our relationship, but I am so scared that I might lose everything by pushing too hard. Rangiku told me I should try sleeping with him, and see what happens.” She informed.

The shop owner’s face instantly grew a wry smirk, and it only told a second for the Arrancar to think back and realize exactly what she said. The woman’s cheeks turned a fiery red before she bared her teeth and growled at the man.

“N…Not like that, you idiot! I didn’t mean…’that’! I meant…”

She was stopped by a wave of Kisuke’s fan. “What do you mean, miss Nel? I didn’t ‘say’ anything. You’re the one whose mind went into the gutter and got all defensive before you had any idea ‘what’ I could be thinking. Right?”

Nel then grabbed her hair and pulled it taut with a growl. “Sometimes I wish Ulquiorra ‘had’ killed you, Kisuke!”

Urahara gave her a mocked look of hurt. “Why…my dear miss Nel…how could you day such a thing? After all I’ve done to…”

He was silenced when the shot glass that ‘was’ on the table exploded next to his head from being thrown at the wall by the, now red with anger, Arrancar in front of him; her arm still outstretched from throwing the object.

“Do you ‘always’ have to pick the times when people are furious to make fun of them?! Are you ‘really’ that desperate to die?!” she hissed.

The man sighed in defeat. “Alright alright, let’s calm down a bit, miss Nel. Getting back on topic, can I assume that that was what you were about to ask Tim before he went to bed?” he asked, now with a serious face.

Nel slumped back down and turned away with a pink face, this time with embarrassment. “…Yes. But…I couldn’t do it. As I said…I am afraid I might be pushing him too hard, and I might only push him away.” She said in a sad voice.

Urahara gave her a nod. “I see, that does make sense. Well, if you don’t feel like it’s the right time, just wait until you ‘do’ feel like it’s the right time. It will likely make you feel more uncomfortable for a while, but you are correct miss Nel; pushing too hard ‘can’ result in only pushing the one you care about ‘further away’ from you. Just be patient, and the right time will present itself to you over time.”

The man then snapped his fan shut with a loud clack. “So!” he said in a cheery voice, making her look back at him to see the same smirk from before on his face. “Did miss Matsumoto get you some ‘good’ clothes to wear for our little Squad 7 Lieutenant, miss Nel?” he questioned, flashing his brows.

Nel instantly backed away with red cheeks. “T…That’s…n…none of…your business…Kisuke! And I…d…don’t know…what you’re…t…talking about!” she defended, but of course the man didn’t buy it.

“Okaaayyy…if you sayyyy soooo.” He answered, his grin growing even more.

The woman quickly stood up and bowed to him. “Sorry, time for bed!” she said rapidly, then quickly turned and left for her room.

“Going to dream about a ‘certain’ someone?” he teased further.

Turning around in her doorway with her fists clenched at her sides, she growled at the man dangerously. “N…No! I’m not! Shut up, Kisuke!” she yelled, then slapped her door shut; the shop owner hearing the audible ‘click’ of the lock to her door latching into place.

Urahara chuckled to himself and shook his head. “My dear miss Nel…if only Tim knew how much you cared for him deep down inside.”

Inside Nel’s room, the woman leaned against the door with her hands clasped behind her back; her head down in a bit of sadness. Even though the perverted shop owner just ‘had’ to make fun of her, she couldn’t deny that what he said was the truth.

As she lifted her head to the window across the room, she could that while the sun was likely below the horizon, there was still a little bit of light outside. If Timothy had not decided to go to bed early, she would have liked to ask him to take her out to see what the city was like afterhours.

_‘Maybe next time…’_ she thought before sighing and pushing herself from the door towards her dresser.

Though she really ‘shouldn’t’ be surprised, considering that she had already been shopping at least three times now, it still amazed her that nearly all of the drawers to her dresser were almost stuffed to the brim with numerous sets of clothes.

But the thing that left her dumbfounded, and a bit embarrassed, was that out of all the clothes, only ‘three’ sets of them where night clothes. And to make it even worse, all three sets were dirty; and even after being there for the past three weeks, she ‘still’ couldn’t quite figure out how the stupid washing machine worked.

Sighing heavily with slumped shoulders, she was left with no choice but to sleep in only her undergarments; of which, of course, Rangiku was ‘adamant’ to make sure she had plenty of so she could ‘impress’ a particular someone.

“Damn it…” she cursed under her breath, sliding the drawer closed.

With a huff, she stripped herself of her outer clothes and placed them in the half-full, cylindrical hamper next to her dresser. As she turned towards her bed, her vision stopped upon the full-size, standing mirror on the opposite side of the dresser.

The first thing that caught her eye, was the long, gruesome scar that ran from hip to shoulder between her breasts from Nnoitra’s attack; along with three puncture wounds just above her slightly toned stomach from when she saved Timothy from that Adjuchas.

Raising her hand, she slowly ran her index finger along the first scar, feeling each and every single malformed bump of the scar tissue. She came to a stop when her hand reached the three small bumps of scar tissue that laid side-by-side.

Although Orihime’s healing had saved her life, and healed the wounds from both attacks, it didn’t quite erase it all; seeing as how everyone was in sort of a rush at the time and the poor teen was unable to fully finish before having to work on Timothy.

She could have asked Orihime if she could finish and completely remove the scars, but as time went on and she saw them nearly every night, she decided against it. She thought it best to keep them as reminders of everything that has happened to her.

Everything that had made her life much better than what it was.

She then trailed her finger back up along the scar from Nnoitra, up past her breasts, until she stopped less than an inch from her hollow hole on her sternum. In actuality, the closest edge of her hollow hole was exactly half an inch from the scar.

_‘…So close. Just a hair’s width higher…’_

She quickly shook the thought from her head and force herself to turn away from the mirror with a sigh. Climbing under the covers of her futon, the former Espada laid down on her side to stare out the window.

Although it was clearly darker now, the sky was still lit with a dull, yellowish hue; complements of the numerous street lamps nearby, and the vast amount of lighting of the main part of the city. Not that she really minded, to her it actually brought a bit of life to the night sky.

Taking a deep breath, and letting it out in a loud sigh, she turned herself around to face away from the window and closed her eyes; letting sleep claim her shortly afterwards.

** Karakura City Center, 4 Hours Later **

“Miss…” a man working as a waiter called out calmly.

The addressed woman turned to him. “Yes?”

The waiter gave her a quick bow and presented his wrist watch to her. “I’m sorry miss, but we’re closing up now, and I’m afraid I have to ask you to leave now. My apologies.” He informed with another quick bow.

The woman smiled warmly and nodded. “Yes, I’m so sorry. I’ll pay now and leave. Thank you.” She returned, earning a friendly smile from the man before he turned and left.

Once he was out of sight, the woman’s smile fell away before letting out a long sigh. After reaching into her purse and pulling out some cash to pay for her meal, along with what the waiter would later discover a hefty tip, she stood up and left the cash on the table before turning and leaving the restaurant.

Stopping just outside the front doors to see one of the workers close and lock them up for the night, she looked down at her watch to see it was a half hour until midnight. Continuing to stare at the timepiece, she watched the seconds count by until the digital minute flashed to the next number.

The woman released another sigh as she dropped her hand and turned to see another shop across the street also closing for the night. She would have greatly preferred to sit at least for a little while longer to mull her thoughts over, but fate, as it were, decided against it.

Pulling her purse closer to her neck on her shoulder, she began slowly walking down the sidewalk; only a few other people that were heading home for the night in view. Two of them were walking side-by-side, holding hands.

The view caused her thoughts from earlier to return, and in turn caused her face to fall even more than it already was. She ended up having to drop her head as her and the couple passed each other, and she could hear the two of them quietly chuckling at what one of them must have said to the other.

That quiet laughter only added to the woman’s downtrodden expression, making her push herself to walk ever faster to remove herself from earshot of the couple as fast as possible. It was only when she had turned a corner that she finally slowed down to her previous speed.

When she did, she once again held her wrist watch up to see that only two minutes had passed since she last checked; two minutes ‘less’ until midnight. Releasing a depressed sigh, she lowered her hand to the strap of her purse and clutched it tightly.

She continued her slow walk through the main part of the city until she came upon the entrance to the main park of Karakura Town. Bringing her pace to a near crawl, she entered the park and continued along the main pathway until she came to a small clearing with several benches.

Walking over and coming to a stop in front of one of them, she took a long and deep breath before choosing to sit down and setting her purse next to here with her hands in her lap; looking out at the few buildings that she could see through the trees.

Sparing a last glance at her watch, she saw that it was now five minutes until midnight. _‘Five minutes until it’s over…’_ she thought.

Lowing her hand back down to her lap, the woman closed her eyes and took a deep breath before letting it out slowly, opening her eyes again as the last bit of air left her lungs to see a man now standing in front of her.

The two of them stared into each other’s eyes; her with calmness and sadness, and him with, from what she could tell, no emotion at all. While her hands gripped each other tightly in her lap, he didn’t so much as move a muscle.

“You have arrived here early, woman; did you not wish to spend those last few minutes with your friends?” the man asked in a cold voice.

A stray tear fell from the woman’s eyes and ran down her cheek as she closed them. “I would have liked to stay here with them…but that’s not possible…is it?” she returned in a low tone.

“No, it is not. So then, I assume this means you are ready to leave?” he questioned.

The woman then reached over into her purse and pulled out her phone, flipping it open and pressing a few buttons on the pad to bring up a single photo on the main screen. A smile came to her face as she looked at the three people on the screen.

One of the people was herself. The two others that were standing on either side of her with their arms draped over her shoulders with smiles on their faces. Sniffing once before flipping the phone closed, she lowered her head with closed eyes.

_‘I wish I could go back to that day…just to relive it again.’_ She said to herself.

Taking a deep breath, she placed the phone back in her purse, grabbing and shouldering it before standing up and looking back at the man in front of her; his green eyes endlessly staring into hers like they were trying to see inside her soul.

“I’m ready.” She informed.

Not saying, or making any motions of acknowledgment, he turned around, and with a flick of his wrist, caused the air in front of them to tear apart; revealing the black abyss inside. Taking her one last chance, the woman turned back towards the city with tears in her eyes.

“Goodbye…Ichigo.”


	35. Kidnapped

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 35

**(Kidnapped)**

** Underground Training Area, The Next Morning **

“Hinotama Surasuto!” Timothy yelled out as he threw an air punch towards his opponent.

A medium-sized fireball flew out from his balled fist and sailed straight towards its target. The man in front of him gave a brief smirk before swinging his own zanpakutō up and across in from of himself.

“Scream, Benihime.” He returned in a calm voice.

His zanpakutō quickly emitted its signature ‘scream’ as a wave flew out towards the incoming attack; colliding with it only ten feet away from him and sending numerous smaller embers in random directions from the impact area.

Having witnessed the effects of this attack before, the shop owner knew exactly what would happen if one of the smaller flames touched him. Seeing a few of them flying at him, he quickly vanished in shunpo.

Timothy instantly snapped around, throwing his fist out and launching another fireball, as Urahara appeared right behind him. But the man simply held his zanpakutō up in a defensive gesture.

“Cry, Benihime.” He called, instantly creating a red, hexagonal barrier between them.

The fireball hit the shield and exploded, the trace amount of dust that was created clearing a second later to reveal the man’s smirk had grown.

“Kirisaki, Benihime.” He added, causing Timothy to go wide-eyed.

Dozens of red projectiles started flying out from the surface of the shop owner’s shield at the Lieutenant. Fortunately, he was able to succeed in transporting a few yards to the side using one of his flames.

Unfortunately, someone was already there waiting for him.

Before the young Lieutenant even knew what had happened, he found himself sent straight into the rocky ground by a heavy kick to his lower back. He gave a throaty, painful yell as his body dug a few inches into the ground.

“Cero.” A familiar voice spoke from a short distance away.

The as-familiar, low rumbling sound from the spoken attack resounded throughout the area as the violet-colored beam of energy flew at Timothy’s previous attacker. But Kisuke was quick in action and was instantly in-between the cero and its intended target.

“Cry, Benihime.” He said, recreating his red shield just as the cero was about to hit.

A buzzing sound filled Timothy’s ears before he felt himself lifted from the ground; hearing it once more before finding himself now standing on his feet with an arm under his shoulder and holding him up.

The Lieutenant looked up to the owner of the arms and smiled. “Thanks, Nel.”

The former Espada gave him a serious look and nodded; releasing him from her hold as he regained his footing to stand next to her. As he looked her over, he mentally cringed at the sight of her current state.

She had multiple cuts and bruises on her arms and legs, along with a few on her face that slowly oozed the blood that was running down her cheek. A small trail of blood was also running out of her mouth and dripping off her chin.

Timothy closed his eyes with a painful sigh. “Yoruichi really gave it to you, huh?” he inquired.

Nel turned to look at the mentioned woman and narrowed her gaze. “I have to admit, I knew she was good at fighting with her hands, but I honestly had no idea that she was ‘this’ good. I’ve only managed three hits on her so far. And truthfully, I can say the same to you; Kisuke isn’t going easy on you either, is he?” he returned, now looking back at him.

If her and Timothy were competing for who could acquire the most amount of injuries during their training, Nel was very clearly the loser at the moment. Her ‘unofficial boyfriend’ clearly had at least twice as many cuts, scrapes, and bruises than she did. And not only that, he was just as clearly more exhausted than she was.

The man gave her a deadpanned expression. “What gave it away?” he mumbled in sarcasm.

Nel offered him a hint of a smile, before dropping it and returning to their opponents. “We need to find a way to separate them without separating ourselves, and then focus on attacking ‘one’ of them at the same time.” She advised.

Timothy turned to the shop owner, who was smirking at them. “It goes back to that saying, ‘easier said than done’. Kisuke seems to always be a step ahead, while Yoruichi is just too damn fast to keep up with. Even ‘if’ we manage to split them up, either Kisuke will just stall us until Yoruichi comes back, or Yoruichi will run us around in circles and give Kisuke all the time he needs to come up with the perfect plan…if he hasn’t already.”

The Lieutenant then turned to her with a raised brow. “Tell me something…does your Cero Doble only work on ones fired from an opponent, or can it work on ‘all’ ceros?”

Nel side-glanced him with a raised brow, slightly confused with his question. But the confusion lasted for only a brief moment when Timothy’s intention popped into her head, causing her to grin slightly.

“No, I can use it with ‘all’ ceros. What do you have planned?” she inquired.

Over with Kisuke and Yoruichi, the shop owner stood patiently fanning himself, while his golden-eyed friend stood with her hands on her hips and tapping her foot ‘impatiently’. Finally, the woman gave a heavy sigh.

“Well, are you two gonna continue, or would you like ‘us’ to move this along?” she taunted irritably.

The Lieutenant and Arrancar looked at her with annoyance. “You could have attacked us at any time, Yoruichi. So stop whining.” The man taunted back.

Yoruichi rose a brow at him. “Oh? So you’re saying you didn’t appreciate the little break Kisuke and I decided to give you? Okay then, I’ll be sure to remember that when you fall on the ground from exhaustion.” She bit back with a toothy grin.

Nel then turned to Timothy with a fallen face. “Do you ‘have’ to upset her, Tim?” she whined.

A shrug of the man’s shoulders was her only response before the two of them vanished, reappearing right in front of the two former Captains; Nel with her fist held back at Kisuke, and Timothy in a mid, waist-high swing towards Yoruichi.

Kisuke responded with using his zanpakutō to block the attack, while Yoruichi simply vanished in shunpo to reappear at Timothy’s left flank with a kick. But just before her kick made contact, Timothy darted the opposite direction and swung out at Kisuke.

As the shop owner turned his body to block ‘that’ attack, Nel just as quickly turned her own and pointed her now open palm at her; charging her violet-colored cero rapidly.

“Cero.” She called, launching the attack at Yoruichi as she started to recover from her previous own.

But, once again, the ‘Goddess of Flash’ proved to be even faster, yet again flashing away, and ‘closer’ to her target. As the woman reared back for a good punch to the Arrancar’s chest, the teal-haired woman buzzed away.

Yoruichi’s fist hit the ground and made a small indent in rocky surface, where she swiftly turned her head to a different voice.

“Hadō #31, Shakkahō!” Timothy yelled to her right, sending the red, flame-like energy ball at her.

“Bakudō #81, Dankū.” Kisuke chanted immediately afterward.

A large, almost completely transparent barrier appeared right next to her, taking the hit of Timothy’s kidō.

“Hadō #63, Raikō…” the shop owner started, but Nel buzzing into place in front of him with an outstretched hand stopped him.

“Cero.”

The Arrancar’s attack flew from her hand at the shop owner, making him flash away. When he reappeared and looked to where the Arrancar was before, he saw that she was gone; the only warning he got to the next attack was the buzzing sound of sonído.

“Cero.” She called again, sending yet another one of her violet-colored attacks at him.

But, as before, the man simply flashed out of the way; but this time, he was behind her and ready to swing.

‘Scream, Benihime.” He said, then swung.

His zanpakutō ‘screamed’ as it shot its red energy wave at the woman’s back. She was unable to react in time, and the wave hit her right across the flat of her upper-back; her grunting in mild pain as she was sent into the side of a nearby boulder.

“Nel!” Timothy yelled out from a short distance away.

“Watch your opponent, Tim!” Yoruichi yelled in return.

Like Nel, the Lieutenant couldn’t respond in time and received a harsh punch to his shoulder. And also like Nel, the attack sent him off his feet to slide across the ground several yards until a quick roll allowed him to land on his feet.

Timothy hissed in pain as he lifted his head to the golden-eyed woman, the hiss evolving into a loud whimper as he flexed his shoulder. He could feel something inside grinding and trying to lock up, telling him that the woman’s punch had likely fractured his shoulder socket.

Yoruichi stood up straight and pointed at him with a firm glare of disappointment. “Consider that punishment for taking your eyes off me, Tim. Do it again, and I’ll be sure to completely dislocate it. Got it?” she warned.

The Lieutenant growled at her before sparing a quick glance back to where Nel had landed. _‘Come on Nel…how much more time do you damn well need?’_

Inside a small crater on the side of the boulder, Nel lightly groaned in pain as she pulled herself out from the indent. Opening her eyes, she saw Kisuke standing in front of her with a calm look on his face.

“Well miss Nel, are you done for the day?” he taunted.

Baring her teeth, she stood up straight and snapped her open palm up. “Cero!” she yelled out.

Kisuke sighed with a dropped head. “You just don’t learn.” He mumbled to himself before vanishing, along with Nel.

The woman reappeared a short distance away, with Nel appearing a couple seconds afterwards and clutching her upper-chest tightly, seemingly in a great deal of pain and obviously very short on breath.

The shop owner sighed again and rested a hand on his hat, tilting it down a bit. “I have to give you credit miss Nel, you are a very capable fighter. However, you have clearly reached your limit, and I would advise that we stop this fight for now.” He offered in a kind tone.

Nel gritted her teeth a bit tighter. “You’re right…” she started, then flinched heavily in pain before giving the man a wicked grin. “…I have.” She finished, then turned towards Timothy who was struggling to hold of Yoruichi’s relentless kicks and punches. “Now Tim!” she yelled.

Kisuke’s eyes widened a bit when the woman turned back to him and leaned back with her head raised to the sky. His eyes became saucers when the woman then lurched her whole upper body forward, her mouth wide open and a very powerful cero charged inside.

But it was not her actions that made him worry, rather, it was what he finally noticed was right behind her; something that he had somehow completely forgot about.

One of Timothy’s flames.

The bare instant before the woman released her charged attack, she was gone. The man’s head instantly shot over to Timothy and Yoruichi’s fight just in time to see the Arrancar reappear between the Lieutenant and his best friend.

Even though he wanted to yell out to his friend in warning, he knew it was already much too late; they had ‘both’ been played. All the former Squad 12 Captain could do was watch as the teal-haired woman released her powerful attack at pointblank range at the golden-eyed former Captain.

“Bakudō #86, Tawami!” a deep voice yelled.

To everyone’s shock, a large, transparent, hexagonal barrier suddenly appeared at a forty-five-degree angle; Nel’s Cero Doble simply ‘bouncing’ off the surface of the barrier and going in the opposite direction.

The attack hit a faraway boulder, effectively evaporating it and everything nearby. All eyes turned to see Tessai standing a short distance away from Kisuke, holding his intertwined hands up from casting his kidō.

Kisuke stood straight and turned to face the large man fully. “Tessai? Is there…something wrong?” he inquired.

The former kidō commander quickly lowered his hands and briskly walked the rest of the way to the man. “Forgive me for interrupting boss, but all of you ‘need’ to come upstairs immediately! We have an emergency at the moment!” he informed in a very rapid voice.

The shop owner’s eyes widened as he began to fret. Not only was the normally calm and collected ‘co-shop owner’ using a very worrying tone in his voice, but he also had a very morbid expression on his face.

In all the years that the two of them had known each other, there had only been two other times where the large, and very calm man had openly shown this amount of worry. One had been when kidō accident had nearly killed his former Lieutenant, and the other was during Aizen’s actions over a hundred years ago that led to their banishment.

Yoruichi instantly flashed up next to Kisuke, along with Nel and Timothy. “What happened, Tessai?” she questioned in a firm voice.

The man turned to her and she flinched when he returned the stare she was giving him. “Forgive me lady Yoruichi, but this is something that you ‘must’ see for yourselves! You simply would not believe me if I told you!” He stated, then flashed away.

Yoruichi instantly turned to Kisuke with wide eyes at the man’s words, Kisuke looking back as well. “We will continue this later, for now, let’s look into this.” He instructed, then vanished as well; followed quickly by the rest.

Reappearing upstairs almost simultaneously, everyone was now standing in front of the small, dial-style tv set in the back corner of the dining room. The appliance was tuned to the news channel, and they could all see that they had caught the back end of an important news report.

_“Although the situation surrounding the incident are mere speculations at this point, initial observations made from nearby bystanders indicate that cause of this young woman’s death was due to a late-night mugging. While police are denying any inquiries at this time, we have been able to confirm the woman’s identity as fifteen-year-old Orihime Inoue; a high-school student attending Karakura High.”_ The female reporter informed in her professional tone.

Everyone’s eyes shot wide at the mention of the teen girl’s name, with Nel and Yoruichi’s hands quickly shooting to their mouths with loud gasps. Kitsune had already materialized and was on her knees in tears.

“No…the poor girl…” she spoke in a whisper.

Kisuke was quick to recover, and instantly turned to his large friend. “Tessai, call Shinji and tell him to send Ichigo here immediately.” He instructed, getting a nod before turning to the golden-eyed woman. “Yoruichi, I’m sure Uryū and Chad are aware of this by now, so go ahead and call them as well.” The woman nodded and quickly went to the shop’s phone. “Tim, call Captain Hitsugaya and ask him to have everyone report here too.”

Timothy nodded firmly. “That might take a while, so I think it might help if Tessai gives me a hand once he’s done with his call.” He stated as he pulled his soul pager out.

Kisuke nodded, then finally turned to Nel. “Miss Nel, you’ll be coming with me.”

The woman lowered her hand as tears fell down her face. “Where…where are we going?” she asked in a broken voice.

“To the morgue. Judging by what we just saw, Orihime’s body is most likely already there and waiting to be identified by family. Seeing as how her aunt, her only living family, is currently in another country, we’ll go down there and identify her. At the same time, we’ll inspect her body to ensure that it ‘is’ Orihime’s body, and to discover what really happened. Afterwards, we will go to the park where it happened and take a look for ourselves.” He clarified.

Nel nodded and wiped her tears away as Tessai turned to him. “Boss, Ichigo is on his way. I will inform Ikkaku and Yumichika now.”

Kisuke again nodded and turned to leave. “Please come with me, miss Nel. Yoruichi, please have everyone wait here until we return, or I call otherwise.”

“Got it.” She returned with the phone to her ear.

** Karakura General Hospital, 20 Minutes Later **

Getting out of the small, slightly worn van that Urahara used for the very rare deliveries his shop made, the former Captain and Arrancar made their way to the main entrance of the hospital. The shop owner was almost surprised when he saw Ryūken Ishida, the hospital’s director, just inside the sliding doors waiting for them.

As the pair stepped inside the front lobby, the white-haired Quincy turned to face the shop owner with a firm look on his face; giving the man only a very slight nod in acknowledgment of his presence.

“Urahara.” He half-greeted.

Kisuke nodded back. “Nice to see you again, Ryūken; although I would have greatly preferred it be under better circumstances.”

“Indeed. I know why you are here, so please come with me. There are still a number of officers in the east wing where the morgue is located, so we will have to take a less noticeable route.” Ryūken informed, then turned to begin walking.

The trio walked up to the front desk and onwards to a single door with a keyless electronic lock on the wall next to it. Holding up his hospital ID to the pad, the light flashed green with an audible beep and click before he pulled the door open and allowed the pair inside.

Letting the door shut behind him, Ryūken walked past the pair with them falling in behind him. “This is an emergency walkway for any nurses or doctors to move from one wing of the hospital to another without having to worry about hallway traffic. We will be able to enter the morgue through here without attracting too much attention.”

“Have you or any of your staff made any attempts at an autopsy yet?” Kisuke inquired.

Ryūken shook his head slowly. “No, I knew you would want to inspect the girl’s body before that happened, so I managed to postpone it a few hours. By the time we arrive, you will have twenty minutes before the autopsy is to begin. I can tell you that initial observations tell us that the girl was stabbed with a bladed weapon in her chest. Other than that, I cannot tell you.”

They finally came to a stop in front of a door, where Ryūken once again used his card to unlock and open the door. As the trio entered the new section of the hospital, while there were a couple staff members and a single officer nearby, it was relatively empty.

Ryūken led them up to the door where the officer was stationed, where he presented his ID. “This woman and her father have come to identify the body, I will be personally escorting them.” He informed.

The officer nodded and stepped to the side, holding the door open for them as they walked inside the large room with numerous freezer boxes lining the walls. Waiting for the officer to close the door, Ryūken then walked to one of the freezers on the right side.

Giving the latch a quick yank, the door opened and allowed him to pull the long table out; a mid-sized body lying on top that was covered with a white sheet. Allowing the former Captain and strange woman with him to brace themselves, he pulled the upper-left portion of the sheet back to reveal none other than Orihime Inoue’s pale face.

Nel’s head instantly dropped in sadness while Kisuke simply closed his eyes. “The mortician will be here shortly, so I advise you make this quick, Urahara. But keep this in mind, the only reason I am doing this is because she was a close friend to my son. This changes nothing between us.” He warned, then walked over and sat down at the mortician’s desk on the far wall.

Taking a quick breath, Kisuke opened his eyes and closely inspected the young girl’s body. As the elder Quincy stated, initial inspection showed that Orihime had indeed been stabbed in the area where her heart was; and seeing that the two of them were spirits, they could see the severed chain of fate on the body’s chest near the wound.

Reaching out with his senses, Kisuke was quickly able to confirm that the body lying in front of him was indeed Orihime Inoue’s. He then reached inside his coat and pulled out his phone; flipping it open and dialing a number before placing it to his ear.

After a brief moment, he heard someone pick the other end up. _“Yes boss?”_

Kisuke took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “It’s her, Tessai. Has everyone arrived yet?”

_“Everyone except for Uryū and Chad, but lady Yoruichi has informed me that they will be here shortly.”_ The large man answered.

“Call them back and have them go directly to the park, have them begin searching for miss Inoue’s soul. Have Tim and the others begin searching the area nearby as well. We need to find her before a hollow does. Once she is found, bring her back to the shop immediately.” He instructed.

_“Will do, boss.”_ Tessai returned, then hung up.

Kisuke closed and pocketed his phone before returning to Orihime’s body. Now that he had calmed down a little, he began performing a much closer inspection of her body, while Nel stood by at the side and holding the deceased teen’s hand.

“Why did this have to happen to her, Kisuke? Someone so kind and caring like Orihime doesn’t deserve this. What did she do to deserve this?” she questioned through her tears.

Kisuke stopped on the opposite side and briefly held up the severed chain on the body’s chest before laying it back down. Reaching down and grabbing the teen’s wrist, he narrowed his eyes and gave a slight hum.

This did not go unnoticed by the elder Quincy, who stood up and walked back over to the pair. “I assume that you have discovered something.” He stated in a firm tone.

The shop owner set the girl’s wrist back down on the table and pulled his fan out; fanning himself while in deep thought. After a few seconds, he finally turned to the man with a calculating gaze.

“I do not believe that miss Inoue was in fact ‘killed’ in the manner we have been led to believe.” He stated.

Nel lifted her head to him in confusion. “What do you mean, Kisuke? Was she killed some other way?” she inquired.

The shop owner didn’t answer her, and instead pulled out a small vial and a syringe. Sticking the needle inside the teen’s arm, he withdrew a small amount of blood before emptying it inside the vial; capping it and returning it inside his coat while tossing the needle into the small red safety container.

“I believe that may be the case here, miss Nel. Although, I can’t say anything for certain right now. Ryūken, is it at all possible that you can hold onto miss Inoue’s body for a few more days?” he asked the Quincy.

The man narrowed his eyes at the shop owner. “I cannot stop the autopsy, if that is what you are asking.”

Kisuke shook his head. “No, I am simply asking if you can ensure her body stays here in your hospital for a short while until I can figure something out.” He corrected.

Ryūken turned his gaze to the deceased teen. “I cannot make you any promises, but I will see what I can do. To my knowledge, the police have not yet been able to contact the girl’s aunt yet; but it won’t be long until they do. Once she comes and claims the body, there is nothing more that I can do. So I advise that whatever you have planned be done before then. Now, your time is up. The mortician will be here any minute, and the less people that see you, the better.”

Nel turned to him and gave him a bow. “Thank you, mister Ishida.”

The man turned to her and again narrowed his eyes. “You are playing a very dangerous game, keeping that thing with you, Urahara. It would be best if we never see each other again, Arrancar. Because the next time, I will not be so accommodating.” He hissed at the woman, causing her to flinch.

“H…How did…” she started.

Ryūken pushed his glasses up his nose with a sneer. “As much as I don’t like it, I am a Quincy. If you think that, even for a moment, Urahara’s fake body can conceal your true identity from me, you are sorely mistaken. As I had said, the only reason you are even here is because of my son’s friendship with the woman, but that will not save you the next time we meet. Now leave.”

The man’s words ate at her soul, but she slowly nodded and began walking towards the door, followed closely by Kisuke. They swiftly left the room and turned towards the side exit.

As they were walking across the parking lot, Kisuke turned his eyes to her. “Don’t worry about Ryūken, miss Nel. He has had a few…unfortunate encounters with hollows in the past, so it is completely understandable why he would be openly hostile.” He comforted.

Nel shook her head at him. “No, it’s fine, Kisuke. I know about Quincys and their hatred towards hollows. I understand fully why he acted the way he did.” She assured.

Kisuke nodded as they came up to the van. “Next, we’ll go to the park where her body was found and see if we can find anything out of place. Something with her body has me a bit puzzled, and I’m hoping that we can find something that will explain it.”

The woman got into the vehicle and fastened her seatbelt. “What was it that you noticed, Kisuke?”

The shop owner started the van and began driving off. “I can’t say for certain at the moment, miss Nel; but I honestly hope my suspicion is wrong.”

** Karakura Park, 1 Hour Later **

The shop owner and Arrancar now found themselves scanning the immediate area of the center of the park. They had become even more disheartened when they arrived at the sight of the incident to see a chalk outline of where the young teen’s body was found.

Although most off the law officers and news reporters had already left by the time they arrived, they were still a few personnel walking around and gathering clues as to what might have happened; meaning that the pair had to tread carefully as to not look suspicious.

But now that the last few emergency personnel where finally leaving, it allowed Kisuke and Nel to get a firsthand look at the sight. While Kisuke knelt down next to the chalk outline, Nel was walking around close by and scanning the ground for anything that might have been missed.

Although it was very faint, the shop owner could still detect the residual spirit energy of Orihime; proving that she had indeed been there when she was ‘killed’. And that was what had the man puzzled, because it wasn’t only her spirit energy that he was detecting.

Whoever it was that had killed the teen, obviously possessed a fair amount of spirit energy themselves. A random hollow attack was quickly ruled out, as someone would have easily detected it, and Orihime could have easily defended herself until help arrived; if she couldn’t outright defeat it herself.

And it wasn’t just one extra spiritual signature he was picking up, it was three. Two of them obviously belonged to actual beings, but the last one seemed different. And it ate at the man because the last one was somehow very familiar.

“Have you found anything, miss Nel?” he inquired aloud as he traced the chalk outline with his fingers.

The woman continued searching closely as she answered. “No, nothing. If whoever did this left something behind, it is very likely that the human police found it and now have it.” She informed.

Kisuke then stood up straight and looked at the ground a short distance away. _‘Whatever that spiritual signature is, it would seem that it’s originating from there.’_ He deducted.

The man walked over to the observed spot and came to a stop, searching the area around him. The spiritual signature that didn’t seem to belong to anyone seemed to be at its strongest where he stood, even though it was barely readable.

“Miss Nel…could you come over here for a moment?” he called out.

The Arrancar was standing next to him only a few seconds later, giving him a puzzled look. “Yes?”

Kisuke continued to stare at the ground intently. “Tell me…do you feel anything standing here? Something very faint?” he questioned.

The woman turned to where he was looking and closed her eyes, feeling out with her senses and humming in thought. After a few moments, she reopened her eyes and turned back to him.

“Actually…I do. It’s very faint, so much so that I can barely even feel it.” She answered.

Kisuke turned his firm eyes to her. “And does it feel familiar to you?” he furthered.

Nel returned to the ground, humming in thought again. “It…does. Kisuke…I don’t want to make any assumptions, but…it somehow feels like…”

The shop owner narrowed his stare at her. “…Like a Garganta was opened here?” he filled in.

Her head shot to him before she hesitantly nodded. “Yes. The more I feel it, and the more I think about it, the more I believe that to be the case. You…You don’t…think…”

Urahara nodded firmly. “We’re done here, miss Nel.” He stated, then pulled his phone out and dialed the shop with Tessai immediacy answering. “Tessai, have everyone come back to the shop. I believe I may have figured out what happened.”

_“Understood, boss.”_ The large man replied.

“Call Uryū and Chad first and have them meet Nel and myself in the north parking lot; I’ll give them a ride back.” He added.

_“Of course, right away.”_

Kisuke then hung up the phone and turned back to Nel. “Let’s go, miss Nel.” He said, then turned to leave.

Nel gave the spot a last glance before doing the same to the chalk outline of the teen’s body. _‘Please…don’t let I think happened be true.’_ She pleaded to herself before moving to follow Kisuke to the car.

** Urahara Shop, 10 Minutes Later **

Everyone, minus of course Kisuke, Nel, Uryū, and Chad, sat quietly at the dining room table; a ghostly silence filling the room. Timothy sat in his normal spot with his head leaned back against the wall and looking up to the ceiling.

Kitsune was materialized, and to make room for everyone else, was sitting in her partner’s lap with her own head down in despair. Her furry knuckles where white as she gripped the fur of her legs tightly in anger.

Rukia was sitting next to Ichigo and gently rubbing his shoulder in comfort as the orange-haired substitute trembled; also with his head down. If one looked close enough, that person could swear the young man was crying.

“Why…” he said in a very low, and broken voice.

He balled his fists tightly where his nails threatened to break the skin of his palms. Understanding how her young pupil felt, Yoruichi turned her head to him with a knowing face.

“Ichigo…we don’t have all of the details yet…so please, calm down until Kisuke gets back with the info he has.” She said in a soothing voice.

It didn’t work as the teen instantly raised his fist and slammed it on the table. “Damn it! Why her?! She didn’t do anything wrong, so why did it have to be her?!” he yelled aloud.

Timothy let out a loud sigh without moving. “Ichigo, for once, Yoruichi is right; all we have is what the news told us. And we all know that the news has a tendency to exaggerate on just about everything.” He pressed.

Ichigo’s head quickly snapped to him. “But you heard what hat-and-clogs said! It was ‘her’ body at the hospital! What other proof do you need?!” he bellowed.

“Ichigo please…just stop.” Kitsune pleaded, getting his attention where she raised her teary eyes to him. “We all loved her…please don’t make this any worse.” She furthered.

The teen clenched his teeth. “Oh yeah? Then what am I supposed to do!?” he questioned, making her turn away with being unable to answer.

Everyone’s minus Ichigo’s, heads turned when they heard the front door slide open; where Kisuke, Nel, Uryū and Chad walked in. The four of them walked up to the table and sat down where Kisuke turned to Yoruichi.

“I need you to go to the soul society, specifically to Squad 12. See if they had detected anything out of the ordinary in the past twelve hours, such as a Garganta being opened.” He instructed.

Everyone’s eyes went wide. “Wait a minute…you think Aizen is behind this?!” she asked in shock.

“I believe it’s a possibility. I’ll fill you in when you get back, but this needs to be done immediately.” He stated.

Yoruichi nodded, and instantly flashed away. “Enough hat-and-clogs! What the hell is going on?!” Ichigo demanded.

The shop owner turned to him with a calm face. “Ichigo, I need you to calm down a little bit so that I can explain everything. Can you do that?” he asked calmly.

Rukia turned to him as well and gave his shoulder a gentle squeeze. “He’s right Ichigo, we ‘all’ need to be calm and let him tell us what he found out.”

Ichigo gave a low growl before closing his eyes and nodding. “Fine.” He acknowledged.

Giving the teen a moment to calm down a bit further, Kisuke turned to face everyone. “First of all, I need to inform you all that I don’t believe that miss Inoue was ‘killed’.” He started, earning everyone’s full attention. “With that in mind, I cannot deny that her physical body is indeed dead. However, I believe that we can change that.”

Uryū rose a brow at him. “And just how do you plan to do that, Kisuke?” he asked, pushing his glasses up his nose. “You just told us that Orihime’s body is essentially ‘dead’, so how can you fix that?”

“Was her chain of fate still connected?” Renji inquired.

Kisuke shook his head slowly. “I’m afraid not, her soul is effectively severed from her body. But, I don’t think that the death of her physical body is the cause of her chain of fate being broken.”

Timothy tilted his head with furrowed brows. “Hold on…I thought the only way for the chain of fate to be broken was ‘to’ die…right?” he asked in confusion.

The shop owner again shook his head. “Not necessarily. There are other ways for a person’s chain of fate to be severed, but that would require the soul being removed from the body beforehand. And that is what I believe may have happened.”

“What does it matter?! If her chain is broken, then she’s gone!” Ichigo hissed out loud.

This got Kisuke’s attention. “Is that so? Then how do you explain yourself, Ichigo? Don’t you remember? Your chain of fate is already broken.” He pointed out.

Everyone instantly turned to the teen, who was now confused. “Yeah, because you cut it, hat-and-clogs! You did that for my soul reaper training!” he defended.

“And yet, here you are; alive and well, for the most part. Let me explain: the chain of fate is simply the connection between the soul and its physical body. If by some circumstance the soul is removed from the body, as long as the chain of fate is still connected, the soul can return to the body; just like miss Inoue’s did after the incident with her brother’s hollowfied soul. However, if the chain ‘is’ severed while the soul is outside the body, that soul cannot return to it. As an example, when Tessai had cut your chain of fate when we started your training, Ichigo, you were, at that point, essentially ‘dead’. Your body may have still been alive, but it did not have a soul that could return to it. Still with me?” he asked, getting rounds around the table.

“So, with that in mind, how are you able to return to your body without your chain of fate?” he questioned. He waited for a split second before answering. “The answer is simple. Your own spirit energy became the link between your soul and your body. Spirit energy is produced by the soul, and stored inside it. For soul reapers and hollows, the soul can store an enormous amount of spirit energy. However, for humans, the soul can only safely house a small amount of it. Understand so far?” Another round of nods.

“For most humans, this is not an issue as their souls don’t produce hardly any spirit energy in the first place. But for those that do, such as in this case Ichigo, Chad and Orihime, the excess spirit energy that their souls can’t safely contain is pressed out and stored within the actual body. And because of this, Chad and Orihime are able to use their abilities without having to leave their physical bodies.” He informed.

Uryū rose a brow at the man. “Wait a minute, if that’s the case, then why can’t Ichigo use his soul reapers powers while inside his body?”

Kisuke rose a finger up. “Excellent question, Uryū. And the answer is just as simple; while Ichigo is, for the most part, a full soul reaper, his physical body is unable to produce those powers, because it is a ‘human’ body. Now, if he were inside a gigai, then he would be able to use some of the basic abilities of a soul reaper. Case in point, miss Rukia being able to perform kidō while inside her gigai.”

The Quincy nodded, where Chad leaned forward. “But how does this help us with Orihime?” he asked in his low voice.

The shop owner lowered his finger and turned to him. “As I said, when Ichigo’s chain of fate was severed, his physical body was still living at that time. As such, his spirit energy that was still housed inside the body became the link to his soul. However, if I had outright killed him while he was inside his body, then the link would not exist. When a human is killed, their soul is removed from the body, as you all know. However, when that happens, the soul, by instinct, immediately gathers ‘all’ of the spirit energy, if any, contained within the body. It does this to help ensure its survival until a soul reaper can perform a konsō. The spirit energy also helps to lengthen the amount of time that the encroachment takes to completely dissolve the remainder of the soul’s chain of fate. As long as nothing happens to miss Inoue’s soul, it would likely take several weeks, if not months for her to become a hollow because of her stored spirit energy.”

The man pulled his fan out and took a deep breath before continuing. “However, because Ichigo’s soul was removed from the body with the chain of fate still connected, trace amounts of his spirit energy was left inside. When his chain was cut, his soul automatically found a new connection; a.k.a., his spirit energy. Now…we come back to miss Inoue. While I was inspecting her body in the morgue, I found that there was still a considerable amount of her spirit energy contained within it. At the same time, I discovered that her chain of fate had a very faint trace of another spiritual signature. This leads me to believe that miss Inoue’s soul was pulled from her body, and ‘then’ her chain of fate was cut.”

Ichigo then slammed his fist down on the table. “It ‘still’ doesn’t matter, hat-and-clogs! What good is it if her body is dead?!”

Kisuke rolled his eyes to Uryū. “That is where Uryū’s father comes in.”

The black-haired teen rose both brows in surprise. “My father?! What does he have to do with this?!” he demanded.

“I spoke with your father at the hospital, and he has agreed to try and keep miss Inoue’s body preserved as long as he can. If we can find miss Inoue’s soul, I believe that she can use her healing powers on ‘her own’ body, and restore it to full working condition. Since there is still traces of her spirit energy housed within her body, I believe that she can use that energy as a connection to ‘return’ to it.”

Everyone’s eyes shot wide again. “Wait, are you saying that we can still save her?!” Renji demanded.

Kisuke gave him a firm nod. “Yes, I believe we can; ‘if’ we can find her soul. And that is where the real problem lies.”

Kitsune tilted her head in worry. “What do you mean, Kisuke?”

The shop owner lowered his head a bit, where Nel sighed heavily. “Kisuke and I think that a Garganta was opened where her body was found. We both detected very faint spiritual pressures that indicate one was opened. Considering how faint it was, I would have to guess that it was opened around the time that her death was believed to have happened.”

Ichigo balled his fists even tighter. “Wait…so you’re saying…”

Urahara nodded firmly. “I believe it is safe to say that Aizen has abducted miss Inoue.” He said gravely.

** Las Noches Palace, Present **

Orihime was sitting down on the foot of her bed, her face soaked with tears and light sniffles involuntarily escaping her throat as she recalled the event that occurred only hours ago.

_ Flashback, Karakura Park, Midnight _

_As Orihime looked into the black abyss of the Garganta, she saw two men walking towards her from inside. One she recognized as the blue-haired Espada that Ichigo and Timothy had told her about, and the other she knew by face and name._

_“Please do not resist, Orihime Inoue.” The blindfolded man spoke calmly._

_The teen swallowed the lump in her throat. “Y…Your…C…Captain Tōsen…right?” she asked._

_The former Captain gave her a slight nod. “Yes, I am. Lord Aizen has demanded your presence, and as long as you do not resist us, we will not harm you.” He stated._

_The man then reached into his pants pocket and pulled out a small rag. As he worked with it, Orihime could now tell that it was some sort of glove without the fingers, and a flaming skull-like design on the back._

_Tōsen stepped up to her and held his gloved hand up to her chest. “I apologize if this feels discomforting.” He said, then pressed his hand to her chest._

_A familiar, yet still very strange feeling flooded Orihime’s body as she was forced to take a step back. When she regained her balance, her eyes went wide at seeing her physical body drop down to the ground in a lifeless heap._

_“W…Why…Why did you do that?” she asked._

_Without answering, the green-eyed Espada to her left drew his zanpakutō a swiftly slashed right through the chain that ran from her chest to her body. The instant the chain separated itself, she was filled with a sudden empty feeling; like something deep inside her was suddenly removed._

_“You will feel a little weak, but I assure you that it will pass in a short while. Now please, come with me.” The former Captain instructed, then turned to the Quatro Espada. “Ulquiorra, you know what to do.” He added, then began walking towards the still open garganta._

_“Yes, Commander Tōsen.” The green-eyed Espada answered, his zanpakutō still in his hand._

_With no effort at all, the man picked up Orihime’s body, and instantly ran his blade through its chest; Orihime gasping and holding her hands to her mouth in horror. Tears began falling down her cheeks as she tried to comprehend what she just saw._

_“W…Why would you do that?!” she half-demanded._

_Removing his blade and dropping the teen’s body to the ground, he turned to glare at her. “You will have no further need of this useless vessel you call a body. Lord Aizen has summoned you, and it is highly unlikely that you will ever return. Now, do as you are told, woman; or I will force you by less than preferred means.” He said in his cold voice._

_In a surprise bout of anger, Orihime clenched her teeth and glared daggers at the Espada. “You…You monster!” she hissed in a low voice._

_His expression didn’t change. “You are correct, I am a monster. Now move.”_

_Orihime balled her fists at her side before turning on her heel and following Tōsen into the garganta. Grimmjow gave her a toothy grin as she walked by him._

_“Heh, seems like you just might have a backbone afterall, girl.” He taunted._

_The teen stopped and turned her head to him. “You hurt Ichigo. I won’t forgive you.” She stated._

_The blue-haired Espada chuckled. “Fine by me, the kid was pathetic. You’d probably put up more of a fight than he did.”_

_Orihime quickly turned her head away from him and continued to follow Tōsen with Grimmjow walking in behind her and Ulquiorra taking up the rear. The teen turned just in time to get a last look at her lifeless body lying in the middle of the park before the portal snapped shut._

_ Las Noches Throne Room, 10 Minutes Later _

_Aizen, along with Gin and the Espada, minus the Quatro and Sexta, sat quietly in their seats around the large, rectangular table of the meeting room. Aizen currently had one leg draped over the over while leaning back in his chair and sipping on his tea._

_A very faint sound of snoring could be heard as Stark, the Primera laid forward with his upper body on top of the table, lightly sleeping. The woman next to him, Harribel, sat with her arms crossed under her breasts; her left eye slightly twitching as she stared at the sleeping Primera._

‘That man…he can be quite annoying sometimes…’ _she mentally fumed._

_The elderly Espada sitting across from Stark growled lowly in annoyance. “Just how much longer is this going to take? I have far more important things to do than to sit here and wait while those three take their time just to go get some stupid human girl.” He snarled._

_“Tsk…ain’t that the truth.” Nnoitra added in agreeance._

_Harribel turned to face the old Espada with a glare. “It would be wise of you not to lose patience, Baraggan; especially in Lord Aizen’s presence.” She warned._

_The Segunda rolled his eyes to her with furrowed brows. “And you would do well to mind how you speak to me, Harribel.” He returned._

_Aizen slowly opened his eyes to stare between the two Espada. “I understand how this may bore some of you; however, I ask that you do refrain from your childish arguments. Please be patient for just a while longer.” He spoke in his calm and calculated tone of voice._

_Baraggan turned his head away from the man with a huff, while Harribel bowed her head. “My apologies, Lord Aizen.” She offered._

_The former Captain gave a sly grin. “It is alright, Harribel. In fact, I believe our friends have returned.” He informed._

_True to his remark, everyone’s heads turned to the end of the table where a garganta slowly opened; revealing four figures. Yammy scoffed heavily before turning back front._

_“Bout damn time.” He moaned._

_Tōsen exited first where he returned to his spot just behind Aizen and to his left. Orihime followed behind him, coming to a stop in front of the table; while the Quatro and Sexta Espadas came from behind her and flanked her on either side._

_Grimmjow took a knee, while Ulquiorra gave his typical bow to the powerful man. “We have returned, Lord Aizen. As instructed, we have brought the girl back with us.” He informed._

_Aizen’s grin grew a bit as he set his tea cup down; interlacing his fingers with his elbows resting on the arms of his chair. “So I see, thank you, Ulquiorra. Did you accomplish the other task I had set out for you?”_

_The Quatro raised himself and nodded. “Yes, the woman’s body has been disposed of. She no longer has any physical ties to the world of the living.”_

_The former Captain smiled. “Thank you, you and Grimmjow may return to your seats.”_

_The two Espada stood straight and walked to their appropriate seats, sitting down and turning to their leader. Aizen turned his eyes to the still sleeping Primera, and chuckled lightly._

_“Harribel, would you mind waking Stark? I believe we are ready to begin this meeting now.” He ‘asked’._

_The woman nodded before giving the sleeping man a ‘gentle’ punch in his side. The man snorted before quickly raising his body up in surprise. He then started rubbing his side while staring down the woman next to him._

_“Did you have to be so rough, Harribel?” he whined._

_The Tres Espada simply shrugged a shoulder in response, where Stark moaned as he rubbed the sleep from his face._

_“Sorry about that, Lord Aizen.” He said._

_The man chuckled again. “It is alright, Stark. Now, before we begin, I would like to offer my welcome to you, Orihime Inoue.” The man said, turning his gaze to the teen woman across from him._

_Orihime tucked her head in in fear as her hands trembled. “W…What did you want…from me?” she asked in a quiet voice._

_Aizen’s smile only grew with the question. “Of course, my apologies. I suppose I should explain the reason for you being here, my dear. But that will come at a later time; for now, I would like to ask my Espada to stand and introduce themselves. Stark, would you care to begin for us?” he asked, now looking at the man._

_Stark scratched the back of his head. “Yeah, sure.” He answered before standing and looking at the teen. “Coyote Stark, Primera Espada.” He greeted, then sat down._

_All heads turned to Baraggan, who was seething to himself. “Baraggan Louisenbairn…Segunda Espada.” He hissed without standing or even glancing at the woman._

_Harribel sighed before standing and giving the teen a calm, yet firm look. “Tier Harribel, Tres Espada.” She greeted._

_The female Espada remained standing for a moment as she looked the teen over. She could see that even though the young woman was keeping her composure for the most part, she still noticed that she was also trembling._

_Being, now, the only female Espada, Harribel could almost understand how the poor girl was feeling; being taken to a strange and hostile place all alone with no one to help her. She actually found herself starting to pity the young girl._

_Harribel finally sat down, where Ulquiorra stood. Keeping his head straight, he rolled he eyes to her with a cold stare. “Ulquiorra Cifer, Quatro Espada.” He said, then sat back down._

_One-by-one, each of the Espada briefly stood, giving her their names, before sitting back down. While a few of them seemed slightly polite, the rest of them had been really cold to her; a couple of them giving her sickening stares before sitting down._

_When Yammy, the last to introduce himself, had finally sat down, Aizen unfurled his fingers and allowed his arms to rest down on the chair’s rests. Giving Orihime a stare for a moment, he then turned over his left shoulder._

_“Kaname, would you be so kind and escort Orihime to her room. And please be sure that no one besides myself, or anyone with my permission enters.” He instructed._

_Tōsen bowed to the man. “Yes, Lord Aizen.” He responded, then rose. He then turned to the teen and held out a hand towards the door. “If you will please follow me, miss Inoue.”_

_Orihime flinched a bit, but nodded slowly before beginning her slow walk around the table to her left side; the side opposing the two Espada that had helped take her away. Nnoitra grinned madly as she passed behind him._

_“Be careful that the ‘monsters under the bed’ don’t getcha, little girl.” He mocked, earning a snicker from Grimmjow and Yammy._

_Harribel turned to the tall Espada with a death glare. “Keep quiet, Nnoitra.” She ordered._

_Stark turned his head to the left as Orihime passed by him. “Hey…” he called out, making her stop and glance at him. “Just ignore him. Just do what your told and you won’t have any problems, alright?” he asked in a calming tone._

_Orihime nodded, then continued walking away with Tōsen coming up behind her. Aizen waited until the two left the room and heard the sound of the doors closing behind then before turning to face his Espada._

_“Now, with introductions taken care of, I believe we can now begin our meeting.”_

_ Flashback End _

A knock on her door brought her back from her thoughts, where she lifted her head to see the door open and Ulquiorra walk in with a tray of food. The emotionless Espada set the tray down on a nearby dresser before turning to her.

“You are required to be in a fit shape, by Lord Aizen’s orders, woman. So, come now and eat. I will return in an hour; if you have not eaten enough to please me, I will have to resort to more drastic measures to ensure that you do.” He informed, then just as briefly left the room.

Orihime dropped her head in defeat, more tears escaping her eyes as she stood up to do as instructed.

** Urahara Shop, Present **

Timothy slowly ran both hands down his face as he tried his hardest not to lose his temper. Kitsune could literally feel the anger radiating from her partner and was rubbing his leg to try and calm him down.

“So, what the hell do we do?” the Squad 7 Lieutenant asked through his teeth.

Ichigo snapped his head to him, his own temper already flaring. “What the hell do you mean?! We go get her, of course!” he answered, Chad nodding in agreeance.

Timothy dropped his hands and glared back. “Well duh, you idiot, of course we’re going to get her back. But what I’m ‘actually’ asking is ‘how’ we’re going to do it!” he shot back.

Nel slowly reached next to her and rested a hand on his shoulder. “Tim…please calm down.”

The man closed his eyes tightly and took a slow, and very deep breath, letting it out with a low growl. Taking the time for a second breath, this time he made no sound as he calmed down in exhale.

“Sorry.” He said in a low voice.

The Arrancar nodded with a weak smile, where Renji turned to Kisuke. “So how ‘are’ we going to get her? It’s not like we can just walk up to the front door and knock.”

Uryū glanced at the redhead. “I think we should be asking ourselves how we’re going to even ‘get’ there. The only way that I know of is the use of a garganta, and only hollows have that ability.”

Rukia looked to the shop owner with a hopeful gaze. “Can you open one, Kisuke?” she questioned.

Kisuke sighed heavily while fanning himself. “I can, but it’s going to take quite a bit of time; at least a week.”

Ichigo furrowed his brows at the man. “What the hell, hat-and-clogs?! It only took you a single day to open a senkaimon! How the hell is a garganta any different?!” he demanded.

Toshiro had finally lost his patience and turned to glare at the teen. “Ichigo, calm down, now! We are ‘all’ upset about what’s happened, but we are not going to get anywhere if we all lose our temper!”

Kitsune raised her right hand and rested it on the teen’s shoulder. “Ichigo, he’s right. Both you and Tim need to keep calm.” She said in a soothing voice.

The teen growled before crossing his arms. “Fine!”

The spirit turned to the shop owner and nodded for him to continue, where he sighed again. “A garganta is vastly different from a senkaimon, Ichigo. As we all know, the soul society and the world of the living are two independent worlds. These two worlds are linked together by the dangai, the precipice world, which is a world in itself as well. The senkaimon allows travelers to enter or exit the dangai from either side. In short, the dangai is like a bridge from one side of a river, to the other.” The teen nodded in understanding.

“Now, when it comes to Hueco Mundo, another world, there is ‘no’ world, no bridge between it and the soul society or the living world. Hueco Mundo is an isolated world with no connections. Now, unlike the senkaimon, which is a doorway between worlds, the garganta is a portal that allows a traveler to leave a world. It opens up to the empty, dimensional space ‘between’ all worlds, including soul society and living world. Opening a garganta is actually not that difficult; the difficult part is finding the correct path through the empty space and creating opening to the world you wish to go to.”

Kisuke closed his fan and pointed it up. “That is the reason it will take me so long to open one. It takes extensive knowledge and proficiency with the garganta to be able to create that opening in the foreign world. Without it, the travelers would be trapped between worlds for all eternity with no way to escape. Hollows are born with the instinct on how to use them, thus why even lower level hollows can enter the world of the living, or even the soul society.”

Timothy rose a brow at that. “Wait, if any hollow can use the garganta like it’s instinct…” he started, then looked at Nel. “…can’t Nel open one for us?” he inquired.

All heads turned to the teal-haired woman, who then rubbed her shoulder. “I…I can, but are you sure that’s a good idea? Remember, Aizen and everyone else knows the signature of my garganta, and they would quickly respond to us using it.” She warned.

Uryū narrowed his stare. “Can you open the exit outside of Las Noches, but still somewhere close by? That way we can move away from the area before they can respond?”

Nel nodded at him. “Yes, as long as it’s somewhere I’ve been before, or somewhere I know about, I can pretty much open it to anywhere I want to. “

Kisuke returned to fanning himself with a raised brow. “How many are you able to take in a single trip, miss Nel?”

The woman hummed in thought for a moment. “If it was a large garganta created by Las Noches, any number of people. But for a small one like I can make…six, maybe seven. The more people on the same path, the harder it is for me to concentrate on the path for everyone. But again, I still think it’s a bad idea.”

Ichigo balled his fists tighter. “I’m willing to take that chance. A week is too long to leave Orihime with that bastard, Aizen.”

Timothy nodded at him. “I agree. Considering mine and Nel’s history with him, I’m honestly terrified to death to think of what he would do to her. My opinion, we use Nel’s garganta and go get her now.” He stated firmly.

Kisuke gave Nel a calm look. “I have to agree with them, miss Nel. A week might be too long to wait.” He advised.

Nel’s face dropped, but she nodded. “Alright, then I’ll open one for you. But you do know that means I have to go with you, right?”

Timothy glanced at her skeptically. “Unarmed? And what happens if we run into trouble, which we all know is bound to happen?” he questioned.

The woman sighed heavily. “I will just have to do what I can without Gamuza.” She stated.

Toshiro took a deep breath and turned to Kisuke. “I need to report this to the Head Captain before we do anything. Hopefully, he’ll allow some of us to go with Ichigo.”

Timothy rose a brow in question. “You make it sound like I can’t go.” he stated.

The Captain glared at him. “No, you ‘can’t’ go, at least not until we have permission. You are still a member of ‘my’ team, and your orders are to stay here and help defend Karakura Town.”

The Lieutenant kept his stare at the Captain. “And you honestly think you’ll be able to stop me if I choose to go anyway?” he challenged.

Hitsugaya’s brows furrowed angerly. “You have already tested my patience enough as it is by having me keep Nel a secret, Lieutenant Durn. I strongly advise you not test it even further by going against my orders.” He cautioned. The short man then stood up and glared down at him. “I’m going to deliver my report, so stay here and wait until I return. That ‘is’ an order.” He hissed, then looked at Ikkaku. “And you make sure he obeys that order.” He added, then turned and left the shop.

The 3rd seat gave Timothy a regretful look. “Sorry Tim, I like ya, but orders are orders.” He said hesitantly.

Timothy gently waved him off. “It’s alright, Ikkaku. I understand. I just hope he doesn’t take too long, and that the Head Captain will allow at least some of us to go save her.”

Renji sighed and turned to Nel. “Well, while we’re waiting, why don’t you tell us everything you know about this Las Noches place. That way we might have an easier time finding Orihime.” He said calmly.

Nel sighed back and nodded. “I honestly have no idea where Aizen would keep her, but I’ll try to tell you everything I can about where everything is.” She offered.

Kisuke nodded and stood up. “That would be best, miss Nel.” He stated, and listened intently as the woman began her explanations.

** Orihime’s Apartment, 10 Minutes Later **

Toshiro stood silently in front of the large communication screen, his head dropped low as he mentally prepared himself to give the news to his superior. It wasn’t that he feared the man, but he did fear what the man’s answer might be to his request to go save the girl.

Taking a last, deep breath, he turned and activated the console; the screen lighting up in a fuzzy haze. The static lasted for only a moment before clearing and allowing the Captain to see the 3rd Seat of Squad 12, Akon.

“Ah, morning Captain Hitsugaya. A bit early for your report, isn’t it?” the man greeted.

Toshiro took another breath before answering. “I need to speak with the Head Captain; it’s an extremely important matter.” He informed.

Akon shook his head slowly. “I’m sorry Captain, but the Head Captain is in a Captain’s meeting at the moment.”

“Then connect me to the meeting hall.” Hitsugaya snapped.

The officer rose a brow in surprise. “I’m afraid I can’t do that, Captain. You know as well as I that Captain’s meetings can’t be disturbed. And besides, with standard communications put on hold at the moment, there is no way to contact the meeting hall.”

Toshiro growled in annoyance. “I’m aware of that, Akon. I’ll take full responsibility for the interruption, so please find a way for me to speak with the Head Captain, immediately.” He pressed.

Akon sighed, then nodded. “Alright. Please standby and I’ll see what I can do.” He said, then the screed went to static again.

The white-haired Captain dropped his head again and shook it. “I seriously doubt this is going to go well.” He mumbled to himself.

** Squad 1 Meeting Hall **

“So a few more days of rest, and the four Squad 11 members should be able to return to their division.” Captain Unohana reported.

Yamamoto nodded firmly before moving on to Sajin, who was reporting for his own squad, as well as Squad 5. After Aizen’s betrayal, Squads 3, 5, and 9 were assigned to specific Captains for them to keep tabs on and report any issues during meetings. Since Tetsuzaemon normally came by Squad 7 on a daily basis, Sajin decided to assume responsibility for Squad 5.

“Captain Komamura, what have you to report in regards to Squad 5?” the Head Captain asked.

Sajin gave the man a nod before starting. “As before, the squad is suffering from extreme lack of officers and personnel. I have dispatched members from my own squad to assist Lieutenant Iba, but I’m afraid that it may not do much good. In addition, the matter of…”

The furry Captain was interrupted when the beeping soul of a soul pager filled the room. All eyes turned to the origin of the sound, Captain Kurotsuchi; where the Head Captain gave a low moan of annoyance.

“Captain Kurotsuchi, I hope that whoever that is better have a very good reason to interrupt a Captain’s meeting.” He warned in his powerful voice.

The scientist rolled his eyes. “Tsk…I couldn’t agree more.” He said, then pulled the pager out and flipped it open. “What is it Akon, you useless fool?!” he hissed.

_“Forgive me Captain, but I have Captain Hitsugaya on the video communicator, and he insists that he must speak with the Head Captain immediately.”_ His 3rd seat replied.

Kurotsuchi gritted his teeth in anger. “That’s it?! You mean to tell me that you interrupted a Captain’s meeting because that little brat of a Captain can’t wait for a simple report?!” he almost yelled.

Shunsui turned to face the scientist with a raised hand. “Now now, Captain Kurotsuchi…the kid knows not to interrupt a Captain’s meeting, so whatever it is, it ‘has’ to be important…right?” he placated.

Unohana leaned forward and nodded. “I agree. I believe we should hear out Captain Hitsugaya.” She added.

Kurotsuchi glared at the woman. “Tsk, oh really? And just what could be so important for him to jump in on a meeting?” he returned.

Yamamoto hummed in thought. “We shall see…put him through.” He ordered.

The Squad 12 Captain again rolled his eyes. “His funeral.” He mocked. “Put him through!” he sneered into the mic.

_“Yes Captain, one moment.”_ Akon answered.

“Step forward Captain Kurotsuchi, so that we may all here what Captain Hitsugaya has to report.” Yamamoto instructed.

Mayuri stepped out from his spot and came to a stop in the center of the room, putting the call on speaker for everyone. The Captains waited for a few seconds, until Akon’s voice came back.

_“You’re connected, Captain Hitsugaya.”_ Akon stated.

_“Thank you, Akon.”_ Toshiro replied.

Yamamoto hummed lowly at the man’s voice. “Well then, tell us what is so important that you felt the need to interrupt a Captain’s meeting, Captain Hitsugaya.”

A moment of silence followed as the Captain took a calming breath. _“I apologize for interrupting, Head Captain, but we had learned this morning that the human, Orihime Inoue, was killed late last night.”_ He started.

Most everyone’s eyes went wide at the news, where Unohana took a step forward. “Do you know for certain that it was in fact miss Inoue?” she asked.

Toshiro took another breath. _“Yes, Kisuke Urahara had gone to the hospital himself and confirmed that it was her.”_ He affirmed in a sad voice.

Shunsui tipped his hat down with a fallen face. “Well…this was surely unexpected.”

Jūshirō shook his head slowly. “Indeed, the poor girl.”

Yamamoto closed his eyes and hummed in a bit of sadness. “This is indeed quite unfortunate…” he admitted, then reopened his eyes to the phone. “…however, as sad as this may be, this still does not warrant the need to interrupt a Captain’s meeting, Captain Hitsugaya. This news surely could have waited.” He pointed.

_“Yes sir, but that is not the main reason as to why I am calling. After Kisuke Urahara did an initial inspection of Inoue’s body, and the area of where she was found, he has come to the conclusion that she was not killed in the way we thought to believe. He believes that Inoue’s soul was removed from her body, and then her chain of fate cut.”_ Toshiro stated firmly.

Sajin rose a brow. “Captain Hitsugaya, are you saying that her soul was forcibly removed ‘before’ she was killed?” he asked in clarification.

_“Yes. And not only that, but Urahara detected trace amounts of spiritual pressure in the area where she was killed. He believes that a garganta was opened in her vicinity.”_

Kurotsuchi scoffed with a roll of the eyes. “Impossible! My Department of Research and Development would have detected such an occurrence, and I can assure you that nothing has shown up on our scanners!” he defended.

Shunsui had to smirk at the man. “This coming from the man who had two subordinates working for Aizen and interfering limiter release requests.” He mocked.

The scientist quickly turned around faced the stoic Captain. “How dare you! Do you think I don’t have my own division under control?!” he challenged.

“You do not bear the right to deny such a claim, Captain.” Byakuya Kuchiki, the Squad 6 Captain returned, causing Mayuri to snap to him. “As it has been pointed out before, two members from your own communication department were found to be collaborators with Sōsuke Aizen. It would be foolish to think that there cannot be more.” He added.

Mayuri gritted his yellow teeth tightly. “Now see here…”

“Enough!” Yamamoto bellowed, silencing everyone and gaining their attention. “Continue, Captain Hitsugaya.”

Kurotsuchi scoffed heavily while Shunsui grinned at the man being put back into place. _“Thank you, Head Captain. With all the information we have so far, we believe that Orihime Inoue may have been abducted by Aizen, and taken to Hueco Mundo.”_

Yamamoto rose a brow. “Is Kisuke Urahara sure about this?” he questioned.

_“We cannot say for certain, Head Captain; but as I said, all the facts we have so far point to that conclusion. As we have all witnessed firsthand, Orihime Inoue possesses great healing powers. We can’t allow Aizen to have access to those powers, that is why I am asking for permission to send my team to Hueco Mundo to recover her. Kisuke Urahara has informed me that he can open a garganta to allow us to enter Hueco Mundo, but it will take him some time.”_ He said almost pleadingly.

The Head Captain closed his eyes again and hummed loudly as Sajin looked at him. “I would have to agree with Captain Hitsugaya, Head Captain. Aizen is powerful enough with only his Espada and Arrancar. If he is allowed to make use of the girl’s powers, I doubt we would stand a chance.”

Byakuya gave a slight nod. “I would have to agree as well. However, I do not believe we can risk the safety of Karakura Town, as well as the lives of a Captain and several high-seated officers.” He added.

Shunsui smiled at the noble. “Well now, I wouldn’t exactly count the kid and those he has with him out, Captain Kuchiki. He may be young, but Captain Hitsugaya ain’t no pushover. I think he can handle it.”

The Squad 6 Captain turned his eyes to him. “I didn’t say he was incapable; I was merely pointing out that they would be heavily outnumbered, and if they were discovered, it is very unlikely they would succeed, Captain Kyōraku.”

“At any rate, we cannot leave miss Inoue in the hands of Sōsuke Aizen. I strongly suggest we allow Captain Hitsugaya to attempt to rescue her, Head Captain.” Unohana pressed.

Kenpachi then gave an evil grin. “Let me go, I can handle it all on my own. It might even prove to be fun for me.”

Byakuya scoffed quietly. “I doubt that you would be capable of such a task. While you do possess a few traits, causing endless destruction being one of them, rescuing a person is certainly not among them.” He mocked.

That only made Zaraki’s grin grow even more. “Oh yeah? Why don’t we step outside and I’ll show you just how capable I am?” the bloodthirsty Captain taunted.

“Such a meaningless gesture. I doubt you would last long enough to be worthy of me drawing my blade.” Byakuya returned.

Jūshirō gave a timid laugh before stepping forward and holding his hands up. “Now, let’s not get too worked up, friends. I believe the pressing matter is whether or not we should risk a rescue mission for Orihime.” He tried to calm.

Kenpachi scoffed and turned away. “Whatever.”

Yamamoto then slammed his cane down and again silenced the room. “I will not tolerate all this bickering. Captain Hitsugaya, I am going to allow this rescue attempt; however, Captain Kuchiki does have a point. We cannot allow Karakura Town to remain undefended. Therefor, you are to pick three members of your team to attempt the rescue of Orihime Inoue. They will have two days from the time they arrive before they must return. Under no circumstances can we allow the girl’s powers to remain in Sōsuke Aizen’s hands. Instruct your team that if they cannot successfully rescue Orihime Inoue, then they must eliminate her.” He ordered.

Again, eyes went wide. “Now hold on, old man Yama…surely you can’t mean to kill her!” Shunsui questioned.

“Yes. After everything miss Inoue did for us, all the lives she saved when Aizen left us, that would be very unfair to the poor girl.” Jūshirō added.

The man nodded firmly. “I do. If your team is unable to bring the girl back, then they must kill her. I would rather see her killed than be left in the cruel hands of Sōsuke Aizen. You have your orders, Captain Hitsugaya. Pick your men and have them leave the moment Kisuke Urahara has opened his garganta. And ensure they understand their orders.”

Silence filled the room for a moment, then the sound of Toshiro sighing through the phone came through. _“Yes sir, I understand. I will inform you the moment the team leaves. And what about Ichigo Kurosaki and his friends? I’m sure we can all agree that they will be wanting to go as well.”_ He inquired.

Yamamoto had to close his eyes and think deeply on the question for a moment. “Ichigo Kurosaki must not be permitted to accompany the team. He is too great of an asset for the war against Aizen. He will have to sit back and put faith in the team that they will succeed. The same goes for his friends. Only those that you choose will be permitted to go.”

Toshiro sighed again. _“Yes, Head Captain.”_ He answered, then hung up.

Mayuri closed and pocketed the phone with a scoffed. “Tsk…insolent brat.” He mocked.

Sajin turned from the scientist to Yamamoto. “I fear what plans that Aizen may have for miss Inoue.”

“According to Kisuke Urahara’s calculations, the Hōgyoku should not fully awaken until winter. That is ample time for Sōsuke Aizen to incorporate the young woman into his plans; whatever they may be. We should prepare ourselves for that possibility, should Captain Hitsugaya’s chosen team fail to retrieve, or remove her.” Byakuya advised.

Jūshirō leaned forward to look at his superior. “Couldn’t we have allowed Captain Hitsugaya to take his entire team and have them replaced with other members, Head Captain? Sending only three men into Hueco Mundo is not a very good idea.” He warned.

Yamamoto closed his eyes. “We cannot risk sacrificing more officers to replace them, and we simply do not possess the number for an all-out war on Sōsuke Aizen’s ground. By sending a small team, they would be able to infiltrate Hueco Mundo without being detected, and possibly complete their mission.”

Unohana nodded in agreeance. “All we can do is place our faith in them and hope that the team will be successful in rescuing miss Orihime.”

Sui-Fēng rolled her eyes. “It would have been better to let me send a team. My men would have easily found and eliminated the girl right under that bastard’s nose.” She mumbled.

Yamamoto hit his cane on the floor, silencing the room. “I have made my decision, and it is final. We will discuss nothing further outside of this room on the matter. We cannot be certain who we can trust within our ranks at the moment with this knowledge. Captain Sui-Fēng, you are to double your efforts in locating any other collaborators who are loyal to Aizen. Captain Kuchiki, I am assigning your squad to assist her. Leave no stone unturned and find the rest of these traitors. The rest of you are to increase the training of your squads in preparation for the coming war. You are dismissed.”

The many Captains began leaving the room, save for Jūshirō and Shunsui, who remained behind and walked up to stand in front of Yamamoto. Glancing over his shoulder, Shunsui waited until the last of his peers left the room and the large doors closed behind them.

Once the doors were shut, he turned to his superior. “Well…what was it you wanted to discuss, old man Yama?” he opened.

The man stared at him for a moment. “And what makes you think I had something to discuss?” he questioned.

Shunsui gave the man a knowing smirk. “Come on, old man Yama…you think we wouldn’t notice the look you gave us like you had something special in mind for us?” he pressed, earning a nod from Jūshirō.

The Head Captain hummed in slight annoyance. “You two are far too observant for your own good. I want you two to go to the Central 46 library and start searching for what Sōsuke Aizen may have been doing in there. Of all the places he could have chosen to hide, he had chosen to go there; something I find highly suspicious. See if you can uncover what he may be up to. Take only those you know for certain than can be trusted without a shadow of a doubt.” He instructed.

“If I may ask master, why are you sending members of Captain Hitsugaya’s team to Hueco Mundo? Although Captain Sui-Fēng’s men would more than likely kill the poor girl than rescue her, would they not be more efficient in this type of mission?” Jūshirō inquired.

Yamamoto sighed heavily. “They may be more proficient in terms of stealth, but they do not know our enemy like Captain Hitsugaya, and his team do. They have not fought against an Espada like Captain Hitsugaya has. His chosen team knows how the enemy is likely to act, and would be better at countering them. Now go, and be sure to inform me directly of anything that you find.”

The two long-time friends nodded and walked away.

** Urahara Shop, Present **

Toshiro sighed has he pulled the front door to the shop open, drawing everyone’s attention to him as he walked in and closed the door. Thankfully, although Ichigo and Tim still seemed to be quite upset, they were at least a bit calmer than earlier.

Coming to a stop and sitting down at the table, he turned to Urahara. “It would seem that we will need to make use of your garganta, Kisuke. The Head Captain has instructed me to choose only three people from my team to go to Hueco Mundo. Seeing as how that only three can go, secrecy is paramount for this mission, and Nel’s garganta would only serve to act against that.” He informed.

The shop owner nodded as Nel turned to him. “In that case, I can at least help you with understanding the garganta a little better. That way you might be able to have it finished sooner, Kisuke.” She offered.

Kisuke grinned at her. “That would be a big help, miss Nel.”

Toshiro then turned to the others. “As for the selected team, the Head Captain instructed that myself, along with Ichigo and his friends must stay here.”

This infuriated the orange-haired teen, causing him to slam a fist down. “What the hell?! You mean the old man is keeping me from saving my friend?!” he yelled.

The Captain sighed heavily. “I understand how you feel, Ichigo; and believe me that I was going to allow you to go. But the Head Captain views you as an important asset for the war, and he doesn’t want to risk you getting killed or captured by Aizen. If it were up to me, we would ‘all’ be going.” He reassured.

Timothy rose a brow at him. “So…who’s going then?” he inquired.

Hitsugaya gave him a firm glare. “Well, I know it would be pointless to tell you to stay, knowing that you would disobey me and go anyway. So you will be one of the people going.” He stated in hesitance. “As for the other two, Renji will be going because he possesses a Bankai; and any additional power we can give the team, we will. The last person will either be Rukia, or Rangiku. I will let you two decide who goes.” He said, now looking at the two women.

Rangiku simply waved him off. “It’s fine, I’ll stay here, Captain. Rukia is closer to Orihime than I am, so she should go. And her and Renji work great as a team, so that would also help.” She offered.

Rukia smiled at her friend and nodded. “Thank you, Rangiku.” She said, getting a smile back.

Toshiro nodded. “Fine then, it will be Tim, Renji, and Rukia. As for you…” he stopped to look at Nel. “…you are not a member of my team, and the Head Captain never said you couldn’t go, seeing as how he doesn’t know about you. So, if you want, I will allow you to go with them.” He offered.

Nel’s eyes widened. “Captain…are you sure? I thought you didn’t trust me.”

The man narrowed his gaze. “And I ‘still’ don’t fully trust you. But…the team needs all the help they can get; and your extensive knowledge of Las Noches would be a very big help. You wanted to earn my trust Nel? Well, here is your chance to finally prove who’s side you’re on.” He said in a commanding tone.

The woman nodded. “I understand. I swear to you that I will do whatever I can to make sure we bring her back.” She promised.

Kisuke snapped his fan shut and stood up. “Well, now that we have that taken care of, we should get to work on setting up the garganta, miss Nel.” He stated.

She nodded again and stood up to follow him out of the room, where Toshiro looked at the chosen team. “The three of you, I want you to get as much training in as possible. If Yoruichi comes back in time, have her work with you. The rest of us will assume watch over Karakura town until they return. Ichigo, you should probably go back to the training Kisuke was having you do before this. Uryū and Chad, if you two wish to help us with protecting Karakura Town when you can, it would be greatly appreciated.”

Uryū and Chad nodded. “We’ll try to do what we can.” The Quincy offered.

Ichigo scoffed heavily. “This is still bullshit! Orihime is my friend, and I’m being told I can’t go! Damn that old man!” he seethed lowly.

Timothy gave him a pitying look. “Hey man, to be honest, if I could let you go in my stead, I would. But I ‘can’ give you this much; I swear to you that we ‘will’ bring Orihime back. I’ve failed one person before, and I swore to myself that I would die before that happened again.” He stated firmly, causing Kitsune to lower her head a bit in sadness.

“Tim…can I speak with you for a moment?” she asked.

The Lieutenant nodded before moving his hands and allowing her to lift herself from his lap. As he stood to full height, he paused to look down at the distraught teen.

“We’ll get her back, Ichigo. I promise.” He offered once more, then continued to follow Kitsune to his room.

As he entered his room, he saw Kitsune standing near the window and peering outside at the sky with her arms crossed. Closing the door behind him, he walked over to stand next to her; seeing her with a fallen face.

“You’re not ready for this, Tim.” she said in a quiet voice, then looked at him. “If you go like you are now, I seriously doubt you’ll come back.” She added.

Timothy rose a brow at her. “You think I don’t know that? Grimmjow pretty much kicked my ass into next week a couple days ago, and I haven’t had much of a chance for training while running around the damn city. But what am I supposed to do? I can’t just leave Orihime at the hands of that cruel bastard.” He defended.

Kitsune narrowed her glare. “No, you can’t. She is young, and she definitely doesn’t deserve to be used for that monster’s experiments. But it still doesn’t change the fact that you are not ready for this.”

She turned to fully face him as she dropped her arms to her sides. “That is why ‘Johnny’ is going to ‘make’ you ready.” She stated in a firm voice.


	36. Discriminations

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 36

**(Discriminations)**

** Urahara Shop, 4 Days Later **

Over the past few days, Renji and Rukia trained almost endlessly, really only stopping to eat and sleep, to prepare themselves for their mission to Hueco Mundo. Toshiro had himself, and any of the others not on patrol, assisting with their training by giving the pair someone to spar against.

Thankfully, Yoruichi had returned from the soul society the day following their little meeting and was a great help with the training; although there had been a few times where she slightly overdid it and knocked one of them out, notably Renji.

As suspected, she discovered that there had been another squad member working in the Squad 12 communication department that was loyal to Aizen, and had purposely disabled the scanners that were observing Karakura Town during the specific time that Orihime was captured.

As a result, the Head Captain personally shut down the entire division on a temporary basis until each and every squad member could be checked. The only part of the division that was still running was the communication department that was now manned by trusted officers and watched by the stealth force; although standard communications with Hitsugaya’s team were still on hold.

Per Timothy’s demand, and with the help of one of Tessai’s barriers, he was out at the far edge of the training area doing his own ‘special’ training and had asked to not be disturbed. Something that annoyed Toshiro heavily.

He needed to be training ‘with’ Renji and Rukia so that they could get used to fighting together; but with a thorough ‘explanation’ from Kisuke, the Captain ended up agreeing and letting the matter go.

Nel was proving to be a great help to Kisuke in building the garganta, giving him just about every specific detail regarding them. Because of this, he was more than happy to inform the group that he would have the device finished by the next afternoon.

But that pleasure turned into a big problem when Ryūken Ishida called from the hospital to inform him that Orihime’s aunt had finally been reached, and that she was on her way to claim the teen’s body.

And now everyone, including Ichigo, was sitting around the table to begin discussing options. Kisuke had just finished telling everyone the situation, when Ichigo gave the shop keeper a fallen look.

“So, what do we do now?” Ichigo asked in a depressed voice. “Orihime’s aunt lives somewhere in China, so it won’t take long for her to get here.” He added.

Kisuke sighed lowly as he lowered his fan. “I was hoping we would have more time to plan this out…but I guess four days was pushing it. I’ll have to make a gigai that looks exactly like miss Inoue and switch it out with her real body in the hospital. Fortunately, Ryūken will be able to help us with that. The real problem is what to do once we’ve rescued her and returned her to her body. She quite obviously can’t stay here, as everyone in the area would quickly recognize her; and seeing someone who ‘should’ be dead, but obviously still alive, would be a bad thing. Which reminds me…” he paused to look at the teen. “How did miss Arisawa take the news of her death, Ichigo?”

Ichigo closed his eyes and shook his head. “To be honest, I couldn’t tell if she was more furious, or sad. She ended up punching a hole in her wall when I told her, and almost did the same to me. After that, she told me to leave. I asked Chad and Uryū to keep an eye on her, but she hasn’t been in school the past couple of days.” He informed sadly.

The shop owner nodded slightly. “I see. Once we’ve rescued miss Inoue, we can inform her of what’s going on. She seems to be fairly aware of the situation surrounding soul reapers, and I’m sure she may even prove to be of some help in the future with miss Inoue. But, back to the topic on hand, once we ‘have’ rescued miss Inoue, we will have to find a new life for her; possibly even with a new alias.”

The substitute widened his eyes. “Wait…you mean she will have to leave?!” he asked in shock.

Timothy sighed heavily and nodded. “He’s right, Ichigo.” He confirmed, gaining the teen’s attention. “Like he said, everyone knows Orihime Inoue is ‘dead’, so we can’t have Orihime Inoue walking around, freaking everyone out and causing a scene. I mean, a bubbly, teen girl with bright-orange hair is kinda hard to miss, Ichigo. Kisuke, do you think she would be able to stay in the soul society, at least until we can figure out where she can go?” he asked.

Kisuke turned to Toshiro with a raised brow. “Captain Hitsugaya?” he redirected.

The Captain sighed and rubbed his temples. “I don’t see why they would decline, but I can’t say for certain that they will allow her to stay.”

Rangiku raised a finger to her cheek. “What if we gave her a little makeover? You know; change her hair, little makeup, the way she dresses…” she offered.

Most everyone gave her weird looks. “You are joking…right?” Renji asked in stupor.

The woman rolled her eyes. “Of course not. You’d be surprised what a little makeup can do, Renji.” She defended.

“Will you two shut up?” Toshiro snapped, then turned back to Kisuke. “We can consider the possibility of miss Inoue staying in the soul society for a while, but the question is whether or not she will want to.” He pointed.

“At this point, I don’t think she really has much of a choice.” Timothy stated. “She can’t stay here in the shop, that would only make her feel like a prisoner; seeing as how she won’t be able to leave it. At least in the soul society she would still have some freedom. But right now, I think we should focus on just switching her body and ‘getting’ her here.” He furthered.

Kisuke nodded. “I agree. I’ll have the garganta up by noon tomorrow, so I would advise the team going to come up with a plan.

Renji turned to Toshiro. “So, what’s the plan for when we get to Hueco Mundo?” he asked.

Nel took a breath and answered for him. “Kisuke is setting the garganta up to open at the edge of the menos forest. Las Noches is a two-day walk from there, so we should be able to get there in a day. I know of a few secret entrances that the Espada use, we can use one of them to get inside. Once we do, it’s only a matter of finding out where Orihime is being kept, then rescuing her. Once we have, I can open a garganta for us to return here. I would advise, Captain, that you and the others be waiting here for us in case we are followed.”

Toshiro nodded firmly. “And you’re sure you can get inside without being detected?”

The woman shook her head. “No. As soon as we use one of the secret entrances, they will know. Aizen has cameras all over Las Noches, so once we are inside, we will need to move very quickly. If we run into any Arrancar, we will have to either finish the fight quickly, or flee.”

Rukia shook her head solemnly. “This is going to be very difficult. Would it be wise to split up, cover twice the area?” she wondered aloud.

“I would recommend against that, but we may be left with no choice in the end. We will just have to make sure we regroup before I open the garganta.” Nel warned.

Timothy rose a brow at her. “Can you open the garganta and allow Orihime to go through without you?”

She shook her head. “No, I have to be there to make the exit. Kisuke’s is different, as his opens both the entrance ‘and’ the exit at the same time; where mine opens the exit when I arrive at the end. Also, someone has to make the path for her using spirit energy. Orihime is unable to do that, and she would simply fall into the abyss. So it is best if we stay together as long as we can.” She advised.

Kisuke grinned. “Well, it seems that we have our plan. Continue training if you wish, but be sure you all get plenty of rest. How is your training coming, Tim?”

The Lieutenant moaned. “Like hell. ‘Johnny’ is running me through the ringer.” He whined.

“Just what kind of training you doing, Tim?” Renji inquired.

Timothy waved him off. “Just helping me with my core abilities, let’s leave it at that. Hopefully I’ll be done by tonight.” He said dismissively.

The redhead nodded and stood up. “Well, let’s get back to it, Rukia. Yoruichi’s probably gonna kill us for taking so long.” He moaned.

Kitsune tilted her head. “Why didn’t she come up here to hear everything?” she wondered.

Rukia glanced at the spirit. “She said she wanted to take care of something and stayed downstairs.”

“Probably to set up our burial sites.” Renji whined, causing Kitsune to snicker.

“Well, have fun then.” She teased.

Renji glared at her. “I hate you.”

Timothy and Nel deadpanned. “Join the club.” They moaned in unison.

“Hey!” the spirit yelled as she pushed Timothy over by the shoulder.

Toshiro sighed heavily, rubbing his temples. “I’m surrounded by idiots.”

Rangiku’s face dropped as she pointed at herself. “What?! You couldn’t mean me, Captain!” she whined.

The Captain glared at her. “Especially you!” he returned.

Ikkaku, Timothy and Renji all snickered, making her death-glare them. “You got something to say, boys?” she hissed.

They all quickly froze up and shook their heads. “Nope! Nothing at all!” Timothy answered, earning nods from the other two.

Toshiro had had enough, so he swiftly stood up and turned to leave. “We will meet back up downstairs an hour before the team leaves for final planning. Ikkaku and Rangiku, you two stay here and help with training; Yumichika, you are on patrol.” He instructed, then started to leave.

The mentioned personnel nodded as Yumichika stood to follow the Captain. Kisuke looked back at Nel as he stood as well.

“Well miss Nel, shall we finish preparing the garganta?” he asked, earning a nod from her.

She moved to stand up, but Timothy’s hand on her own stopped her. She looked to see a concerned look on his face as he waited for everyone to leave. Once they were alone, he turned to her.

“You okay?” he asked in a quiet voice.

Nel lowered her head and nodded. “I’m fine…just worried about Orihime. I just…I just hope that Aizen hasn’t done anything to her.”

Timothy gripped her hand a bit tighter in a soothing gesture. “We’ll get her back, Nel. Did Gamuza have anything to say about all this?”

The woman sighed before raising her head back to him. “Not really, I don’t think she cares about it.”

**_“Really Nel? Please, I may be a hollow, but I am not cold. Even I will admit that that girl doesn’t really deserve to be experimented on by Aizen. So I’m not ‘against’ helping to save her, but it doesn’t mean that I like the idea. You just remember what I told you; your powers have gotten weaker in your base form. But considering that that stupid midget Captain has our zanpakutō, there’s really not much else you can do, is there?”_** Gamuza stated.

Nel closed her eyes and sighed. “Actually…I guess she does. Even she said Orihime doesn’t deserve all this. So I guess she is with us on this.” She offered.

Timothy nodded. “Thanks, Gamuza. I just wanted to make sure you’re doing alright, Nel. I care about you a lot, you know.” He said in a sad voice.

“We both do, Nel.” Kitsune added with a smile, resting a hand on the woman’s knee.

Nel smiled back at her and nodded. “Thank you, I care about you two as well. I should get back to helping Kisuke. See you two later.” She said, then stood up to join the shop owner in his lab.

Kitsune stretched her arms above her head with a relaxed breath. “Well, you should get back to your training, Tim.”

Her partner glanced at her. “And what about you?” he asked.

The spirit grinned. “I’m gonna sit right here and watch some tv while ‘Johnny’ has his fun with you.” She teased.

Timothy’s face fell with a moan. “I really have no idea how I’ve put up with you all these years.” He whined.

Kitsune snickered. “Cause you love me.” She offered before laughing.

The Lieutenant shook his head and stood up. “I hate you.” He mumbled as we walked away.

The spirit waited until he was out of sight before standing up and walking into the kitchen. Reaching into the freezer, she grabbed the small bucket of ice cream, that Timothy was adamant that she left alone, and a spoon before returning to the dining room and turning the television on.

Propping herself into the corner, and resting her feet on top of the table with one leg over the other, she got herself into a relaxed position as she placed the first spoonful of the delicious treat in her mouth; closing her eyes and lightly moaning in pure bliss.

_‘Mmmm…heaven!’_ she reveled internally. _‘If only it was cookie dough instead of strawberry.’_

She pulled the spoon from her mouth and swiftly scooped some more from the container before placing it back inside her mouth. She continued the process at a steady pace; watching the television as she enjoyed her ‘forbidden’ treat.

** Squad 5 Headquarters, That Afternoon **

Hinata placed her teacup down before picking her brush back up and running the back end of it down the form in front of her as she read. Her hand stopped when she noticed a wrong entry, where she wrote down a quick correction and placed the form to the side to be rewritten.

The woman sighed heavily while rubbing her temples, gaining Tetsuzaemon’s attention. “Everything alright, Ogawa?” he inquired.

Hinata moaned as she let her hand fall down onto the desk. “Yet another screwed up form, Lieutenant. Seriously…it’s like they’re not even paying attention to what the hell they’re doing. That, or they just don’t give a fuck.” She cursed.

The man sighed with a low growl. “How many today?” he asked in a low tone.

She picked the form back up and waved it in the air. “This makes the third one today, Lieutenant; and it’s only an hour past noon.” She answered, then set the paper back down. “I feel like I’m spending more time fixing errors on the forms than ‘signing’ them. It’s bullshit.” She whined.

The Lieutenant gave her a firm, but not angry glare. “And what do you want me to do about it, Ogawa?”

Hinata threw a hand in the air. “Find ‘someone’ who gives a shit to start the damn paperwork. I mean, come on…as boring and tedious that paperwork can be, there’s a whole lot of worse things they could be doing. Is it really that hard to put some care and effort into your work?” she said, then started rubbing her face.

Tetsuzaemon set his own brush down and rested his hands in his lap. “I get what you’re saying Ogawa, and I definitely agree with you. But, there’s really nothing I can do except give them a talking to; and we both know that’s not going to fix the problem.” He stated, earning a scoff from her.

“Nope.” She affirmed, then took a calming breath. “Sorry Lieutenant. All of this is just a lot more stress than I thought it was going to be.” She admitted.

The man nodded, then a moment later reached down inside his desk. Hinata raised a brow as he shifted things around inside before raising himself and producing a large flask. She had to respond quickly when the man suddenly tossed it at her.

“Drink up, Ogawa.” He instructed.

The woman looked at the flask, then back to him with a shocked expression. “In the middle of the day?!” she asked.

Tetsuzaemon furrowed his brows. “Just shut up and drink, you idiot.” He demanded.

Hinata shrugged her shoulders before opening the jug and taking a long swig. She gave out a pained breath as she scrunched her forehead in distaste.

“Damn! Where the hell did you get this?” she asked, then took another drink.

The man scoffed at her. “A place I know over in the 42nd district of West Rukongai. It ain’t all filtered out like that regular stuff you’re used to. Now quit hogging it all and toss it back.” He answered.

She placed the cork back in the top and tossed it back to the man, who reopened it and took a drink himself. “It’s got a bite, but it is pretty good. I’ll have to get some.” She commented.

The Lieutenant corked the jug and threw it back to her. “Nah, it’s a secret that me and only a few others know about. I ain’t telling ya.” He said with a wry smile.

“Greedy bastard.” She mumbled to herself as she took a drink.

This made him chuckle. “Feel better now, princess?” he mocked.

Hinata finished drinking and gave the same, scrunched face before glaring at him. “Don’t make me jump over these desks to beat you senseless, Lieutenant.” She threatened, tossing the jug back.

Although she would never show such blatant disrespect to her superior officer, except when her temper overrode her judgement, over the past week the two of them had actually got fairly close to each other and found reprieve from their daily stresses by tossing insults and threats at each other.

It started the second day that she was assigned there, and after nearly losing her temper again with the endless paperwork, Tetsuzaemon decided to use his and Ikkaku’s ‘coping mechanism’ on her; calling her pathetic and slow.

Needless to say, she lost it at that point; yelling at him and threatening to strangle him if he didn’t ‘shut up’. But instead of yelling back at her, or threatening to punish her for insubordination like she thought he would, he simply smiled and asked if she felt better.

Once she took a calming breath and nodded, his smiled grew into a toothy grin where he told her ‘good’, and that if she was going threaten and insult, do it the ‘right way’. And since then, whenever either of them got too stressed out, the other would start tossing the insults and threats.

Tetsuzaemon caught the jug and gently swished the liquid inside around. “Geez Ogawa, ya ain’t gotta drink it all. Damn pig.”

The woman lightly slammed a fist on her desk with a red face. “Oh shut up! It was already half empty, you drunk bastard! And don’t act like you don’t have another one that was sitting right next to that one!” she shot back.

“That doesn’t mean you should drink it all, fool.” He stated and took a drink.

She snarled at him. “I didn’t, you drunk. I took three sips, and that’s all. Now quit your crying and toss it back over.” She demanded.

The man rose a brow. “You ain’t my mother, Ogawa, so stop acting like it.” He pointed, then tossed the jug.

Hinata caught it and pulled the cork. “Heh, thank god for that. I’d kill myself if you were ‘my’ son. You’re ‘way’ too much for ‘any’ mother to handle.” She said, then started drinking.

“Ha! Like you’re one to talk. I feel bad for any kid that calls you ‘mom’.” He returned.

She finished and glared at him. “Screw you, you bastard.” She shot, then looked inside the jug. “…Oops.”

His brows shot up. “You drank it all?! Damn it, Ogawa! That shit ain’t cheap! I told you not to hog it!” he said, now standing.

The woman rolled her eyes with a scoff. “Oh, be quiet and open the other one, stupid.” She said nonchalantly as she tossed the empty jug to him.

He caught it in one hand while balling his fist at her with the other. “Why?! So you can drink all of that one too?!”

She glared daggers at him. “Quit acting like a damn baby and just open it already!”

Their banter was interrupted by a knock on the door, where Tetsuzaemon swiftly stuck the empty jug back into the desk and sat back down. “Come in.” he answered in his gruff voice.

The door opened to reveal Sajin, who looked between the two skeptically. “I hope that I have not come at a bad time.” He stated, telling the two officers that he had overheard their ‘arguing’.

“Not at all, Captain. Would you like some tea?” Tetsuzaemon asked.

Sajin held a declining hand up, then turned to Hinata. “No thank you, I’ve only come to see how things are working out for miss Ogawa and her friends.” He responded.

Hinata let out a pitiful sigh. “For the most part…I’d say tolerable would be the best answer, Captain. On my end, the paperwork is an absolute joke, and on the other end, Kenta, Issei, and Yuka are trying to keep their spirits up. What about back home, Captain?” she inquired.

The furry Captain gave a knowing nod. “Things have been proceeding at a bearable level; although I admit that the usual paperwork has been a bit slow since you left. Thankfully, our 8th and 9th seats return from the world of the living the day after tomorrow, so they will be there to assist.” He informed.

Tetsuzaemon nodded. “I wish the Head Captain would find us new Captains for the 3rd, 5th, and 9th Squads. That way I can get back to helping you, Captain.” He commented.

“As do I, Tetsuzaemon. But it is unlikely that those divisions will see replacement Captains for quite some time. Until that time, we will just have to make do with what we have. I see that you have made miss Ogawa your new 4th seat; so how is working for you, miss Ogawa?” he asked, now looking at her.

The woman gave a fallen face. “You tricked me, Captain.” She whined a bit playfully.

The man chuckled warmly. “Fear not, miss Ogawa; things will get better as time moves on, and I have faith that you will persevere. You just need to believe in yourself and know that you can always come to me if you find yourself in need of help.” He offered kindly.

Hinata offered him a kind smile with a nod. “Thank you, Captain. If it’s not too much, can I ask if you’ve heard anything from Tim lately?” she inquired.

Sajin’s face fell just a bit, causing the woman to begin worrying. “Frankly, I am not supposed to inform you of this; but seeing as how you are one of his very few friends, and the fact that I know I can trust you, I suppose it will not hurt. An incident has occurred in the world of the living. What that incident is, I cannot tell you; but Captain Hitsugaya has been instructed to establish a small team to infiltrate Hueco Mundo with a very important objective. Who the others on the team are, I cannot tell you, but I will tell you that Tim is one of those team members.” He informed in a low voice.

Her and Tetsuzaemon’s eyes widened. “You mean that their sending Durn to Hueco Mundo?! Please forgive my bluntness Captain, but are they insane?!” the Lieutenant asked in shock.

Hinata held a hand over her mouth. “He’s going to be killed, Captain! Didn’t they just barely survive when the Arrancars invaded just a week ago?! How do they expect him to live in their own home?!” she demanded, tears of worry coming to her eyes.

Sajin closed his eyes and sighed. “I understand your concern, for I share that concern as well. But this mission is of extreme importance, and the Head Captain was left with no choice but to send a team to complete it. I cannot tell you any more than I already have, all I can offer is that we must have faith that his team will succeed and return safely. We all know how determined Tim can be, so we must not doubt him. I ask that you do not say anything to anyone, miss Ogawa; not even to your friends.”

She lowered her head and slightly nodded. “I won’t say anything, Captain. I promise. Thank you for telling us.” She offered in a weak voice.

The Captain nodded back and turned to the Lieutenant. “Tetsuzaemon, if you two find yourselves falling behind, please do not hesitate to ask for my help. I will see if I can find more members to assist you.”

Tetsuzaemon sighed heavily. “Frankly Captain, you and I both know that’s very unlikely.” He pointed out.

“That may be so, but we cannot allow ourselves to fall into despair. Keep your heads raised high, and do not falter. I must take my leave now.” The furry Captain said, then turned to leave.

“Thank you, Captain. I’ll let you know if Ogawa gets out of hand.” Tetsuzaemon teased.

The woman glared at him. “Kiss my ass!” she shot back, causing Sajin to stop at the door and glance at her.

“Be careful what you ask for, miss Ogawa; Tetsuzaemon just may respond to your demand, and not in a friendly manner.” He ‘cautioned’, then left the office.

Hinata rose a brow in confusion as the door closed behind him, then she turned to see a sly grin on the Lieutenant’s face. It took only a moment for the Captain’s words and her own to come together, where she turned a bit red with wide eyes.

“You wouldn’t dare!” she defended.

The man gave her a dark chuckle. “Is that a challenge, miss Ogawa?”

Her face grew even redder, before she quickly turned away from him and back to her forms. “Just shut up and get that other jug out, asshole.” She mumbled in anger and embarrassment.

Tetsuzaemon reached down and withdrew the jug before tossing it over. “Just make sure not to guzzle it all, you pig.”

She caught it skillfully and pulled the cork before holding the opening to her lips. “Don’t tempt me, Lieutenant.” She returned, then started drinking.

** Squad 5 Training Area, 5 Minutes Later **

Kenta, Issei, and Yuka sat down in the shade against the side of the barracks, taking a quick break that the squad’s 8th seat instructed them to take. Kenta was drinking from a flask of water, while Issei had his eyes closed and head tilted back, and Yuka had her knees pulled to her chest.

Kenta finished his drink with a relaxed breath before turning to his female friend. “So, how have you been recovering, Yuka? You doing alright?” he asked with a kind voice.

The woman took a deep breath and nodded. “Yeah…for the most part. I just…miss him. I guess I should feel happy that he at least died fighting. I’m still very upset about it all, but I’m starting to accept it. Thank you for asking, Kenta.”

Issei opened an eye to her. “You know we’re both here for ya, along with Hinata, right?” he questioned.

Yuka turned to him and smiled. “I know, and I can’t thank you guys enough for being there for me. I honestly have no clue what I would have done without you guys. But you don’t have to worry, I’ll be fine.” She returned warmly.

“Heh, look what we’ve got here.” A voice spoke out, drawing their attention to a group of three men. “Three idiots wanting to learn how to be traitors.” The man followed.

Yuka narrowed her gaze with a growl. “Is there something you three need?” she questioned in the calmest voice she could manage.

The second man shrugged his shoulders. “Not really, just making sure that the Seireitei ain’t gotta worry about the traitor elite getting outta hand.”

Yuka gritted her teeth as she fought to keep her temper in check as Kenta and Issei stood up. “Do you guys really have nothing better to do than acting like childhood bullies?” Issei asked skeptically.

“Yeah. To be honest, it really makes you look pathetic. I mean, come on…as long as you guys have been here, you should know not to judge others by the actions of another. Just because Aizen, Tōsen, and Ichimaru turned traitor, doesn’t mean their entire squads are the same.” Kenta added.

The first man rolled his eyes. “Tsk, yeah right. I’d expect that from three weaklings who came from a squad that actually knows what loyalty means.”

Kenta raised a brow. “And you do?” he challenged.

The third member chuckled at him. “Obviously more than you, seeing how you left your squad to join a bunch of traitors. Tell me something, do you even feel the slightest bit of remorse for turning your back on your squad?” he mocked.

Yuka stood up and rested a hand on Kenta’s shoulder. “Just ignore the idiot, Kenta. You can’t really get mad at someone because they lack honor.” She soothed.

The leader scoffed at her. “Us? Lack honor? That’s rich coming from someone who’s own brother died at the hands of a weak-ass hollow.” He mocked.

Kenta and Issei’s eyes widened, where they quickly turned to see fury building up in their friend’s eyes. “I would strongly advise you stop while you’re ahead. All three of you know that those were not some ‘weak-ass hollows’. Those were Adjuchas, and my brother died while trying to defeat them; which is more than you have ever done, seeing as how you have never even ‘seen’ an Adjuchas. Hell, you’ve probably never even seen a real hollow before.” She sent back.

This caused all three of the men to laugh before the second one waved her off. “Woman, I’ve killed more hollows than all three of you combined. Hell, if ‘I’ was there during that fight, that pathetic excuse you called a ‘brother’ wouldn’t have had a scratch on him. He would have been able to come back home and go cuddle with his teddy bear.”

Issei and Kenta had to react fast and grab Yuka’s arms as she tried to draw her zanpakutō, the three men laughing their asses off at her. “What’s wrong, woman? Was I right?” he mocked further.

Yuka yelled out in anger before she pointed her index fingers at her friends. “Hadō #1 Shō!” she yelled. The kidō hit her two friends’ in their sides and forced them away from her, allowing her to draw her sword and hold it to the side. “Slumber…” she began.

A large, gloved hand grabbed onto her blade, causing her to stop her release and turned to the person who interfered. Everyone’s eyes widened when they saw Captain Komamura standing there and looking down on Yuka with a calm face.

“That will not be necessary, miss Sano. Please return your zanpakutō.” He instructed in a kind voice. She furrowed her brows at him as tears began falling down her cheeks, causing the furry Captain to soften his stare even more. “Please calm yourself, miss Sano, and sheath your zanpakutō.” He asked again in a lower voice.

She continued to stare at him for a moment longer, but finally turned away and nodded. “Yes Captain…please forgive my actions.” She offered in a quiet voice.

“There is nothing to forgive, miss Sano.” He returned, then release her blade. He watched as she sheathed her zanpakutō, then turned to her friends. “Please take miss Sano to her quarters to rest, and the three of you are released for the day” he instructed.

Kenta and Issei nodded quickly and gently ushered Yuka away in tears. Sajin waited until they were a fair distance away before turning to the three men and giving all three of them a very harsh glare.

“You three are very fortunate that I had arrived when I did. Had I not, all of you would have likely been slain by miss Sano’s hands, and I would have had to regretfully punish her for her actions. I can see that all three of you are from Squad 13, and I ‘will’ be having a very in-depth conversation with your Captain regarding this incident. I had honestly never expected members of Captain Ukitake’s own squad to be a part of these horrendous discriminations. Now hand over your zanpakutōs, immediately.” He finished in a low growl, telling the three men that there was no room for ‘any’ argument.

All three of them reluctantly handed there assigned weapons over to the large man, who was able to hold all three of them in his large hand. Sajin continued to glare down at them with a beastly snarl.

“I am thoroughly disappointed in all three of you. All of you have shown to have no honor or respect towards your fellow members; and frankly, it displeases me to consider you comrades. Now return to your squad, and do not let me see you come near this squad, or mine again. Is that clear?” he asked in his firmest tone, earning bows from all three of them.

“You are dismissed.” He concluded, watching as the three of them vanished in shunpo.

Sajin took a slow, and steady breath with closed eyes as he tried to calm himself down. He had seen and heard the entire confrontation from afar, and was watching to see how his squad members would respond to the discrimination; choosing the moment when Yuka was about to release to interfere.

The Captain had finally calmed down enough to begin thinking his next action more clearly, and was instantly gone through a flash step.

** Squad 13 Headquarters, 10 Minutes Later **

Sajin continued through the halls of the headquarters as he made his way to Jūshirō’s office. He knew he was getting close when two familiar yelling voices came to his ears; the furry Captain shaking his head with a grin at it.

He came around the corner to see the large double doors with the symbol for ‘13’ on them, stopping in front of it and listening at the two voices bickering inside.

“No, ‘I’ll’ go deliver the morning forms, Sentarō!” a female voice yelled out.

“Like hell, I told the Captain that ‘I’ would do it, Kotetsu! Quit trying to take all of the glory, you idiot!” a male voice shot back.

“Me?! You’re the one always sucking up to the Captain!” she fought back.

Sajin shook his head again with a chuckle before knocking on the large door. The arguing immediately stopped, where a quiet voice answered. “Yes, please come in.” the voice strained out.

The Captain pushed the door open to see Sentarō Kotsubaki, and Kiyone Kotetsu, the squad’s two 3rd seats, standing near the empty Lieutenant’s desk looking like they were about to get into a scuffle.

As Sajin looked forward, he saw Jūshirō sitting behind his desk and looking rather ‘strained’, likely from having to sit there and listen to his two officers bicker amongst each other like they usually did.

Jūshirō smiled warmly at the man. “Ah, Sajin…good afternoon. Is there something I can help you with?” he asked kindly.

Sajin came to a stop in front of his desk. “I see your morning has been…entertaining as always.” He offered.

The white-haired Captain’s face fell just a slight bit. “Yes, I guess that would be a fair assumption. How are you today?” he asked.

The furry man nodded. “I am well. I was hoping you and I could discuss something in private.”

Jūshirō smiled even more. “Of course. Sentarō, please deliver those reports to Squad 1. And Kiyone, please take these to Squad 8.” He instructed.

The two officers bowed quickly. “Yes Captain!” they replied in unison, before Sentarō turned to his peer. “Hey! Quit stealing my thunder, dummy!” he yelled.

The woman glared dangerously at him. “I didn’t steal anything. If anything, you stole it from me!” she shot back.

Jūshirō sighed heavily while rubbing his temples. “Please, go about your duties, you two.” He pleaded.

Both of them quickly bowed again. “Please, forgive us, Captain!” they yelled out, then grabbed their appropriate forms and left the office.

Ukitake sighed again and shook his head. “What am I going to do with them?” he mumbled to himself as Sajin sat down.

“My condolences, Captain Ukitake; and I must apologize that I have come to bring you even more troubles.” He offered.

Jūshirō rose a brow at him. “Is that so? Might I ask what happened?”

Sajin raised his hand and set the three zanpakutōs down on the man’s desk, causing him to raise his brow even further. Sajin sighed heavily as he crossed his arms.

“I’m afraid I must inform you that three members from your division have been caught saying discriminating things against Squad 5.” He informed.

Jūshirō’s eyes went wide. “What?!”

Sajin nodded solemnly. “They were harassing my members that I had assigned to Squad 5 to assist them. Sadly, their words had caused one of my members to become furious enough that she had almost released her zanpakutō to attack them, had I not interfered.”

Ukitake’s shoulders fell as a saddened expression formed on his face. “This is indeed regretful. May I ask what was said?” he inquired.

The Squad 7 Captain closed his eyes and told him everything that was said, including how his own members responded to the words. Jūshirō’s saddened expression only grew worse as Sajin continued.

When Sajin was finished, Jūshirō swiftly stood and bowed to the man. “Please, forgive my men for this atrocity, Captain Komamura. I assure you that they with be punished for their actions.” He assured.

Sajin sighed heavily. “Please sit down, Captain Ukitake; their actions where not yours, so you have no need to bow to me. I did not come to seek retribution, but to simply inform you of what has happened. I am just as disheartened by this as you are.” He reassured.

Jūshirō rose and sat back down with a heavy breath. “Thank you, Sajin. Please, rest assured that they will be dealt with accordingly. Aside from this, how is Squad 5 fairing?” he inquired.

“They are doing what they can, and I can honestly say that they are doing a very fine job at keeping the squad together.” Sajin responded.

“Have you heard anything from your Lieutenant?” Jūshirō furthered.

Sajin shook his head. “I have not heard from him in some time; only bits of information from Captain Hitsugaya’s reports. The Head Captain has informed me that Tim has managed to solve his problem with his…zanpakutō, but he did not elaborate.”

Jūshirō nodded. “I see. It still troubles me knowing about what happened to him and his wife, and I hope they can figure something out.” He offered.

Komamura nodded back. “As do I. Please forgive the short, and distressing visit, but I must return to my Squad. Now that Tetsuzaemon is helping Squad 5, and Tim is in the world of the living, I’m afraid my shortage of personnel is not that far from Squad 5’s at the moment.”

“Of course. Thank you for bringing this to my attention, Sajin. If you do happen to speak with Tim, please give him my regards.” Jūshirō offered as Sajin stood.

“I will be sure to do that. Thank you for your time, Captain Ukitake.” Sajin finished, then turned and left the office.

Once he left, Jūshirō looked down at the three zanpakutōs on his desk. “So sad that Aizen has caused so much damage. I fear some of us may never recover.” He said to himself.

Now outside the Squad’s headquarters, Sajin began his slow trek back to his own squad as his thoughts began moving towards Timothy. The man had expected to receive at least and occasional message via hell butterfly from the Lieutenant, but ever since his last message to request to stay a few days after his fight with the Adjuchas, he had received nothing further.

Of course, it wasn’t really required since Captain Hitsugaya posted team reports on a regular basis, but it would have been nice to at least receive something to let the Captain know he was doing alright.

Over the past few days he had been starting to wonder if everything was alright with him. But at the same time, he was also getting a bit suspicious with all of the purchases he had made lately with the squad’s mission funds.

Not really at the amount that Timothy was spending, even though he had spent a bit more than would be normal, but rather at ‘what’ he was using the funds for. In addition to the one time before, he had used the mission funds twice more for women’s clothes, some of them in a very…erotic taste.

As far as Sajin knew, Timothy didn’t have anyone that he thought of in that manner, and the amount of clothes he bought so far suggested against a simple gift for his two female friends. He was obviously buying enough for someone to have a small wardrobe.

Sajin trusted Timothy, but with everything that has been going on since Aizen’s betrayal, he simply couldn’t afford to ignore certain things; and a certain Lieutenant buying large amounts of women’s clothes for no reason was one of those things.

_‘Something just doesn’t seem right with this.’_ Sajin concluded after coming to a stop _. ‘I believe it might be best to look into this matter more directly.’_ He thought further as he changed direction, now heading towards the 1st Squad.

** Urahara Shop, That Evening **

“Why did you have to eat it all?!” Nel yelled out in fury.

Kitsune was currently backed into a corner behind the dining room table and scrunched up in a ball, holding up a pillow seat as a shield towards the angry Arrancar; all while Timothy stood to the side rubbing his temples in agitation.

“I can’t help it, Nel! It’s an addiction! If you wanted it so bad, then you should have eaten it!” the spirit tossed in as a pathetic excuse.

Nel growled as she stomped her foot, pointing down at the cowering spirit. “Don’t give me that, Kit! I wanted to save that for tonight! Unlike you, if you had ‘asked’, I would have shared! But no, you ‘had’ to sneak behind my back like the weasel you are and take all of it for yourself! You’re so damn greedy!” the woman accused.

Seeing that things were only getting worse, Kitsune quickly turned to her partner. “Tim, are you just gonna stand there and let her kill me?!” she questioned in worry.

Timothy pulled his hand down enough to roll his eyes to her skeptically. “Don’t come crying to me, Kit; you’re the one who brought this upon yourself. The only thing in this matter I ‘will’ say is that Nel really should have known better.” He stated.

The Arrancar swiftly glared at him. “What?! How is ‘any’ of this my fault?!” she demanded.

He gave her the same expression he used on Kitsune. “You know how Kit is by now, Nel. You ‘should’ have known that if you leave you ice cream in the freezer when she’s out and about that she would eat it. Sorry, but I can’t feel that much sympathy for you this time. If anything, you were kinda asking for it.” He pointed out, earning nods of agreeance from Rukia and Renji who were sitting on the opposite side of the table.

“He’s got a point, Nel. This isn’t the first time she’s done that, and it’s likely not going to be the last.” Renji stated.

“I still can’t believe you two are willing to kill each other over ice cream. It’s a good thing the Captain isn’t here right now, or he’d kill ‘both’ of you.” Rukia commented.

Timothy rolled his eyes. “Please don’t jinx it, Rukia. That’s the last thing I need right now.” He whined.

Nel growled lowly and returned to a still cowering Kitsune. “It doesn’t matter! It’s not fair that she gets all the ice cream! I was saving that for before we leave tomorrow! Now what am I supposed to do?!” she questioned the spirit.

Rukia rose a brow at this. “Why don’t you ask Tim to take you out for dinner? In my opinion, that sounds a whole lot better than sitting around eating ice cream.” She offered.

The teal-haired woman’s eyes lit up, where she turned to the man. “Would you?” she inquired.

Timothy glared at the short woman. “You did that on purpose, Rukia. But still, I can’t really argue that that’s a good idea. So sure, we can go out for something, Nel.” He accepted, then turned his glare to his partner. “And I know a certain someone who had better keep their mouth shut the entire time if they know what’s good for em.” He threatened.

Kitsune quickly nodded, not willing to ruin her only chance at staying alive. “Got it! Not a peep! I swear it!” she quickly responded.

Her partner nodded firmly at her. “Good.”

Everyone turned when Kisuke entered the room fanning himself; who stopped when he saw the current situation. “Am I…interrupting something?” he inquired.

Timothy glared at Kitsune. “Not really, just a cancelled execution.” He stated, causing the spirit to cower more.

Kisuke looked between the two of them. “I see. Well, if you are not too busy at the moment miss Nel, could you leave your gigai here and come with me to the lab. I have a few more things I would like to confirm for the garganta.”

Nel tilted her head at him. “Get out here? But…won’t my spiritual pressure be detected?” she questioned.

The shop owner waved her off with his fan. “Not to worry, miss Nel. I had Tessai reconfigure the barrier to also hide your spiritual pressure as well. It won’t be but a minute.” He stated.

She shrugged her shoulder and allowed the man to push her out from her faux body; Rukia grabbing it and setting it down in the corner next to her. The two of them left to the lab as Renji stood up.

“Well, I’m gonna call it a night and relax. See you all in the morning.” He said.

Rukia turned back to them and sighed. “I guess I’m gonna go check in with Ichigo. I haven’t heard a word or anything from him since he left after…you know.” She said with a dropped head.

Timothy nodded at both of them. “Yeah, I know. Tell the idiot I said hi, and be sure he knows that we ‘will’ get Orihime back.”

“I will. See you tomorrow, Tim.” she finished, then left the shop with Renji.

Timothy crossed his arms and leaned against the wall with a huff, where Kitsune slowly relaxed and sat with her knees to her chest. The pair sat and stood in silence for a few moments before the spirit looked up at him.

“Tim.” she called.

He took a deep, calming breath. “What?”

She lowered her head to her knees and sighed. “Are you scared…about tomorrow?” she asked.

Timothy opened his eyes to her, now calmer. “Honestly…not really. I’m more scared about Orihime at the moment.”

Kitsune nodded. “Me too. I’m worried that we might be too late, or not even succeed at all.”

The Lieutenant watched her for a minute, then sighed before sitting down next to her and resting a hand on her shoulder. “Well…we won’t if we start doubting ourselves.” He pointed.

The spirit snorted at his remark. “This coming from you? That’s surprising. Usually you’re sulking.” She mocked.

He scoffed right back. “Kinda hard to do that when my life’s at stake for it. Yoruichi will definitely kill me if I started sulking again.”

Kitsune chuckled at the memory. “Ain’t that the truth. I’m glad she managed to break you out of your self-pity. I honestly got tired of seeing you in that state. Sorry for doubting, I just…” she chocked up.

Timothy gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze and a nod. “I know Kit, we’re all worried. We’ll get her back.”

She sighed heavily as she leaned into him, resting her head on his chest. “We will. You should probably go get ready to take Nel out. Hopefully somewhere nice.”

He rolled his eyes at her. “Really? Did you think I wouldn’t and just go somewhere simple?”

Kitsune chuckled lowly. “No, but she would definitely appreciate it. I know I did. Try that fancy Italian place near the arcade. I don’t think she’s had Italian yet.” She offered.

Timothy smiled and nodded. “Sounds like a good plan to me. Thanks for the input, vixen.” He teased.

The spirit snorted again. “You love me, and you know it, stupid. But once you get back, you should probably get a little bit more training in with ‘Johnny’. How is that going anyway?”

“Nearly there he said. I surprised you’re not in on it.” He stated.

She shook her head on his chest. “No, this is his training, not mine. I can’t get involved in it. It’s best to just stay out of the way.”

They were interrupted when the front door slid open. Both of them turned and immediately froze and sweat began pouring from their faces when they saw who walked in.

“Oh fuck!” Timothy whispered.

“Tim…” Kitsune followed in worry.

The visitor closed the door behind him and strode up to the pair, stopping in front of them and looking down on them.

“Good evening, Tim.” the man spoke.

Timothy swallowed the lump in his throat. “C…Captain Komamura?!” he choked out.

The Captain raised a brow. “You seem upset to see me.” He said calmly.

The Lieutenant slowly shook his head as he tried to regain his composure. “No…not really, Captain. I’m just…very surprised to see you here.” He offered.

Sajin nodded. “That’s understandable. I apologize for showing up without warning, but I wanted to make sure you were ready for your mission and see you off.” He informed, then looked at Kitsune. “It is nice to see you again, Susan.” He greeted.

“Kit.” She corrected, making him raise a brow. “Moeru Kitsune is my name now, not Susan. That person is gone. So please, just call me Kit.” She said with a smile.

The Captain’s face fell a bit before nodding. “I see. I am sorry that things have worked out this way.” He offered.

The spirit shook her head. “We’re not. We’ve come to accept it and have moved on. So please, you don’t have to worry about us, Captain.” She assured.

Sajin smiled back. “In that case, I am happy that things have worked out for you.”

Kitsune chuckled at him. “Thank you, Captain.”

Sajin then noticed Nel’s gigai in the corner. “Might I ask who that is?” he inquired, now starting to get a picture as to why Timothy had purchased so many clothes.

Timothy was now sweating bullets as he tried to come up with something to tell the man. “That’s no one, Captain. Just some new gigai that Kisuke’s working on.” He lied.

The Captain stared at the body for a moment. “I see. Is that the reason you were buying so many women’s clothes?” he asked calmly. Timothy flinched slightly, but Sajin noticed and looked at him. “I take it that’s the case. Might I ask why Kisuke Urahara is having you buy clothes for his new gigai?”

The man was backing them into a corner, and Timothy was constantly finding himself with less and less options to take to get out of it. Finally, Kitsune raised her hand with an embarrassed look on her face.

“Uh…that’s my fault, Captain. Kisuke asked him to pick out some clothes for the gigai, and when we went shopping…I kinda…begged him to get more than was necessary.” She said while rubbing the back of her head. “Sorry, after being away for over twelve years, my old shopping habits kinda got the better of me. And Tim was never really one to tell me no. I guess old habits die hard, huh?” she offered.

Timothy inwardly let out a relieved breath and praised Kitsune for her quick thinking. “Yeah…sorry about that, Captain. I’ll be putting all my pay towards paying it off.” He assured while scratching his cheek.

Sajin narrowed his gaze at them but held a hand up. “It is fine, Tim. I simply found all of the purchases a bit odd, and I only wanted to inquire as to why. I only ask that you keep in mind that it’s the squad’s mission budget that you are using at the moment.” He reminded, then lowered his hand.

The Lieutenant nodded. “Got it. So…if you don’t mind me asking Captain…how the hell did you get here without me or Kit detecting you? I mean, you’re standing right in front of me and I can’t really sense you.”

The Captain chuckled at him. “I am quite adept at hiding my spiritual pressure, Tim. To be honest, I am not really supposed to be here. I only came to give you my best wishes on your mission, then return; which I’m afraid I must do now. But before I do, allow me to offer you some advice.” He started, getting a nod back. “As you should know, do not take any opponents you come across lightly. You must fight as if your life depends on it. Do not become discouraged and know that there is no shame in running. If you find that you cannot defeat your opponent, flee, and live to fight the next battle.” He advised.

Timothy gave him a stern look and nodded. “Thank you, Captain. I will.”

Sajin nodded back. “Please be sure to send me a personal message once you have returned. I must take my leave now. Good luck, Tim.”

The Lieutenant was relieved that the man was finally going to leave, but fate, as it was, turned out to be rather cruel to him that night.

The door to the lab then opened and Sajin immediately felt a strange, and very powerful spiritual pressure. Timothy and Kitsune both froze in horror and turned to see Nel walking into the room with her head down, not noticing the stranger in the room.

Sajin turned to face her, and his eyes widened when the first thing he saw was the woman’s ram-skull mask on the top of her head. Nel came to a stop just outside the kitchen and raised her head, her eyes going wide as well when she saw the strange, large, furry man wearing a Captain’s haori.

“Oh my God!” Kitsune mumbled under her breath as the Captain and Arrancar stared each other down.

Sajin was quick to react by reaching across and preparing to draw his zanpakutō. Thankfully, Timothy was just as quick; flashing into place right in front of the large Captain and grabbing the man’s zanpakutō by the hilt and preventing him from drawing it.

“Captain, wait! Hear us out first!” he yelled out.

Kitsune swiftly jumped in front of Nel and was slowly pushing her back away from Sajin as he glared at the teal-haired woman. He fought against Timothy as he tried to draw his zanpakutō, but the Lieutenant was placing all his weight into it and was just barely keeping the Captain at bay.

“Please Captain! Let Tim explain everything!” Kitsune pleaded as she protected her friend.

Sajin glared down at his Lieutenant with anger. “What is the meaning of this, Tim?!” he demanded.

Timothy raised his head to him with pleading eyes. “Captain, I’ll tell you everything, but I’m begging you to please not attack Nel!”

The Captain’s eyes widened a bit at him calling her by name. “You know her?!” he questioned angerly.

The man nodded quickly. “And like I said, I will tell you everything if you don’t attack her!”

Sajin raised his head to the woman and watched her carefully to see that, instead of the aggression and hatred that he was expecting from her, he was seeing fear. The woman was actually slightly cowering behind Kitsune and only peeking over the spirit’s shoulder to see what was going to happen.

The sound of the front door slamming open drew their attention to see Renji, Rukia, Rangiku, and Toshiro barging in with their hands on their zanpakutōs. All four of them came to an immediate stop when they noticed Sajin standing there and struggling against Timothy.

“Captain Komamura!” Renji spoke out in shock.

Sajin glared at the short Captain. “So, I assume you knew about this, Captain Hitsugaya?” he demanded.

Toshiro looked at Nel to see fear in her eyes, and for the first time, was actually feeling a bit sorry for the woman. Although the Captain part of him was yelling for him to deny it, his conscience got the better of him as he sighed.

“Yes…I was aware, Captain Komamura.” He admitted, surprising most everyone around.

Sajin turned back to Nel and growled lowly before releasing the tension on his blade. “Very well.” He said at last, causing Timothy to look up at him. The man then looked down on his subordinate. “I will listen to what you have to say, Tim. And I honestly hope, for your sake, that you have a ‘very’ good reason as to why she is here.” He relented.

Timothy let out a heavy breath of relaxation as he released the man’s zanpakutō. “Thank you, Captain.” He said in a low voice.

The man nodded and crossed his arms firmly. “You may begin, Tim.” he ‘demanded’.

“Well, before we start…” a chipper voice spoke out, making the Captain look up. “…perhaps we should all sit down with some tea.” Kisuke said, now walking out from his lab.

Sajin rose a brow at him. “Kisuke Urahara I presume?” he asked.

The shop owner nodded. “And you must be Tim’s Captain, Sajin Komamura, correct?” earning a nod from the man. “Well then, please have a seat and Tessai will prepare us some tea. I’ll let Tim tell you everything, and I’ll fill in the missing bits. Sound good?” he offered.

The Captain nodded and turned to Toshiro. “You will join us, Captain Hitsugaya. The rest of you will wait outside. That is an order.” He instructed.

The group nodded and did as they were told as Timothy turned back to Nel. “Go ahead and get back into your gigai, Nel.”

The woman nodded and very slowly walked past him to return to the faux body as Sajin watched her every move. Once she was back inside, Timothy walked past the Captain and sat down in his usual spot; while Nel sat down on his left and Kitsune on his right.

Sajin chose to sit down next to the spirit with Toshiro to his right and Kisuke to ‘his’ right. The shop owner opened his fan and started waving it slowly.

“So then…I believe the best place to start would be at the beginning, Tim.” the man offered.

Timothy closed his eyes with a fallen expression and began telling Sajin everything. Sajin nodded multiple times in understanding as the Lieutenant relayed his story to him, stopping every few minutes for a sip of tea to calm himself.

When he had finally reached the end, Sajin was cupping his chin and staring at Nel intently. The Arrancar sunk her head in a bit under the man’s firm gaze and had to turn her head away from him in an effort to hide her fear of him.

Sajin took a long drink of his tea before setting it back down closing his eyes. “I understand.” He finally said, causing Nel to look back at him.

“I…I really don’t mean you all any harm…Captain.” She admitted in a timid voice.

The Captain opened his eyes to her. “Is that so?” he asked, getting a nod from her. “If that is the case, then what are your true intentions?” he questioned.

Nel took a deep, calming breath before answering. “I only want to help Tim defeat Aizen. He is a cruel, and evil man, and he should not be allowed to remain as he is.” She answered.

Sajin nodded. “I agree, however, that still does not answer my question. Why do you wish to defeat Aizen? Is it revenge for your friends?” he clarified.

The woman sighed. “I guess I would be lying if I said that revenge was not part of it, but that is not the main reason I wish to see him defeated. I am a warrior, one with honor and respect, Captain. And what Aizen has done, to me as well as the soul reapers, is dishonorable and outright cruel. I may be an Arrancar, but even Arrancars have a sense of honor and respect towards our enemies. But I swear to you, that as a warrior, I have no intention to fight, or cause harm to you or your allies. I wish to fight with you, and defeat Aizen.” She said in a firm tone.

The Captain nodded again. “I see. Tell me, Captain Hitsugaya, what made you believe you could trust her?” he asked, not looking away from the woman.

Toshiro took a quick breath. “I must admit that at first I didn’t, and to a point, I still don’t. However, she has not done anything to our knowledge to bring harm to the soul society, and it was pointed out to me, disrespectfully I might add, that the soul society does not currently hold any laws against ‘Arrancars’. With all this in mind, I decided to postpone my judgement of miss Nel and see for myself if her words were true.” He informed.

Sajin glanced at him. “And how do you mean ‘disrespectfully’?”

The short Captain glared at Timothy, who glared back. “Let’s just say I got to experience firsthand Lieutenant Durn’s ‘unique’ personality.”

The Squad 8 Captain couldn’t help but chuckle at the thought of Timothy and Captain Hitsugaya facing each other down. He then turned to his Lieutenant with a knowing smirk.

“So, I suppose this means you issued a threat towards Captain Hitsugaya’s life?” he questioned knowingly.

Timothy closed his eyes with a huff. “I already apologized for it, Captain. You know how I am. I promised Nel I would protect her if she could get us to Aizen, and Captain Hitsugaya threatened that promise.”

Sajin had to chuckled again and Nel was starting to become a little less worried at seeing the large man laugh. She decided to take a shot in the dark at lessening the tension.

“If it helps you feel better Captain, I do not currently possess my zanpakutō. Captain Hitsugaya is in possession of it at the moment.” She offered.

Komamura looked at the short Captain, getting a nod of confirmation. “I see. That was a smart move on Captain Hitsugaya’s part, but I am still concerned for the safety of him and his team. So, I assume you know about the upcoming mission to Hueco Mundo in a few days, correct?”

Kisuke lowered his fan a bit. “Actually, the team leaves tomorrow, Captain Komamura.” He corrected.

Sajin quickly turned to the man. “The last I was informed, you had said that it would take at least a week for you to open a garganta.” He said in surprise.

The shop keeper nodded. “Had it not been for the help of miss Nel, that would have been true. However, miss Nel has been a great help, and besides a few last-minute adjustments, the garganta is ready to be opened. The team was going to leave at noon tomorrow.”

The Captain looked down to Toshiro. “And why haven’t you reported this to the Head Captain?” he questioned.

“Considering all the recent problems with communication security, I thought it best not to say anything to improve our chances of success.” He pointed out.

Sajin hummed in thought. “That was a good idea, Captain Hitsugaya. I assume you have already made your plans for the mission?” he asked.

Toshiro nodded firmly. “We have, miss Nel will be guiding us and showing us a way into Las Noches through a secret entrance.”

The larger Captain’s eyes widened. “She is going with you?” he asked in shock.

Timothy nodded. “Yes sir. Renji, Rukia and I all trust her, and she can guarantee us a way back here in case something happens. Don’t forget that she can open a garganta as well.” He stated.

Sajin had to sighed heavily at that as he rubbed his temples. “I am sure that you wish to ask me not to report anything regarding her, correct?” he moaned.

The Lieutenant nodded firmly. “Captain, all she wants is just to start a new life. Like I said before, it’s not her fault she ended up what she is.”

The Captain lowered his hand and looked at him. “I am not judging her by what she is, Tim. I was judging her by what her previous alliance was. Aizen is a very smart man and is an expert at manipulation. We cannot afford to take her lightly. Considering the recent events regarding Squad 12, I am sure you can understand.” He said calmly.

Timothy sighed and nodded. “I do, Captain. That’s why I’m asking, begging you, to give her a chance. Captain Hitsugaya said he would, so will you?” he pleaded.

Sajin gave a last glance at the woman and nodded. “As unusual that this situation is, I must admit that you are correct, Tim. The soul society does not have any laws regarding Arrancars, and if what you say is true, she has not committed any hostile acts against the soul society. Therefor…I cannot label her as an enemy of the soul society, personally. I will not say anything regarding her for now, Tim. But I would strongly advise you that you find a way to make the others see this the same way.”

Nel slowly raised her hand, gaining the man’s attention. “Forgive me for asking, Captain, but…you seem a bit eager to keep my secret. Um…may I ask why?”

The Captain closed his eyes and nodded. “Because I know what it feels like to be viewed as an outcast. As you can plainly see, I am not like all of the other soul reapers. My appearance is quite unique, and because of that I was discriminated against. It was only because the Head Captain had chosen to see past my bestial appearance and offer me to join the 13 Court Guard Squads, that I have become who I am today. He saw me as a person when others would not. And I would be no different than those who chose to see me as nothing more than a beast if I did not do the same as he did. I am choosing to see you as the person you are, miss Nel, so I ask that you do not give me a reason to see this as a mistake.”

The woman nodded and lowered her head with a small smile. “Thank you…Captain.” She responded in a quiet voice.

Sajin nodded, then stood up. “I must take my leave. I have already been gone long enough, and I must return to my squad. Rest assured Tim, that your secret is safe. I wish you all good luck on your mission, and I expect a report from you as soon as you return, Tim.” he instructed.

Timothy bowed to the man. “You will have it the moment we come back, Captain. Thank you so much for everything. I honestly can’t thank you enough.”

“It is fine, Tim. At least now I fully understand why you had bought so many clothes.” He half-teased, causing Nel to blush a bit.

Timothy rubbed the back of his head. “Yeeeaahh…I’ll be sure to cut back on that, Captain.” He moaned, earning a snicker from Kitsune.

Sajin chuckled at him. “As I had said, it is fine. In fact, your first month’s pay was two days ago, and from the last report I saw, your pay was higher than what you have spent so far. I take my leave now. Good night.” He said, then bowed before leaving the shop.

It wasn’t but few seconds after he left that Rukia and Renji rushed in and up to the table with worry in their faces. Timothy sighed heavily and waved them off.

“It’s fine guys, he said he wouldn’t say anything.” He informed.

The two friends breathed sighed of relief. “So…what now?” Rukia asked.

“Nothing has changed.” Toshiro jumped in, getting their attention. “You four are still leaving at the same time as before. I hope you realize how much more serious your situation is, Tim.” he warned.

Timothy nodded. “I do, but right now I’m trying to recover from the near heart attack the Captain just gave me. Thank you for sticking up for me, Captain. I know you didn’t have to defend Nel back there.” He offered.

Nel nodded as well. “Yes, thank you so much, Captain Hitsugaya.” She added.

Toshiro turned his head away. “I told you, don’t thank me yet. You still have plenty of work ahead of you if you want the soul society to see her as something other than a monster, Tim. So I suggest you take your Captain’s advice and start figuring out a plan for that. I am going back to the apartment, and I suggest the four of you get some rest for tomorrow.” He said as he stood up, followed by Rukia and Renji.

“Yeah, I was almost back to Chad’s place when your spiritual pressure went all crazy, Tim. See ya later.” He said with a wave.

“I still have to get with Ichigo about this, but I guess I can talk to him tomorrow. I’m a bit tired to think straight at the moment.” Rukia added, following the group out of the shop.

“See ya guys tomorrow then.” Timothy yelled out, seeing them wave over their shoulders. He then turned back to Nel. “Well, I guess we’ll get changed real quick and head out for something to eat.”

Nel smiled at him. “Where are we going this time?” she inquired.

The man grinned. “I think I’ll leave that as a surprise.” He taunted, causing her to frown.

“Fine.” She whined.

Kisuke chuckled as the two stood up. “Hope you two have fun.” He teased, earning a glare from Timothy.

“Shut it, smartass. I’m obviously not in the mood for your jokes.” He hissed.

Kitsune snickered again. “When are you ‘ever’ in the mood for his jokes?”

He rolled his eyes to her. “Never, now be quiet.” He ordered, then left for his room.

A couple hours later, the pair returned to the shop from their dinner, and Nel was thoroughly pleased. It turned out that she had actually never had Italian before, and she quickly found that she liked it a lot.

The only thing she didn’t like, was the wine. She had seen a couple next to them drinking it, and her curiosity got the better of her. Once the waiter had brought her the filled glass, she looked at it for a minute before taking a sip.

At least Timothy got a laugh out of it when her face scrunched up from the taste. But a quick sip of sake cleared it right up for her and they enjoyed the rest of their meal in peace.

Once they had returned to the shop, they swiftly changed into night clothes and met back out on the porch for their usual shot or two of spirits. Oddly, neither Yoruichi or Kisuke were there with them, so they were allowed the rare moment to sit and enjoy their drinks without torture.

Not that it mattered much, seeing as how both of them had a lot on their minds about the mission then next day. They hadn’t even said a word to each other since they sat down and stared at the dimming sky.

“I think I like your Captain, Tim.” Nel finally spoke out.

Timothy smiled and nodded. “Yeah, he’s a great guy. Him and Tetsuzaemon both.” He admitted.

Nel turned to him. “Who is that?” she wondered.

“The squad’s Lieutenant. He’s currently assigned as the acting Captain for Squad 5 until things get better.” He answered.

She rose a brow in confusion. “I thought you were the Lieutenant?”

He nodded. “I am, it’s just that the squad will have two of them when he comes back. I think you’d like him as well. He’s gruff as hell, firm, and I swear he drinks a shit-ton of coffee with how uptight he is, but he’s fair and he knows what he’s doing.”

Nel smiled and looked back at the sky. “I think I’d like to meet him.” She admitted.

Timothy shrugged a shoulder. “Hopefully everything works out and you can. I think the two of you would get along. He’s likely to challenge you to a duel or two.”

The woman chuckled at that. “I wouldn’t mind. I don’t like fighting, but I’m not against friendly spars every now and then.”

“I would like to introduce you to Hinata, Kenta, Issei and Yuka…especially Hinata.” He said with a warm smile.

Nel turned to him with narrowed brows, suddenly getting a strange feeling in her chest. “And who is that?” she asked, somehow managing to hide the venom in her words.

“A friend of mine…one of the first ones I made when I became a soul reaper. She’s as kind as they come, caring, always looking out for others…and a temper from the devil.” He said with a shiver.

She rose a brow. “Like yours?” she challenged.

“Worse! I swear that woman is evil when she wants to be! Just make sure you don’t piss her off. The last time I did that, I ended up on the floor, out cold.” He warned.

Her gaze narrowed further. “Do you like her?” she questioned. _‘Why am I asking this? What is this feeling I’m having…’_ she mentally fretted.

Timothy shrugged a shoulder. “Well, yeah. She is my friend, afterall.” He answered, but then it clicked, and he looked at her. “Wait…are you…jealous, Nel?” he asked in surprise.

Nel turned away from him and rubbed her temples. “I…I don’t know. I feel something…like anger, but not really anger.” She admitted.

He sighed with closed eyes. “Yeah…that sounds a bit like jealousy to me, Nel. Well, I can assure you that I don’t have those kinds of feelings for Hinata, or Yuka. They’re simply friends that I care a lot for, nothing more. Promise.” He assured.

Upon hearing his words, the weird feeling inside her suddenly washed away and she felt much better. She turned to him and sighed.

“Sorry Tim, I didn’t mean to be like that.” She offered.

He rested a hand on her shoulder and smiled. “It’s okay, Nel. I guess it’s normal to feel that way when someone you have feelings for suddenly starts talking about another person. Actually, in your situation, it actually helps you.”

Nel tilted her head a bit. “How so?” he inquired.

Timothy smiled even more. “Because it shows that you’re learning more emotions, and it shows me that you really care for me; enough that you’re highly cautious about other women being around me. But again, there is nothing between Hinata and I, so you can rest easy, Nel. I promise. Besides, I’d personally be more worried about Gamuza killing me than you.” He joked.

She had to laugh at that, knowing that it was entirely true. “Yes, she would probably take over again and kill you before I had the chance.”

**_“Not necessarily…as long as you would ‘actually’ kill him for it, I would be just fine sitting back and watching.”_** Gamuza assured, causing Nel’s face to fall.

“Not helping Gamuza.” She mumbled.

Timothy rose a brow. “Do I want to know?”

Nel sighed heavily. “She said that as long as I went forward with killing you, she wouldn’t interfere.” She informed.

He chuckled at that. “Well, I said it twice, I’ll say it again; you are the only one I have feelings for, Nel.” He affirmed before leaning over and kissing her cheek.

She smiled warmly and returned the gesture. “And you are the only one I care for, Tim. Now that I think about it…where’s Kit?”

Timothy finished his drink and chuckled. “Keeping quiet inside my head. I told her if she ever wanted to see ice cream again, she was to keep quiet until morning. That way I could enjoy a peaceful dinner with you without her perverted comments.” He said triumphantly.

Nel shook her head at him. “Well, tell her thank you for that. It was nice to sit and enjoy the quiet for once.”

**_“Not like I had a choice…but she’s welcome…bastard.”_** Kitsune mocked in his head.

Timothy snickered at her. “She said no problem. Well, I’m heading in for the night.” He said, then stood up along with Nel.

“I’m a bit tired as well.” She returned.

He turned to walk inside, and her face suddenly fell. _‘I should ask him…As much as I don’t want to admit it…there is always that chance he may not live through this. And if what Rangiku said was true…I would give anything just to stay at least one night with him. I have to know what it feels like to be with him…’_ she concluded.

She swiftly followed him inside and caught back up to him as he was opening his bedroom door. “Uh…Tim?” she called.

The man stopped and looked at her. “What’s up?” he answered.

Nel turned her head away as her nerves got to her yet again. She closed her eyes as she fought to try and get her words out, but her mouth remained sealed as she turned a bit red.

“Nel, are you okay?” Timothy asked, resting a hand on her shoulder.

The action only served to bottle her up even more, and now she was worrying that she would fail to ask him, again.

“Uh…” was the only thing she could get out.

Timothy gripped her shoulder a bit tighter. “Did you forget what it was?” he inquired gently.

She at least managed to shake her head, but was still unable to form words. Her head fell low and she began to tremble a bit, worrying Timothy.

“Can I guess that this is something…embarrassing?” he tried.

Nel flinched at his question and was now unable to even make a head gesture to answer. Fortunately, her silence answered the man’s question for her where he sighed and released her shoulder to grab her hand in his.

“Nel, whatever it is, you should know I wouldn’t judge you. I’ll ask that you tell me what it is that’s bothering you, but I won’t force you. So please, what is it?” he pleaded calmly.

The woman nodded slowly before finally finding her voice again. “C…Can I…stay with you?” she finally asked in a whisper.

Timothy rose a brow at her. “Stay with me? Do you mean…in bed together?” he asked back, his cheeks turning a bit red in return.

Nel nodded in affirmation. “Yes.” She returned quietly.

He turned his head from her a bit, his face even redder. “Um…s…sure. But…are you…sure about this?”

Now her cheeks turned a bright red as she stared at him. “N…not like t…that! I…I mean…”

He held a hand up to stop her. “I know what you meant, Nel. I just…wanted to make sure that you were sure about it.” He corrected.

She looked down at her hand that he held and surround his hand with her other one. “The thing is Tim…neither of us can deny the fact that there’s a chance one of us may not come back from this. We’ll just have to accept it. But I would…at least like to spend just one night next to you, and this may possibly be my last chance to do that. I…I understand if you don’t…want to.”

His shoulders slumped a bit before he raised his free hand to her cheek. “Nel, what have I told you about our relationship?” she questioned.

Nel took a deep breath before answering. “That…we would move at my pace.”

Timothy smiled and nodded. “If you truly feel that you’re ready for this, then I guess I am as well, Nel. Now I’m going to bed. If you wanna join me, then feel free to do so.” He offered, then dropped his hand.

She released his other hand as he turned to enter his room. She stalled for only an instant before she followed right behind him; closing the door to the room and turning around to see him pulling the covers down to climb into bed.

The woman took a long, deep, and calming breath as she fought to keep her heart from beating itself out of her chest before moving forward. Timothy settled himself down comfortably in the bed and held the edge of the covers up, allowing Nel to climb and settle in next to him.

After he pulled the covers over them, she turned onto her side and facing away from him, suddenly feeling a little out of place. The longer she laid there, the more she began to think that she may have pushed too far, asking to join him.

Timothy opened his eyes and rolled his head to her, sensing that something was wrong and that she was obviously worried about something. He had a feeling as to what it was, but he was hesitant to say anything and cause her to think she did something wrong.

After staring at the back of her head for nearly five minutes, he finally sighed. “Nel?”

She flinched at his voice. “Yes?” she answered in a timid whisper.

He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Would you mind turning around for a moment?” he asked.

She waited for a moment, before she finally nodding and twisting her body around to face him, seeing that he was lying on his back. She didn’t notice his hand moving under the covers until he grabbed her hand.

The woman slightly gasped as he gently pulled her to him and rested her arm across his stomach, her head now resting on his chest. She remained motionless in shock as he slipped his other arm under her neck and behind her back to rest on her shoulder.

“Is that better?” he asked in a warm voice.

Nel had to take a second to calm down enough and relax into his hold. She moved her head a bit and nuzzled into his chest a bit better, moving the arm over his stomach to rest next to her head with her hand in the middle of his chest.

She took a deep, relaxing breath as her body slowly melted into his; a warm and happy smile spreading across her face as she closed her eyes.

“Yes…much better.” She finally answered.

The man chuckled a bit, causing Nel to begin dozing from the deep sound as it left his lungs. Her smile grew ever wider when he leaned his head down and kissed the top of her head, resting his free hand on top of hers.

Flipping her own hand around in his grip, she intertwined their fingers and brought his hand to her mouth, kissing the back of it in return before resting them back into place on top of his chest.

“Love you, Nel.” He said in a sleepy voice.

Tears began forming in her eyes and a few of them fell when she closed them. “I…love you too…Tim.” she returned; his grip tightening on her hand telling her that he heard.

All of her doubt and worry immediately disappeared, replaced by happiness. She readjusted herself once more even deeper into his chest before taking a deep, calming breath and allowing sleep to claim her.


	37. Leaving

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 37

**(Leaving)**

** Urahara Shop, The next Morning **

Timothy’s closed eyes flinched only once before they slowly opened. After blinking a couple times to clear the sleep from them, he turned his head slightly to the window to see that, while it was still dark out, the early morning light was beginning to creep up into the sky.

This was the normal time that he usually woke up to get his early morning training in, and he needed it even more than ever if he was going to finish his training session with ‘Johnny’; although he really should have done it the night before.

The man took a deep breath to stretch his lungs a bit and moved to flip the covers off of him. But the thing was, he couldn’t. It felt like his body was being restricted by something…or someone.

Lying on his side, he glanced over his shoulder and turned a bit red with he saw a full head of light-brown hair behind him; and now that he was more awake, he realized that he had an arm draped over his side with a hand on his chest, and another under and around his neck to clutch his shoulder.

He couldn’t see the person’s face, but then he suddenly remembered that Nel had asked to join him the night before, and had actually done so. He even managed to turn a bit redder when he recalled being the one to grab her and hold her close to him before they fell asleep.

Somehow, throughout the night, their roles had reversed.

The woman was still sound asleep, and he could hear her quiet, slow, rhythmic breaths on the back of his neck, and it only made him smile warmly. She looked so peaceful from what he could see, and the last thing he wanted to do was wake her.

Turning his head back around, he tried, very slowly, to remove himself from her grip; gently grabbing the hand that was on his chest and maneuvering it back over himself. But he only managed to move it about a foot before her hand snatched itself from his grip and returned to its previous spot as she clutched him even tighter.

The man had to exhale a bit as the woman’s brute strength began squeezing his chest. He tried to move the same hand again, but the instant his hand made contact, her fingers balled up and gripped his nightshirt tightly in a death grip.

“Noooo…I don’t…wanna…” she mumbled in a sleepy tone as her grip on him got even tighter.

Timothy was starting to have a little difficulty breathing as the woman behind him squeezed him as a snake would squeeze its prey; the more he moved or tried to get away, the tighter the grip she had on him.

“Nel.” He called out in a slightly strained voice.

That only served to work against him, as the sound of his voice only made her smile and tighten her grip more. Her head nuzzled deeper into his back in comfort, and that only made the poor man’s situation worse as her forehead dug into his spine.

“Nel!” he called a bit louder, again making her grip tighter. He knew that if her hold on him got any tighter, he was very likely to suffocate; which meant he only had one option left.

_“Kit! Wake up!”_ he yelled in his head, but got no answer. _“Kit!”_ he yelled even louder.

Thankfully, the spirit heard him that time as she was now materializing into a sitting position next to him and rubbing sleep from her eyes.

“What?!” she returned in a slightly elevated tone, causing Nel to grip even tighter.

The Lieutenant flinched under the sudden burst of pain as he looked at her. “Please…help me.” He pleaded.

Kitsune looked at him, then to a sleeping Nel to see that predicament that her partner was in. It was only a second later when she had a sly, toothy grin plastered on her face.

“Awww…look at you two. You finally made the jump and took her to bed, huh? I’m so proud of you, Tim.” she teased in a quiet voice.

Timothy narrowed his eyes at her. “Nothing happened you idiot, and you know it! Now quit screwing around and help me before she kills me!” he demanded.

The spirit sat up straight and crossed her arms. “Why? You two look so good together like this. And look at her…holding onto you like you were her precious teddy bear.” She cooed.

His glare only got worse, and he would have moved to strangle the perverted fox, had it not been the fear that Nel would finally kill him had he moved any more. He gritted his teeth in anger as the spirit snickered at him.

“If you don’t shut your mouth, I’m gonna kill you, you stupid fox!” he threatened.

Instead of getting mad at being called a ‘stupid fox’ like she normally did, Kitsune’s grin turned into a mischievous smile. Leaning forward on one arm, she reached out with her other hand and cupped his cheek.

“Now why would I ruin such a perfect moment, Tim? In fact…” she stopped to remove her hand and quietly stand up.

He watched her closely as she walked around the pair’s futon before she went out of Timothy’s sight; him being afraid to move his head too far and make his situation worse. The spirit sat back down right behind Nel’s sleeping form and leaned in to her ear; speaking very quietly.

“Oh Nel…hold me tighter. I don’t want you to ‘ever’ let me go.” she whispered into the Arrancar’s ear in a very sensuous voice.

Timothy’s eyes went wide as saucers as the woman, in her sleep, did just as she was asked. All of the air was forced from his lungs as Nel smiled even more and held him as tight as she could. He really wanted to kill the fox, but unfortunately for him, she wasn’t done yet.

“Yes, just like that, Nel. I want you to hold me even more…wrap your legs around me, and hold me for dear life.” Kitsune furthered with a wicked smile.

Just like before, the sleeping Nel did as she was told; raising and wrapping her legs around Timothy’s flanks and locking her ankles. With her thighs pressing tightly into his sides, forcing his insides upwards, and her arms crushing his chest, his lungs literally had no more room to breathe with. His face was now starting to turn blue as he struggled to get a breath of air.

“Mmmm…oh Tim…” Nel mumbled.

If he wasn’t in the process of turning blue, his face would have been turning red instead. _‘Just what the hell is that woman dreaming about?!’_ he wondered.

“Tighter Nel…Tighter. Hold me.” The spirit pleaded.

The large muscles in the Arrancar’s legs tightened as much as they could, and Timothy could almost swear that he was within an inch of being torn in two. He tried to call out, but with no air in his lungs, no sound came out.

Kitsune smiled in victory as she stood back up and returned to her previous spot in front of Timothy. She once again cupped his cheek and his vision began to blur as she leaned all the way forward and whispered into his ear.

“I. Am. Not. A. Stupid. Fox. Oh sweet partner of mine.” She mocked, just as the last bit of consciousness slipped away from Timothy; now out cold.

The spirit then stood back up and stretched her back for a moment before walking towards the bedroom door.

“Now…where does Kisuke keep that camera…” she wondered as she left the room.

** 10 Minutes Later **

Nel nuzzled herself deeper into her pillow with a content sigh before letting out a deep yawn and slowly opening her eyes. The first thing she saw was some blue fabric, which was strange considering that she clearly remembers her pillow case being white,

“…Huh…” she breathed out, blinking a few times to clear her vision.

She raised her head a bit and saw a head of blondish hair in front of her. As her mind became more aware, she realized that instead of a pillow, she was holding on to a person. And not just any person, but Timothy.

Her eyes widened in shock and horror for only a moment, until her memories came back to her. Her shocked look quickly faded as her lips curled up into a wide and warm smile when she remembered joining Timothy in his bed last night.

But even that only lasted for a moment when she recalled her dream from last night, causing her cheeks to light up a bit. She had dreamed that the two of them were wrapped in each other very tightly and kissing each other passionately.

It only got worse when she finally took notice of the way she had her arms and legs wrapped around his body, but at the same time, she was also wishing that they could stay like that for a long time.

When she looked out the window to see that it was almost sunrise, she realized that Timothy had slightly slept in, as he was normally downstairs by that time and training. And seeing that she knew he still had some work left to do with his zanpakutō spirit, she found it a bit odd that he chose this day to sleep in.

She let out a displeased sigh as she returned her head to nuzzle into the back of his neck a bit, knowing that she would have to wake him up; and right now, she wanted nothing more than to just lie there with him in her arms.

_‘I guess…I should be happy I got to have this much.’_

The woman took another deep breath before calling out. “Tim?”

She waited for him to answer, or even move in response to her calling, but he didn’t so much as even flinch at her words. Nel pulled her head back a bit with a raised brow.

“Tim?” she called again.

But he still didn’t answer her. Very reluctantly, she unwound her legs from his sides and pulled herself up and over his body a bit to his ear.

“Tim, we need to get up.” She informed in a kind voice.

The man didn’t stir, and she was starting to get a little worried. “Tim?”

She pulled the man’s shoulder back and rolled him over to her and immediately froze when she saw his open and rolled back eyes and blue face. She gasped at the sight and quickly started to shake him.

“Tim!” she yelled.

** 20 Minutes Later **

Timothy sat at the dining room table, glaring billions of lethal daggers at his evil, perverted, soon-to-be ex-partner, who was, intelligently, sitting across from him and showing Kisuke and Yoruichi the photos she took of him and Nel in their ‘unique’ situation.

Nel had her head down low in shame and embarrassment; both from learning what had caused Timothy’s near-death experience, and from the multiple, suggestive grins she was getting from the people across from her.

“Wow Nel, awful possessive of Timothy, aren’t ya? I guess you really don’t want someone else to have him, huh?” Yoruichi teased with her trademark grin.

The Arrancar turned her head away a bit as Timothy glared at the demon-woman. “Shut your fucking mouth, Yoruichi; or I swear I’ll jump over this table and rip your damn hair out!” he threatened.

Kitsune had to snicker at him. “What’s wrong, Tim? You trying to defend your girlfriend’s honor? Too bad you couldn’t defend her purity like that as well.” She said with a flash of her brows, causing Yoruichi to laugh loudly while Kisuke chuckled.

Timothy and Nel both turned red as they quickly stared at each other, then to them. “Nothing happened!” they yelled in unison.

“We just slept together, not…well…you know!” Nel furthered.

Yoruichi stopped laughing enough to raise a brow. “Oh? You don’t have to tell us everything just yet, Nel. I’m sure you’ll be more up to it once he takes you again.”

Timothy slammed a fist down on the table. “Nothing happened, you evil demon! And you!” he said, now pointing at Kitsune. “I hope you have your will wrote up, cause once we’ve rescued Orihime, you are so fucking dead!”

The spirit raised her palms up. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, Tim. It’s not ‘my’ fault that Nel had dirty dreams about you and tried to keep you from escaping.” She teased while looking at the said woman.

Nel turned red as a tomato. “I…I did not! I mean…I don’t know what you’re talking about!” she defended.

Timothy tilted his head at her with a raised brow. “You did?” he asked in shock.

She turned to him and shook her head. “N…No! I swear!” she assured.

Yoruichi rose her brow back. “Oh? So are you saying you don’t want to have those kinds of dreams about Tim? You don’t think he’s handsome enough for you to have dreams about him?” she challenged.

Nel shot a glare at the woman. “Of course I want to dream about him, and yes he ‘is’ handsome!” she quickly returned, only to slap a hand over her mouth with wide eyes in horror.

Timothy’s eyes went wide as well before he slowly turned his head away in embarrassment. But for Yoruichi and Kitsune, they were just given all the ammunition they could ever use against the poor Arrancar.

“Oh my…Nel…after only spending one night with him, you’re already dreaming of doing naughty things to my partner. How could you, you dirty girl.” Kitsune said as she shook her head in mock disappointment.

The Lieutenant’s and Arrancar’s eyes shot wide open as Yoruichi shook her head as well. “Yeah, it seems we’ll have to keep an eye on the two of them to keep her from jumping him without us knowing.” She added.

Nel flinched in horror at their accusations. “I…I would never do that!”

Yoruichi opened an eye to her. “Oh? So you’re saying now that you don’t want him?” she baited.

The Arrancar then slapped her hands on the table and stood up while glaring at the evil seductress. “Of course I want him!” she yelled.

Kitsune and Yoruichi now had the widest of grins on their faces while Kisuke had his hidden behind his fan. Timothy however, was so shocked that he was unable to react to the woman’s declaration.

Even Gamuza had a reaction to the woman’s outburst, being only a headshake of disappointment at her partner for falling for such an obvious trap…again.

**_‘You are such an idiot sometimes, Nelliel.’_** The spirit thought.

It only took a second for the woman to finally realize what she said, and she was so shocked by her own actions that the only thing she could manage to do in response was to blush madly with saucer-wide eyes.

The whole room was dead silent for what seemed like eternity to Nel and Timothy, before Kitsune finally rose a brow. “Well? If you want my partner so bad, then go ahead, Nel. I won’t stop ya. Go on, take him back into the room and show him how much you want him.” She challenged.

Yoruichi nodded in agreeance. “Yeah, we won’t disturb you while you two have some ‘physical fun’. I’m sure if you make it quick enough, Tim can still get his special training done in time to leave.” She added, both of the woman now grinning again.

Nel was so frozen in shock, that she couldn’t respond in action or words. The only thing that saved her, was Timothy’s hand falling onto her shoulder and gently pulling her back to her seat.

She slowly turned her head back to him to see him still looking away in embarrassment, his face redder than she had even seen from him. She saw him swallow once before he rolled his eyes to her, seeing what she could only guess was a tinge of happiness in them.

“It’s alright, Nel…I know what you meant. Just ignore those two idiots.” He said in a quiet voice.

Although she was glad he wasn’t upset at her ‘declaration’, she was upset at herself for admitting it out loud in front of him. All she could do was turn away from him and slowly nod before standing up fully.

“Sorry.” She said at last, then left the room.

Timothy listened as she went into her own room and closed the door behind her, the lock clicking into place immediately afterward. He then stood up as well with his head down and took a deep breath.

“I’m going to finish my training.” He informed, then walked around the table and swiftly went down the ladder into the training area.

Kitsune was now suddenly starting to feel bad about their teasing, turning to her friend with a raised brow. “I think…we took it too far, Yoruichi…again.” She admitted.

The golden-eyed woman sighed heavily and nodded her head. “Yeah…maybe you’re right. But I can’t help it, they make it way too damn easy to mess with em. Honestly, the only person I can think of that’s worse is Ichigo.” She said as she threw her hand out towards Nel’s room.

The spirit sighed as well and nodded. “True…but now I’m worried about what Tim will do once he clears his head. I swear he would have literally tried to kill you if you were around last time. And we both did promise not to mess with Nel anymore, so that only makes it worse.” She pointed out.

Yoruichi started rubbing the back of her head sheepishly. “Yeah, you got a point there. And with their mission coming up in a few hours…I think we may have just screwed up big time.”

Kisuke chose now to speak up for the first time. “I wouldn’t worry about that, Yoruichi. Tim doesn’t seem like the kind of person to let personal matters bother him during important times. I think you two should be more worried about when the team returns, when he ‘doesn’t’ have important matters to deal with.”

Kitsune’s face instantly fell in horror. “I am so dead. If Tim doesn’t kill me, ‘Johnny’ will. Is there a way to reverse being placed in his inner world, Kisuke?” she pleaded.

The shop owner slowly shook his head. “I’m afraid not, miss Kit. It looks like you’re just gonna have to take whatever punishment he manages to find for you. The only thing that I can offer, is my condolences.” He stated.

The spirit raised he head with a loud whine. “I don’t wanna die!”

** Nel’s Inner World **

Nel slowly materialized into her inner world to see Gamuza staring at her, her arms crossed and a disappointed look on her face. The hollow spirit sighed heavily before dropping and shaking her head.

“I honestly can’t believe how you keep falling for that demon-woman’s taunts, Nelliel. I figured you would have learned how she likes to bait you into her jokes by now.” She stated disapprovingly.

The Arrancar turned her head away from her partner. “I don’t want to argue with you right now, Gamuza. I only came here so I could think to myself in peace, without having to worry about anyone disturbing me.” She informed.

Gamuza raised her head enough to look at the woman. “So…is what you said true, Nelliel? Do you really want the brat in that manner?” she questioned.

Nel at least had the politeness to blush at the spirit’s question before turning away fully and walking away. “I told you, I didn’t come here to argue, Gamuza.” She repeated.

The spirit rolled her eyes with a scoff. “It wasn’t an argument Nel, it was a legitimate question; one that I want to know the answer to. But, judging by the redness in your face, it would seem that I can easily guess that answer.” She returned before starting to follow her partner.

The Arrancar came to a stop at the edge of the small lake and sighed before resting her left hand on her head where the left horn of her mask ‘would’ have been. She gripped the hair in her hand tightly before closing her eyes.

“How…How bad is it now, Gamuza? I’m honestly afraid to see for myself.” She asked.

Gamuza took a deep breath as she came to a stop next to her. “I suppose you want me to give it to you bluntly…” she wondered aloud.

Nel dropped her hand and turned to her, nodding slowly. “Please be honest with me Gamuza…how bad?” she pleaded.

The spirit took a deep breath before looking her directly in the eyes. “Halfway into the eye socket, as well as a second tooth.” She informed.

The woman’s eyes snapped shut in emotional pain as she visualized the damage in her mind. She stood motionless for a moment before turning back front and kneeling down next to the water. As much as she didn’t want to see it for herself, she needed to.

Leaning far enough over the edge of the water, she slowly opened her eyes a bit before they snapped wide open. “Oh my God…”

True to Gamuza’s words, nearly a third of her mask was gone. Everything from the halfway point of the mask’s left eye socket was just gone, along with the two leftmost teeth on the bottom of it.

The woman slowly reached up and placed her hand on the empty space, feeling her teal hair underneath as tears came to her eyes in fear. She rubbed her head along the areas that her mask normally covered and closed her eyes again.

“I’m scared, Gamuza. I’m afraid to lose you again.” She admitted.

The spirit glanced down at her partner. “I thought that creepy shop owner said that wouldn’t happen?” she asked in a hiss.

Nel nodded her head. “He did, but he also said he can’t confirm anything. For all he knows at the moment, I ‘could’ lose you; or you could lose ‘me’. I don’t want to lose you, Gamuza. I don’t know what to do.” She said in a teary voice.

“Well, getting that that idiot Urahara to quit screwing around would be a good start. I’m starting to get the feeling that he’s not really even trying to figure this shit out. Not to mention hanging out with that brat you’re so fond of.” Gamuza returned.

Nel quickly stood up, turning to the hollow spirit and pointing at her. “This is not Tim’s fault! He has nothing to do with this! How many times must I tell you that, Gamuza?!” she yelled angerly.

Gamuza rolled her eyes and re-crossed her arms. “Oh really? I seem to recall that shop owner stating that being around him and moving on with these feelings was speeding all this up. So are you really gonna stand there and tell me that that fucking brat has nothing to do with this? From what I can see, he’s only making the whole situation worse by the second.” She pointed out.

The Arrancar took a step closer and glared dangerously at the spirit. “And you said you would accept Tim! Or was that all a lie?!” she shot back.

The spirit scoffed. “Hah! As if. You might wanna think back a little bit, Nelliel; I said that I wouldn’t ‘kill’ him as long as he didn’t harm you, not that I would accept him. There’s a ‘big’ difference there. And just for your information, I had ‘plenty’ to say about your little stunt last night, but I chose to let it go, for you. So don’t you dare accuse me of going against my word when I’ve done nothing but ‘adhere’ to my promise. Which brings me back to my previous question; was what you said back there to that demon true? Do you really want that brat as your own?” she demanded.

Nel turned her head with red cheeks away again. “That is not your business, Gamuza. Who I take as mine is not your concern.” She defended.

Gamuza swiftly reached down and grabbed the woman by the collar of her shirt, pulling her up to her face. “I am your partner, so that ‘makes’ it my concern, Nelliel! Anything that affects you, affects me! I am not going to just sit here and allow myself to be dragged down if you make a mistake, like choosing to take that ‘soul reaper’ as your own!”

Her partner simply rolled her eyes to her with a calm stare. “Is that really the case, Gamuza? It sounds more to me like you are afraid that I may be right about him and you were wrong. It sounds like you are afraid to see me happy for a change.” She challenged.

The spirit’s brow rose. “Are you suggesting that you were never happy with me, Nelliel?”

Nel turned her head fully to her. “No, I wasn’t. I am saying that you are afraid that I was always right about Tim and my friends, and that you had misjudged them. That I may have found someone who could be worthy for me to take as my own, and you fear the happiness that it could bring, just because of what he is. I have ‘always’ been happy to have you as my partner Gamuza, and I always will be. And I know how jealous you are of Tim, simply because he’s giving me more happiness in life. I cherish ‘both’ of you; you just have to understand that you and he are on two different levels of relationship. You are the closest person to my soul, while he is the closest person to my heart.” She clarified.

Gamuza chuckled lowly. “Heart? You’re a hollow Nelliel, you don’t have a heart, the same as me. Whatever heart you had before, you lost it when you became a hollow.”

The woman only grinned at her. “That’s where you are wrong, Gamuza. I may have lost my heart in the past, but I managed to get it back. And regardless of how much it may displease you, I intend to keep it. And even if you could somehow take it away, good luck; because, if you want the truth, Tim has my heart, and always will. And I seriously doubt there’s anything you can do to change that.” She stated firmly.

She then grabbed the spirit’s hand and pulled herself from its grip, dropping to her feet in front of the Spirit before looking up at her with furrowed brows.

“You wanted the answer to your question, Gamuza? Fine. The answer is yes; if it is at all possible, I ‘would’ like to take Tim as my own. I would take him to be with me until time or battle finally claims us. Tim told me your reason for hating him so much, how you thought he was coming in-between us. Well, I can assure you Gamuza, that even ‘if’ he and I accepted each other for eternity, he ‘still’ wouldn’t hold the place I have for you in my soul. There is no one in any plane of existence that will be able to do that. You are my partner, and no one can ‘ever’ replace you. So whether or not you accept Tim is your choice; I will just have to be the one who suffers for it if you don’t.” she said in a hiss.

Gamuza stared the woman in the eyes, seeing the dedication she had in them and seeing that she meant every word. Finally, after a few moments, the spirit sighed with closed eyes.

“Just tell me something, Nel…how do you know you can trust him with your ‘heart’ like this? How can you possibly know that he won’t just turn around and leave you to save his own skin? Survival is everything, Nelliel; it’s just natural instinct to take the surest course to ensure survival. That goes for hollows, humans, even soul reapers. So just how can you possibly know for certain when his soul society finds out about you that he won’t just abandon you to save his own skin? And don’t give me that shit, ‘because he said so’, because that’s nothing but bullshit.” She asked calmly.

Nel’s shoulders slumped a bit before she turned to look out at the lake. “Because in my heart…I ‘know’ he cares so much for me. I can feel it inside that he truly wishes to protect me, wants to be with me. I know it may not sound right to you Gamuza, and it’s really hard to explain, but I just ‘know’ that he means every word.” She answered, then looked back at the spirit. “All I’m asking is that you let him show that to you, that he ‘does’ care for me like he says he does. You can’t expect him to be absolutely perfect, Gamuza. He’s going to make mistakes every now and then, even sometimes hurt me inside, as I will him. But I will forgive him, and I’m sure he would forgive me. That is how much I care for him, that I am more than willing to accept the inevitable pains that will occur at times. So I’m asking you, will you do the same, for me?”

The spirit averted her gaze from the woman and sighed heavily. “I can’t promise you a thing in that regard, Nelliel. And you’re right, I don’t have the slightest clue as to what you mean about ‘feeling it inside yourself’. But…” She then turned back to her. “…for the sake of our partnership, I will give him the chance you’re asking of me. However, it comes at a price.” She warned.

The Arrancar took a calming breath and nodded. “And that is?” she pressed.

Gamuza furrowed her brows beneath her mask. “Should the day come when you no longer view him as fondly as you currently do, ‘I’ will be the one to kill him.” She informed.

Nel rose a brow at her. “I don’t see the difference from before, Gamuza.”

The spirit rose a finger. “Except that this time, his life is now in your hands, Nelliel. The moment that you lose any interest in him, I will take his life. And the same goes for him. The instant that he loses ‘his’ interest in ‘you’, his life is also forfeit. I will take control again, and kill him with your hands. So for his sake, everything had better work out between you two. And he had better fight to his dying breath to protect you from the soul society. If I get so much as a funny feeling that he might turn against you for his own skin, he dies. You are my partner, and half of my soul; I will fight everything and everyone to ensure ‘our’ survival, Nelliel. Don’t forget that.”

Gamuza was almost taken by surprise when Nel walked up and threw her arms around the spirit’s torso, hugging her tightly with tears in her eyes.

“Thank you…so much, Gamuza. That’s really all I’m asking for is for him to have a chance. I’m so glad to have you as my partner.” She said tearfully.

The spirit rolled her eyes with a scoff, unable to prevent the smile that crept onto her face. “Yeah yeah, whatever. You’re lucky no one can see us, or I’d have to kick you to the ground.” She shot back, returning the gesture.

They held each other for a few moments before Gamuza raised a hand and touched a finger to the woman’s mask. “But I still want you to get that shop keeper to get busy with whatever is happing in this regard. This still worries me a great deal, and we need a way to fix it.”

The two released where Nel nodded firmly. “I will speak to him about it, promise. I should go now, I still have a few things to take care of before we leave.” She returned.

Gamuza then gave her a dangerous glare. “I still think this is a foolish mistake, Nelliel; going back to Hueco Mundo for this human girl. At least with only the four of you. You should know that that bastard Aizen is likely expecting this, right?”

Nel sighed with a nod. “I’m aware, but we can’t leave Orihime to be a victim of that madman’s experiments. We owe it to her to at least try to save her, even you agreed to that.”

“I did. Look Nelliel, all I’m telling you is that I want you to be careful. Without my blade, there is nothing I can do to help you. Besides the brat and his two friends, you’re on your own. And speaking of the brat, make sure he knows that if he doesn’t punish that fucking fox of his for her jokes, I’ll beat the shit out of her. And that is not an idle threat, I ‘mean’ it.” Gamuza warned dangerously.

Nel’s expression changed to one of hatred. “You don’t have to worry about that, Gamuza. Because if he doesn’t, ‘I’ will! She is ‘mine’, and you will ‘not’ interfere!” she hissed.

Gamuza chuckled darkly at that. “That’s my girl!”

** Urahara Shop **

Nel slowly opened her eyes in her sitting position on her bed, a few stray tears remaining in her eyes from the relief that her hollow spirit wouldn’t hate Timothy as much anymore. A smile came to her face as she moved her hand to wipe the tears away.

“You’re back?” a quiet voice asked.

The woman froze upon recognizing the voice, and swiftly turned to see Kitsune sitting on her legs next to her. The spirit’s head was down, and she had a very saddened expression on her face as she gripped the fur of her legs tightly in her fists.

Nel sighed heavily and turned away from her. “What is it, Kit?” she asked as calmly as she could.

Kitsune could sense the disdain in the woman’s voice, and it made her flinch a bit. But she managed to surprise the angered woman by dropping her head down to the floor in a respectful bow, causing Nel to look at her in confusion.

“I want to apologize for my comments and remarks earlier, Nel. I may be Tim’s partner, but what you two do, or not do, is not my business. I shouldn’t have made fun of you for it, and I was an ass for it. The last thing I want is for us to lose our friendship, so I am sorry for what I said.” She admitted in a low voice.

Nel stared at the downed spirit for nearly a minute, honestly not believing that she would go such lengths just to apologize the her. But she finally offered a weak smile and nodded.

“It’s…It’s alright, Kit. Please don’t do that. Get up.” She said, watching as the spirit reluctantly sat back up straight, but with her head still hung low. Nel then turned her body to face the spirit fully and rested a hand on top of hers. “I am still upset, Kit…but I do forgive you. I know how you are, and that you really don’t mean anything by it. But please…try not to go too far anymore.” She followed with a smile.

Kitsune found herself smiling as well, although very weakly. “I don’t know how you could have the patience with me, Nel. You have a whole lot more than Tim does.” She informed.

Nel had to chuckled at that. “I’m glad. But, just so you know…” she started, her pause making the spirit look at her fully as she raised a finger. “…if Tim doesn’t get you back for your comments, I will.” She informed, making Kitsune start to sweat. “I may forgive you Kit, but that does not mean you are getting away with what you did.”

The spirit had to swallow the lump in her throat. “Uh…do I need to fill out my will?” she asked in fear.

The Arrancar touched her finger to her chin. “Well, I’m not going to kill you…but then again, accidents ‘do’ happen sometimes.” She concluded in a mumble, making the spirit sweat even more.

Gamuza laughing in her mind almost broke her demeaner. **_“Oh, this is good. It’s about time ‘she’ does the sweating around here. If I were there, I’d be making her tremble in her fear.”_** She informed.

Nel was almost tempted to do just that, but she had already lost a lot of time with the whole ordeal and needed to get ready for the trip to Hueco Mundo. She ended up simply lowering her hand and waving the spirit off.

“I wouldn’t worry about it, Kit. In truth, I would be more worried about what Tim might do. But I should get going. I still need to meet with Kisuke and make sure the garganta is ready to be opened, then finish a few other last-minute preparations.” She relented.

Kitsune dropped her head again with a moan. “I’m too young to die.” She whined, getting a laugh from Nel.

“Well Kit…” she started, pausing a moment to stand up and look down on the wailing spirit. “…I suppose you may have learned your lesson this time.” She concluded with an evil smile.

The spirit was on the verge of tears as Nel turned and walked out of the room. She could hear Gamuza snickering inside her head, and she could only sigh and shake her head at the sound.

**_“Nicely done, Nelliel. Although, something tells me that the stupid fox did ‘not’ learn her lesson.”_** She commented.

Nel froze with her hand hovering over the latch to Kisuke’s lab, her face fallen. _“You know what Gamuza…for some reason I don’t think so either. In fact…I doubt she ever will learn her lesson.”_ She returned as she pulled down on the latch and entered the lab.

Locking the door behind her, she turned to look deeper into the shop owner’s laboratory to see him standing in front of a large monitor and pressing numerous keys on a vastly oversized keyboard.

Taking a deep breath to clear her head, the woman began walking up to the man and came to a stop behind him and slightly to the side.

“Kisuke.” She called.

The man stopped what he was doing and gave her his full attention. “Yes, miss Nel?”

“We need to talk…about my problem.” She informed.

Kisuke immediately adopted a serious expression as he nodded. “I see…then I suppose this means that more of your mask is missing?” he questioned.

Nel closed her eyes while taking a sharp breath, then nodded back. “Yes.” She answered.

“Mind if I ask how much worse it has gotten?” he pressed.

The woman raised her hand up to her mask, using it to cover the area past the halfway point of its eye socket. Urahara’s brow rose in surprise as he took in what the woman was telling him.

“This is not good in the least, but frankly, it is not as bad as I had thought it would be by now.” He offered calmly.

Nel dropped her hand as she tilted her head. “What do you mean? You thought it would be worse than it is?”

Kisuke nodded firmly. “Judging by the rate of decay, for lack of a more appropriate term, I had expected your mask to have been at least half gone by now. But now that you’ve shown me that’s not the case, I believe the acceleration of decay has stopped, and your mask is now fading at a constant rate. ‘This’ is good, because I can now give you a more definitive estimation of time before your mask completely vanishes.”

The Arrancar nodded in understanding. “So…how long, Kisuke?”

The man eyed her mask for a moment in silence before returning to her eyes. “If the rate of decay does not change at all, two weeks.” He informed, watching as the woman dropped her head in fear. The man took a slow breath before continuing. “However, after analyzing the samples of you and Gamuza’s spiritual pressures, I may have come up with a temporary method to buy you some time before your mask completely vanishes. Please wait here.” He instructed, then stepped away towards his desk.

Nel raised her head and watched the man dig around in one of his drawers searching for something. Not even a minute later, the shop owner returned and presented her with what looked like a collar.

“Please put this on, miss Nel.” He asked calmly.

She grabbed the object from his hand and held it up to inspect it. “What is it?” she inquired.

“It’s an accessory I developed using your spiritual pressure as a basis. Unlike spirit energy, where your wrists are the major outflow for it, spiritual pressure pulses through the body, originating from the chest and flowing outwards. The neck and head are where the larger portions of your spiritual pressure flow to first, and this device is designed to dissipate it.” He educated.

Nel rose a brow at him. “This absorbs spiritual pressure?” she inquired.

Kisuke nodded. “In a way, yes. It interrupts much of the flow of spiritual pressure in the area it is attached to; in this case, around your neck. It then takes that spiritual pressure and dissolves it. I’ve designed it target the portions of your spiritual pressure that are not hollow in general, meaning that it will help keep the current balance of hollow and human pressures. However, as this is only a last-minute prototype, it can only handle so much before it inevitably fails, allowing your spiritual pressure to continue unobstructed. I’ll try to come up with a more effective and longer-lasting unit by the time the team returns. While you are using it, you will notice yourself become considerably weaker as far as dealing strong attacks. That is why I would recommend removing it should you find yourself in a tough battle, putting it back on once you are finished.” He advised.

The woman looked back at the device and sighed. “And how much time will this buy me?”

“With how far your mask has already decayed…a week at best. As long as you use this device without putting too much strain on it, it would bring you up to three weeks. But you need to keep in mind, miss Nel, the more spiritual pressure you emanate, the shorter its lifespan. So you need to avoid exerting too much while wearing it. And this also does not stop the rate of decay, it only slows it down for a while. While the four of you are gone to Hueco Mundo, I’ll also do what research I can and try to find a way to stop, and hopefully reverse the damage.” He offered.

Nel sighed heavily. “I understand, thank you. But I am curious…if this restricts and dissipates my spiritual pressure, does this mean it will be harder for others to detect me as well?”

Kisuke grinned a bit. “That’s good thinking, miss Nel. In fact, it does. While you are wearing this, your spiritual pressure will be considerably more difficult to detect. But as I said, because of this your attacks will be weaker as well.”

The woman nodded and began strapping the collar around her neck. “To be honest, I am hoping to avoid any conflict while we are there. But unfortunately, I doubt that will be possible.” She admitted as she walked to a nearby mirror.

She gave herself a quick look over, and although she felt really odd wearing the collar, she had to admit that it honestly didn’t look all that bad. It rode low on her neck, just an inch above her collarbone, and didn’t obstruct her breathing at all.

Kisuke grinned as he pulled his fan up to his face. “Well, how does it look, miss Nel? Is this something you would consider as a future fashion statement?” he teased.

Nel turned and gave him a deadpanned expression. “That is very unlikely, Kisuke. But I must admit that it doesn’t look half-bad. Just don’t get used to it.” She informed.

The man chuckled. “Alright alright. And how do you feel now?”

The woman rotated her head around a few times and took a few deep breaths. “It’s not uncomfortable, and I can feel it affecting me. I suddenly feel…constricted inside.”

**_“I can feel it from you as well, Nelliel. And it doesn’t seem to be affecting me at the moment.”_** Gamuza confirmed.

Nel nodded. “Gamuza says the same thing, and that she doesn’t feel affected by it.”

Kisuke lowered his fan and nodded. “I’m afraid that’s really all I can do to help at the moment, miss Nel. Hopefully I’ll have found something else by the time you return.”

The Arrancar looked at him and smiled. “No, it’s fine, Kisuke. Thank you so much for your help with this. I really don’t know what I could have done without it.”

The shop owner smiled back. “Not a problem, miss Nel. I’m happy to help. You should finish getting ready for the mission. The garganta is all ready to go, so everyone can leave on time. Thank you for your help in that regards.”

Nel chuckled a bit. “Of course. I’ll see you in a little while, Kisuke.” She said with a wave, leaving for the lab door.

Once the woman closed the door behind her, the smile on Kisuke’s face instantly fell before walking back to his computer and pressing a few keys. The screen changed to show a few sets of bar graphs, each one slightly different than the other.

Kisuke studied the graphs for a moment before glancing back towards the door. “Something about this doesn’t seem right. It’s almost as if…” he mumbled to himself before pressing another key and clearing the screen.

** Underground Training Area, 1 Hour Later **

Yoruichi wandered around the far edge of the training area as she continued her search for Timothy. As he had demanded, Tessai placed one of his strongest concealing barriers around him while he was training, making him impossible for even her to detect.

She had been searching for nearly an hour so she could talk with him and apologize for her and Kitsune’s teasing, but no matter how hard she tried, she still couldn’t sense him; all the more reason for the former Captain to praise the former Kidō Commander for his spells, and yell at him for causing her so much trouble.

She sighed heavily and was just about to give up, until she came around a boulder and finally spotted the young Lieutenant sitting down with his legs crossed and his back against the wall.

The woman took a deep breath and began walking up to the man, only to stop a short distance away when she saw numerous cuts and scratches all over his body. She crossed her arms and grinned a bit.

“Your zanpakutō’s really giving it to ya, huh Tim?” she asked under her voice.

She could see the man’s eyes flinch, in what seemed to be pain, every few seconds, telling her that his zanpakutō had likely scored another hit on him in his inner world.

It was only when she looked down at the blade lying across his lap that she noticed the blade was glowing a dull red. Her brows rose in surprise, because she knew that that meant that he was close to completing his training.

Although he never said anything directly, she could guess as to what he was training for; and she knew that he would likely need what his zanpakutō was teaching him to help him on the mission.

The woman decided it was best not to interfere, choosing instead to take a seat on the edge of a nearby boulder and wait until either the man was finished, or it was time for them to leave.

As she sat there, she ran her words through her mind to determine the best way to phrase her apology. But she didn’t get that long to think, as the sound of Timothy groaning in discomfort drew her attention back to him.

The Lieutenant was rubbing his head slowly, likely trying to quell some of the pain he was probably feeling. The man then dropped his hand and laid his head back to the ceiling with closed eyes.

Yoruichi rose a brow at him. “I take it you finished your training?” she questioned kindly.

Timothy’s head snapped to her, not realizing that she was even there, before giving her a hateful glare. “What do you want, Yoruichi? If it’s for more of your stupid comments, save it; I ain’t listening.” He shot out.

The woman sighed and shook her head. “No, I actually came to apologize for earlier. I know I kinda promised to lay off you two, but I really couldn’t help it. It’s just who I am. Would you like me any less if I wasn’t?” she tried.

The man expression didn’t change. “Would you like it if I was the one teasing and torturing you?” he returned.

Yoruichi couldn’t stop the smug grin coming to her face. “Actually, I would. But, I know what you’re asking, and if I was anyone else, probably not. And not that it’s an acceptable defense or anything, but you could lighten up a bit, you know.” She pointed out.

“You’re right, it’s not. And you should know that Nel feels so out of place being here, Yoruichi. And yours and Kit’s endless jokes and schemes ain’t helping all that much to make her feel at home. All she wants is a normal life again, to not be the monster everyone else thinks she is; and all your teasing is doing is making her feel unwelcome, like she’s doing something wrong. Did you ever stop to think about that?” he questioned.

The woman sighed again. “Well, if you put it like that, I guess you’ve got a point. I can’t promise that the jokes and all will stop, but I can promise that I’ll lighten up on em. Sound fair?” she offered.

Timothy moaned in aggravation. “I guess that’s the best I’m gonna get outta you, so I guess so. Just stop making her feel like she’s an outcast, will ya?” he pleaded.

Yoruichi smiled with a nod. “You got it. So, you gonna tell me a little about your zanpakutō? Like what his name is?” she inquired.

The man smirked and shook his head. “That’s a secret that only my first opponent gets to learn first, Yoruichi. Maybe if you behave, I’ll even let you have a taste of his power.” He taunted.

The woman gave him a toothy grin. “I look forward to it. Anyway, I’ve gotta go find Nel and apologize to her as well. See ya later, Tim.” she said before standing and vanishing.

Timothy shook his head with a chuckle. “It still doesn’t mean I don’t wanna kill ya, Yoruichi.” He mumbled.

** Three Hours Later **

After recruiting the help of Renji, Rukia, and Rangiku, with Kisuke providing a distraction, the group was able to switch out Orihime’s body with the shop keepers perfect copy of it, returning it to the shop and placing it inside one of his cold storages.

Of course, seeing the teen’s dead body unnerved the three soul reapers and made them worry about the girl’s current state. But all it took was a quick and very effective encouragement from Kisuke and Yoruichi to get their spirits back up.

And now, with just under an hour until they were supposed to leave for Hueco Mundo, Toshiro had everyone gathered at the dining room table to discuss final plans and preparation; with Ichigo in attendance so that he would be aware of what they planned to do.

“So what exactly is your plan once you get inside Las Noches? Just how do you plan to find Orihime?” Ichigo questioned.

Nel turned to face him. “I believe that Aizen may be keeping her in one of the palaces, the only problem is finding out which one. Each Espada has their own, and there are several rooms per palace. As much as I don’t like it, we may ‘have’ to split up.” She advised.

“And what if she’s not in one of the palaces? Where do you think Aizen would keep her then?” Timothy furthered.

The woman shook her head. “The only thing I can think of is the dungeons. But those are in the main building where Aizen resides. If she is down there, it may be close to impossible to get her.” She answered in a saddened voice.

“Are you sure there are no other ways to get into Las Noches?” Toshiro asked.

Nel lifted her head and hummed in thought. “Well…there is one way. There are dozens of old tunnels and passageways that run under Las Noches. They were there far before Aizen even came to Las Noches, and it’s possible he might not know about them.”

Renji rose a brow. “If Aizen was there before you were Nel, then how do you know about them?” he questioned firmly.

The woman rubbed the back of her head sheepishly. “Well…there were a lot of times where none of us were really doing anything. One day, I got so bored that I decided to explore a bit and I came upon the exit to one of the tunnels by accident in my palace. And I…may have gotten lost a few times while exploring them.”

“Do any of these tunnels lead outside?” Timothy asked.

Nel nodded and dropped her hand. “I found a few on the south side of Las Noches, about ten kilometers away. I remember where these entrances are, but I don’t remember the layout of the tunnels. I can take you to one of them if you’d like, but we may end up getting lost inside.” She warned.

Rukia sighed and crossed her arms. “Well…either we take the known way and have a high chance of being discovered, or we take the unknown and increase our chances of getting inside without being discovered.” She weighed out.

Timothy cupped his chin in thought. “A day to get there, and a day to find Orihime. Traipsing around in those tunnels will eat up a lot of our time, and that’s only if we don’t get hopelessly lost. Captain…” he started, getting the man’s attention. “…you said you didn’t tell the soul society we were leaving early, right?” he inquired, getting a nod. “If that’s the case…we may be able to stay there longer.”

Renji’s eyes widened a bit. “What are you getting at, Tim?”

The Lieutenant turned to him. “According to what the Captain told them, we’ll be leaving in a few days, and we have two days to find her from then. But we’re leaving a few days ‘early’, so even if we stayed one or two days longer, we would still get back in time by their deadline.” He pointed out.

Toshiro furrowed his brows. “You want to make this trip longer?” he asked in shock.

Timothy held a hand up. “Look, just hear me out. What if we stay for six days, one day to get there, and five to plot the tunnels and get a firsthand look at what we need to do? Nel said she only found one entrance to the tunnels from inside, and I’m willing to bet that there’s more; maybe even one for each building. And if Aizen doesn’t know about them, we can use those tunnels as a quick getaway if we are discovered. By that time, we’ll have a basic understanding of the tunnel system, while they won’t. If anything, they’ll even get lost themselves if they try to follow us.”

Ikkaku raised a brow before looking at Toshiro. “That actually sounds like a good idea to me, Captain.”

Rukia smiled with a nod. “And if you think about the long run, we may even be able to use those tunnels in the future.” She added.

Toshiro groaned as he rubbed his temples. “But still, adding more days to the mission is risky.”

“And sending four people to search the entirety of Las Noches for one person in two days isn’t? I think we should do it, Captain. Getting those extra days would give us more breathing room to try and locate Orihime, and get her out of there.” Renji advised.

Timothy snorted at him. “When you think about it, he really doesn’t have a choice in the matter. Afterall, Nel’s the one who has to open the garganta for us to get back home, right?”

The Captain glared dangerously at the man. “Are you saying that you would willingly disobey my orders if I told you not to stay longer, Lieutenant?” he hissed.

The man shrugged a shoulder. “Wouldn’t be the first time, and likely not going to be the last either. Orihime is my friend, and I’ll gladly disobey any order you give me to save her life.” He defended weakly.

Toshiro closed his eyes in anger at the Lieutenant. “Fine. six days, and not a second longer.” He ordered.

Timothy smirked at him. “Thank you. So, I guess the final plan is to spend a day getting there, four days figuring out the tunnels, and the last day to actually rescue Orihime. While we’re plotting the tunnels, it might be a good idea to sneak around on occasion and see if we can overhear anything about where Orihime might be.”

Ichigo growled lowly. “I should be going with you. I can handle myself, and that old man had no right to order me around.” He seethed.

Rukia rested a hand on the teen’s shoulder. “Hold on, Ichigo. The Head Captain is wise, and if he wants you to stay behind, he must have a reason for it.”

The teen glared at his friend in anger. “I don’t care! Orihime is my friend, and that old man just wants me to sit around?! That’s bullshit!” he yelled.

Kisuke lowered his fan. “Calm down, Ichigo. Miss Rukia is right, the Head Captain wouldn’t have ordered this without good reason. And besides, there is something that I would like for you, Chad and Uryū to do for me while they are gone.”

Ichigo gave the man an odd look. “And what’s that?” he demanded.

The shop owner waved him off with his fan. “Oh, just few errands I need you to take care of just outside of town. Nothing too difficult, just pick up a few things for the shop is all. Just relax and trust Tim, Rukia, Renji and Nel to get Orihime back.”

Timothy nodded firmly. “Yeah, we’ve already been over this like a million times already, Ichigo. We’re going to get her back, we promise.” He affirmed.

Ichigo growled loudly before standing up. “You better.” He hissed, then turned and left the shop in a brisk walk; slamming the door behind him.

Rukia sighed and started rubbing her temples. “Ichigo…you really need to learn when to calm down.” She mumbled.

“Can’t really blame him. In my opinion, he should be going with us.” Renji commented.

“I agree, but the Head Captain’s orders are above our opinions. Kisuke, I assume the garganta is ready?” Toshiro asked.

The man nodded with a smirk. “Whenever you are.” He answered.

The Captain nodded. “Good. Then everybody head downstairs and get ready.” He instructed, then turned to Nel. “Nel, before you leave, I would like a word with you.”

The woman nodded, where everyone stood up and started heading to the basement; all except her and Toshiro, who went to her room and closed the door. The Captain stared at her intently for a moment before sighing.

“It is pointless to ask if I can trust you, because regardless of what you say, only your actions can prove otherwise. As of yet, you have not done anything to lessen my trust in you, but this mission will hold a lot of weight in whether or not that trust improves. With that in mind, I am aware that you are severely limited in your fighting capabilities at the moment. Due to the amount of danger this mission holds, it would be foolish to allow you to go while in your current state.” He stated.

Nel rose a brow at him in confusion. “I understand that, Captain. But what else can I do?” she questioned.

Toshiro glared daggers into the woman’s eyes before surprising her by removing Gamuza, who was strapped to his back next to Hyōrinmaru, and held it at his side. She eyed the sheathed blade for a moment before looking back at him.

“You asked me over and over this past week to give you the chance to earn my trust Nel, so here is your chance. If you are able to bring everyone back, and if I receive no complaints against you, then will you earn my trust. For now…” The man paused and held Gamuza out to her. “…take your zanpakutō, and make sure everyone comes back.” He instructed.

Nel stared down at the blade, still a bit shocked that the man was returning it to her. She was seriously starting to think that it was all a test, which would make sense so the Captain could rest easily without having to worry about her turning on them.

The woman narrowed her eyes and looked back at him. “Are you sure you want to do this, Captain? You are aware that of the three going besides me, Tim is likely the only one who may possibly defeat me if I decide to turn against you, right?” she challenged.

Toshiro glared right back. “Are you saying that you will, Nel?” he returned.

“No, I will not. But then again, are you really sure my words are true? Can you say for certainty that everything I have said since you have known about me is the truth? I am no fool, Captain Hitsugaya. I know for a fact that everything I just said has crossed your mind on multiple occasions. In fact, I am willing to bet that thought was on your mind as you presented Gamuza to me. So answer me this: with all of this in mind, why are you allowing me to rearm myself?” she questioned dangerously.

The Captain stared right into her eyes as he answered. “I see what you are implying, Nel, and I guess I can’t hide it. The truth is, is that I have actually come to trust you more than I am willing to admit, even to myself. So I guess I’ll put this bluntly; I am trusting you to fight for us and to help rescue Orihime Inoue. I trust you enough that you may walk amongst us armed. But that does not change what I said. This success or failure of this mission will determine whether or not that trust builds, or shatters.”

Nel continued to stare firmly at him for a moment longer, until she slowly smiled and nodded. “I understand. Whether or not you choose to accept this, I can assure you that I will do everything within my abilities to make sure everyone comes back.” She stated, accepting Gamuza from the Captain’s hands.

Toshiro crossed his arms and nodded back. “See that you do.” He ordered, turning and leaving the room.

The woman watched as he left before looking down at her zanpakutō. “I guess we’ll be fighting together for this, Gamuza.” She whispered.

The hollow spirit chuckled evilly. **_“Bout damn time that midget Captain gave me back to you. I know you don’t care to much for fighting Nelliel, but it’s been too long for me. I just hope we get a chance at that lanky bastard Nnoitra for breaking me in the first place.”_** She sneered.

Nel closed her eyes in anger at the Espada’s name. “No…I hate fighting, Gamuza. However, punishing Nnoitra for what he did to you…Pesche…Dondochakka…that is the only exception. If we come across him, I would gladly fight to kill him.” She assured.

Gamuza chuckled even darker. **_“Ooooh…I like this new Nelliel. So dark, and bloodthirsty.”_**

The Arrancar’s face fell a bit. “I am not bloodthirsty, Gamuza; I will still try to avoid fighting as much as possible. But if Nnoitra gets involved, I will give him the fight he has always demanded from me; a fight to the death.”

**_“Don’t matter, it still works for me. It’ll be nice to fight with you again, Nelliel. Oh, how I’ve missed it.”_** The spirit admitted.

Nel could only smile at her remark. “Me too, Gamuza. But if we are lucky, I may not even have to draw your blade.” She concluded, then left the room herself to join the others downstairs.

When she came to the bottom of the ladder, Nel turned around to see the entire group standing before two tall boulders. As she walked closer, she noticed that Kisuke and Tessai were standing on top of two long beams that protruded from the front of them.

She looked to her left and saw the empty gigais of Timothy, Rukia, and Renji laid down against the side of another large boulder; telling her that she should do the same before joining the rest of the group.

Setting Gamuza down for a moment, see pressed the hand of Rukia’s gigai, that still had the soul ejecting glove on, to her chest, pushing herself from her faux body. Taking a moment to lay her body next to the others, she then picked Gamuza back up and slipped her into her sash on the left side.

As she turned to join the others, she reached up and noticed that the collar Kisuke had made for her had transitioned to her spiritual form as well, and she could still feel the effect it was having on her spiritual pressure.

Timothy was quick to notice the collar as she walked up, raising a brow in surprise. “What’s up with the collar, Nel?” he inquired.

She offered him a warm smile in response. “It’s something Kisuke built for me to help hide my spiritual pressure. That way I’ll be harder to detect.” she lied; although it really wasn’t much of a lie, even though it was dissipating her spiritual pressure rather than suppressing it.

“Won’t that interfere while fighting?” Renji asked.

She nodded in return. “Yes, but I’ll just take it off if I have to fight.”

That’s when Timothy also noticed Gamuza was attached to her side. He gave Toshiro a quick glance in surprise, but chose not to say anything.

“Alrighty!” Kisuke yelled, getting everyone’s attention. “I’m about to open the garganta. As I explained before, the space beyond the gate is nothing but an endless void. Miss Nel will be honoring us by providing a pathway for you to use to get to the other side and enter Hueco Mundo. I must stress that no one strays from the path that miss Nel creates. For once you fall into the eternal abyss, there is no return. Miss Nel, do you have anything to add?” he offered, direction all attention to her.

The woman sighed heavily. “We will be exiting the garganta just outside the Menos Forest. While weaker hollows normally don’t leave the forest, that does not mean we won’t run into an occasional straggler. More importantly, we should keep a close eye out for any Adjuchas, and possibly Vasto Lorde that are roaming the dessert. Normally, a brief flash of my spiritual pressure would warn them to stay away; but seeing as the mission relies on discretion, that won’t be an option. If we do come across one, we must fight together and defeat it quickly, hopefully without releasing our zanpakutōs.”

Her friends nodded and Renji took over. “Once we enter the tunnels, we’ll split up and start mapping it. If you find an exit into Las Noches, snoop around for some information if you can, but try not to get spotted. After those two days are up, we’ll meet back up and discuss our plan for getting Orihime.”

“Just to be clear, if you ‘are’ spotted, try to get some distance and make it back into the tunnels without them seeing you. If they follow you in, try to run em around in circles along a route that you know. With luck, you’ll lose em in the tunnels.” Timothy jumped in, getting nods back.

“Once we’ve found and rescued Orihime, if we’re split up, get back together the fastest way possible. The sooner we get outta there, the better.” Renji furthered.

Everyone nodded once more and Kisuke knelt down on the beam. “Well then, if everyone is ready, we’ll begin.”

As Kisuke began his chanting to open the garganta in a low tone, Timothy turned around to face Nel fully; offering her a kind smile that she returned.

“Ready to go play some hardcore hide-and-seek?” he teased.

The woman chuckled and shook her head at the joke. “I think it’s more like tag, and we’re the ones on the run.” She returned.

Timothy raised his head a bit. “Actually…when you think about it, it’s more like a mix of the two; only you’re not ‘out’ if you’re caught.” He thought aloud.

Nel rolled her eyes at him. “Then let’s try ‘not’ to get caught, shall we?” she proposed.

“Sounds good to me.” He confirmed.

Their conversation was interrupted by the signature sound of the sky ripping apart as Kisuke’s garganta split the air in front of them open. Timothy looked inside at the black abyss and he suddenly got a cold sensation running down his spine.

“Man…that’s creepy as hell.” he commented, but Nel only shrugged.

“It’s really not that bad once you’ve gotten used to it. I actually don’t mind it. It’s almost soothing to me for some reason.” She admitted.

Timothy rolled his eyes to her with a smirk. “Maybe it’s because you’re part hollow?” He teased.

The woman gave him a deadpanned expression. “Ha ha.” She mocked, making him snicker a bit.

“Alright you two, how about we go save Orihime before you start going for each other’s throats.” Rukia insisted.

Timothy scoffed with a roll of the eyes. “Nel wouldn’t do that, would ya Nel?”

The woman smiled deviously. “I don’t know…I am part hollow after all.” She teased.

The man snorted. “Touché” he returned, and started walking into the dark portal, followed closely by the others.

“You make sure you bring my girl Orihime back you four.” Rangiku said with a smile.

The team waved over their shoulders as the portal snapped shut behind them, sealing them off from the world behind. While Rangiku, Ikkaku, and Yumichika left to go about their duties, Toshiro remained in place and stared at the spot where the garganta was.

Kisuke leapt from his spot on the beam to land next to the short Captain, pulling his fan out and waving it. “Well, it’s in their hands, Captain Hitsugaya. So what is your next move?” he inquired.

The Captain took a breath before responding. “Nothing. The rest of us will continue to protect Karakura Town until they return. Have you put any thought into what we should do with Inoue once they bring her back?”

The shop owner stopped his fan and glanced down at the man. “Not yet. Between setting up the garganta and preparing to switch out miss Inoue’s body, I’m afraid I haven’t had the time. But now that the team in underway, I suppose I should start thinking of possible solutions on the matter. Have you spoken with the Head Captain about allowing her to stay in the soul society for a while?”

Toshiro sighed and turned to face him with crossed arms. “Not yet. I would prefer to wait until the team returns with her before I bring that request before the Head Captain. For now, she will just have to stay here…if they manage to succeed.” He relented.

Kisuke rose a brow skeptically. “Are you having doubt they will succeed, Captain?” he questioned.

The Captain furrowed his brows. “Of course not! But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t face the facts. You and I both know that the odds are stacked completely against them. I have no doubt in their abilities, but if they are not careful, they may not come back at all. That is just the simple fact of the matter.” He pointed out firmly.

Urahara chuckled lowly. “True, but nevertheless, I believe they’ll be successful. In any case, I need to return to my lab. There’s still a few more things I need to take care of in preparation for miss Inoue’s return from Hueco Mundo. If you’ll excuse me.”

Receiving a nod from the Captain, Kisuke turned and began walking back towards his lab. Once he was positive he was out of earshot, he pulled his phone from his coat and dialed a number.

It rang only once before he heard a voice answer. “Hello…”

A grin fell upon Urahara’s face. “Uryū! So nice to hear from you! How goes it?!” he asked in a chipper voice.

The line was silent for a moment before the teen answered. “If you are calling, then I assume the team has left for Hueco Mundo?” he asked in a whisper.

“Oh yes, our friends are on their way. And now that they are, I was wondering…” he started.

Uryū waited for the man to continue, but got impatient. “…Yes?” he pressed.

Kisuke’s grin grew wider. “Do you have some time to spare to discuss our conversation after our last meeting?”

The teen now had a serious tone to his voice. “Of course, but I am afraid meeting at the shop will not be possible right now. I shouldn’t even be talking to you, as you are aware.”

The shop owner grinned at the teen’s statement, knowing exactly what the teen was referring to.

During Ichigo and his friends’ trip to the soul society to save Rukia from execution, an execution orchestrated by Aizen, Uryū had met and fought against the Captain of Squad 12, Mayuri Kurotsuchi.

Although the teen had won the fight against the insane scientist, the victory had come at a high cost. The technique he had used to deliver the attack, that very nearly killed the Captain, basically destroyed his Quincy powers and rendered him no more than a typical human.

It was only thanks to his father, Ryūken, who had offered to train him, that he was able to reacquire his Quincy powers. But the Ishida senior had set a condition for the training, one that Uryū was now bound to.

In exchange for his father’s training, Uryū was instructed to never again have any ties to soul reapers, or any of their associates. Although he was very displeased with the condition, Uryū still accepted; unwilling to remain helpless around his friends.

The meeting to discuss Orihime’s alleged death was the only time Uryū had been to Kisuke’s shop, or had any form of contact with soul reapers, since his agreement; and he was not willing to disregard something so important that involved one of his closest friends.

The only reason the teen was speaking with the man now, was because after the meeting had concluded, Kisuke had told him that he knew full well about he and his father’s agreement.

He also made the point that he could still ‘legally’ speak with him and not break his agreement; telling him that he was not associated with soul reapers, that he was nothing more than a ‘simple candy store owner’ and soul reapers just ‘happen’ to come by and buy his ‘special candy’.

Although it sounded foolish and backhanded, the Quincy had to admit that the man had a valid point. It was after that discussion that Kisuke informed him he wanted to have a private talk once the team left for Hueco Mundo.

“I wouldn’t worry about it, Uryū. How about, sayyy…Chad’s place? Since Renji is away for the next few days, we can have our discussion in private. Sound good?” Kisuke inquired.

He could hear the teen sigh through the phone. “Fine. I’ll be there in an hour.” He informed, then hung up.

Kisuke chuckled briefly as he pocketed his phone and came to a stop at the ladder. “Well, phase one is completed. Now to prepare for phase two.” He said to himself, then vanished.

** Hueco Mundo, 15 Minutes Later **

Timothy and the group looked around at the vast, open dessert in the night air as the artificial garganta snapped shut behind them; and they all knew that Nel was now their only way to get back to the world of the living.

But Timothy didn’t even bother to think on that one as he looked up into the starless sky, seeing only the crescent shaped moon high in the sky. This confused him, and made him wonder if time in Hueco Mundo was different than in the living world.

“How long do you think it’ll be until morning, Nel?” he inquired.

Nel chuckled at the question. “There won’t be a morning, Tim. It is always night in Hueco Mundo. Where the moon is now, is where it has always been; at least as far as I can remember.” He announced, getting a shocked look from him.

“You mean there’s no daytime? Talk about dull.” Renji blurted out.

The woman’s face fell a bit. “Yes, I agree. The others may have gotten used to it, but I never did.” She informed, then look up at the moon. “And every time I took the time to look at the moon, I always got this depressing feeling inside. Even before I became an Adjuchas, I always hated looking at that moon.”

Rukia stepped forward and tapped her on the arm. “Well, looking at it now is only going to cost us time; something we don’t have that much of. We should get going. Which way is it to Las Noches from here?” she asked calmly.

Nel dropped her head to the woman and pointed out to the north. “Do you see that building out in the distance?”

Everyone turned to where she was pointing, seeing what appeared to be a moderately-sized, semi-circular object of sorts not too far away.

“You mean that bubble looking thing?” Timothy asked.

Nel nodded and lowered her hand. “That’s Las Noches. It may seem small now, but it is actually quite large. It will take us a day to get there if we run most of the way.”

Timothy shrugged his shoulders. “Well, let’s get to it.” He concluded and got ready to start running.

But the group stopped when they heard a faint, roaring sound coming from behind them. They all turned around to the sound, but saw nothing there.

“We don’t need to worry about that one, it’s not even a menos. It’s probably trying to leave the forest.” She reassured.

“What forest? All I see is desert.” Renji asked.

Nel chuckled at him. “That’s because we’re standing over top of it.” She answered, getting odd looks from everyone. She then pointed at the ground. “The Menos Forest is under the ground. We’re actually at the edge of it now. As I said, you may see an occasional lower class hollow out here on the dunes, but they typically stay in the forest. Once a hollow evolves in an Adjuchas, usually they’ll leave the forest for good and live out here, like the others. That one is either a newcomer, or one that was foolish enough to try and leave the forest. But it would be a good idea to leave now. Weak hollows always attract stronger ones to feed on them, and I prefer not to be close by if an Adjuchas or Vasto Lorde comes looking for it.” She warned.

No one argued that fact and they all started running towards the building in this distance. They ran for nearly fifteen minutes before Renji spoke up again.

“Wouldn’t it be a bit faster if we used shunpo?” he put out.

Nel shook her head. “Yes, but shunpo and sonído require spirit energy to use, and that may give away our location. If we want to ensure they don’t know we are here, we want to avoid using them.”

Timothy grinned at the redhead. “What’s wrong? Getting tired already, Renji?” he taunted.

The man glared at him. “I didn’t say that, you idiot! I was just thinking of a way to get us there faster!” he yelled back.

The younger man rose a brow. “Wow, someone’s cranky this morning. Guess you really must be tired, huh?”

Renji clenched his teeth and bared a fist at him. “What did you say?!”

“Stop it you two! Not even twenty minutes and you’re already trying to kill each other!” Rukia yelled.

The redhead glared at her. “He’s the one who’s being an idiot.” He said in defense.

Timothy rolled his eyes. “Oh come on, Renji…we’ve got a whole day ahead of us, and I was just messing with ya to liven it up a bit.”

“Says the guy who loses it every time his own zanpakutō says something perverted.” He returned.

Timothy furrowed his brows with a growl. “You just ‘had’ to bring that up, didn’t you? Asshole.” He mumbled, hearing Kitsune snickering in his head.

Nel glanced over her shoulder a bit towards him. “Tim, I think you should drop it. I really don’t like where this is going.” She admitted with a tinge of red on her face.

The man sighed and nodded in defeat. “Alright, I’ll leave him alone.” He moaned.

Renji grinned before running a little closer to Rukia and leaning down close to her ear. “He’s so whipped.” He stated in a whisper.

Rukia had to grin as well. “Oh yeah he is. Just like I’ve got Ichigo whipped. You’d be surprised what a few kicks in his ass will do.” She informed.

The man snickered at the thought of the midget getting the better of someone who’s nearly twice her height. “Poor bastard. At least he doesn’t have a zanpakutō who’s only mission in life is to make him miserable, like Tim does.”

“I heard that, asshole!” Timothy yelled in anger.

Rukia slowed down a bit a look at him past Renji. “What? It’s true. It seems to us that all Kit ever does is torture the hell out of you.” She pointed.

The man’s face fell. “I can’t argue that one. Evil vixen.” He mumbled, earning laughs from the rest of the group and even more snickers from the spirit.

“It’s okay Tim, you know she doesn’t mean anything by it.” Nel said reassuringly.

Timothy deadpanned to her. “I don’t hear you saying that when ‘you’re’ the one who’s on the receiving end of her pranks.” He returned.

Her face lit up from embarrassment before turning back straight. “Damn fox.” She whined to herself.

“What’s wrong, Nel? Afterall, you should know she doesn’t mean anything by it.” He shot back with a toothy grin.

She snapped back to him in anger. “S…Shut up!”

The bickering and insults went on and on as the group continued their trek through the desert; the small figure of Las Noches still not getting any closer in their eyes.

** Chad’s Apartment, 20 Minutes Later **

Kisuke waited patiently at Chad’s living room table for Uryū to arrive, looking up at the large teen as he set down a cup of tea in front of the shop owner. He smiled kindly at the teen as he sat down next to him.

“Why thank you, Chad.” He said in a cheery voice.

“No problem.” The teen answered in his low, monologue tone.

“So how have you been lately? Everything alright at school?” Urahara asked before taking a sip of his tea.

“I’m alright…And school has been aright as well.” He answered very plainly.

The two sat in absolute silence, neither speaking to the other, and it was actually starting to bug Kisuke a bit. The brilliant former Captain never was one to enjoy a stale atmosphere such as the one he was currently in.

He listened to the ticking of the clock on the far wall, watching the second hand move with each ‘tick’. The rhythmic sounds of the clock were actually starting to lull the shop owner into a light sleep, but he was thankfully saved by the sound of someone knocking on the apartment door.

_‘Oh, thank you, Uryū.’_ He mentally cheered.

Chad steadily stood up and walked to the door, opening it to see the Quincy teen standing outside. “Hello Uryū.” He greeted.

“Chad.” His friend replied before walking into the apartment.

“I’ll bring you some tea.” He informed and returned to the kitchen as Uryū sat down across from Kisuke.

“Afternoon, Uryū. Thank you for coming.” He greeted as well.

The Quincy sighed as he pulled his glasses from his face and used a rag to wipe them off. “Let’s make this quick, Kisuke. I told my father that I was going shopping for sewing supplies, and he knows I don’t dawdle. He’ll figure out that something is up if I take too long.” He pressed.

The shop owner nodded firmly. “I agree. So, let’s get started then.” He said just as Chad returned and set a teacup down in front of Uryū.

“Thank you, Chad.”

The large teen nodded and returned to his seat while Kisuke pulled out his fan. “I’ll keep this short. As you know, the team left for Hueco Mundo an hour ago. Per the Head Captain’s orders, you two and Ichigo were not permitted to accompany them. This actually works out for us, because I have something else I’d like to ask you three to take care of.” He opened.

Uryū narrowed his gaze at the shop owner. “If Ichigo is a part of this task you have for us, why isn’t he here?” he questioned.

“This task won’t begin for a couple of days, and Ichigo already has a basic understanding of what I want to be done. It’s really nothing all that special; just an important errand for the shop is all.” He answered.

The Quincy breathed in agitation as he replaced his glasses. “You called us to run an errand for your shop? Are you trying to get me in trouble with my father, Kisuke?”

“We should hear him out, Uryū.” Chad advised.

Uryū moaned in growing anger. “As long as he gets to the point, I don’t have a problem with that.”

Kisuke waved his fan at him with a grin. “Alright alright, I’ll skip the fine details.” He relented before snapping his fan shut. “In truth, it’s not so much as the ‘what’ that’s important…” he started, a grin growing on his face. “It’s the ‘where’.”


	38. A Rough Night Out

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTERS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)

Chapter 38

**(A Rough Night Out)**

** Hueco Mundo, Day 1, Late Evening **

The team finally came to a stop for the third time to take a much-needed break. Even with their decent amounts of spirit energy, the near endless running at speed was still taking a considerable toll on their bodies.

They had stopped next to the ruins of what seemed to have been, at one time, a dwelling of some kind. All that really remained of the structure were the lower foundations that outlined where the walls had been, rising from the ground only a couple of feet.

As Rukia ran her hand along the top of the remains, the stone crumbled easily and told her that the building had been like that for a number of years.

Renji walked through where, he guessed, the door used to be at one point and briefly looked around. “What did this used to be?” he inquired.

Nel came to a stop right behind him and looked around as well. “I believe it was once a shelter to a Vasto Lorde. There are a number of these buildings scattered throughout Hueco Mundo. Most of them were here even before Las Noches was built; or at least that was what I was told.”

Rukia rubbed some of the worn stone between her fingers, watching it crumble to dust in her fingers before falling to the ground. “Wonder what happened here. You think the previous owner died or something?” she inquired.

“From what I’ve read in a book in Las Noches, after Las Noches was build a very long time ago, all of the nearby Adjuchas and Vasto Lorde, basically anyone with power, was taken to Las Noches to stay. And anyone who refused was killed. But as I said, this is only something I had read about at one time, and I can’t say for certain that is actually what happened. Anyway, we can’t stay here for long. We still have a long way to go before we get to the tunnels.” Nel cautioned.

“How far would you say we are, Nel?” Timothy asked from his spot on the ground next to the doorway.

The woman turned and sat down next to him while Renji walked further into the abode. “Nearly a third of the way there. If we keep this pace, we should be there in about ten to twelve hours.” She answered.

Timothy took a sip of water from his canteen before handing it to her. “Wish we could have came here at least a little closer.” He mumbled before looking out to the southwest.

Nel finished her drink and nodded. “I agree, but it couldn’t be helped. I tried to have Kisuke get us as close as possible without having to worry about the garganta being detected by Aizen.” She returned as she gave the container back.

The man placed it back into his robes without turning away from where he was looking. “I might be overreacting a bit, but I swear I’m getting the feeling like we’re being followed.” He commented.

The woman sighed before nodding. “That’s because we are; by two Adjuchas. Judging by their distance from each other, It would seem they are working together. They are likely waiting for us to rest before moving in to attack while we are asleep.” She confirmed.

The Lieutenant snorted a bit. “Well, should we walk over there and tell em that we don’t intend to sleep?” he joked.

“I doubt it would matter, they are both fairly weak. If I had to guess, they both became Adjuchas very recently and had not yet learned that just because you are now an Adjuchas and have greater power, it doesn’t mean you are invincible. They haven’t even learned to conceal their much stronger spiritual pressures effectively. I seriously doubt either of them would be able to cut through my Hierro. We have nothing to fear from those two; it’s the attention that they might attract that slightly worries me.” She clarified.

Timothy turned his head to her a bit. “You mean a stronger Adjuchas, or a Vasto Lorde?” he asked, earning a nod.

“Yes, a stronger hollow may be tempted to pick them off, and then choose to follow us afterwards; just like they are.” She answered.

The man sighed and looked back to the distance. “Should we go deal with them?”

Nel thought about it for a moment, but finally shook her head. “No, it is best to avoid drawing attention to ourselves. They are of no threat to us, and we should leave them be; but that does not mean we shouldn’t be careful in the meantime. We’ll have to keep an eye on them as we continue.”

“Agreed. So what…ten more minutes and we’ll get started again?” he offered.

The woman nodded and leaned back against the wall as she laid one leg over the other in front of her. “Yes, that should work. As long as something doesn’t hold us back, we should be able to stop for a few minutes every couple of hours.” She informed.

Timothy took a relaxing breath and leaned his head against the wall. “Sounds good to me. So, out of curiosity, what does it feel like to be back here, Nel?” he inquired while looking up at the moon.

Nel closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “How should I explain this…relaxing, yet depressing at the same time. I feel like I come back home, and it sort of gives me this feeling of safety and comfort. But then, it also gives me the feeling like I am trapped here; like I am a prisoner almost.” She admitted.

He turned his head to her with a raised brow. “Is it normal for hollows to dislike Hueco Mundo?”

The woman shrugged her shoulders. “I can’t really say as I’ve never asked anyone whether they liked it here or not. All I can offer is that ‘I’ hated it. Not necessarily Hueco Mundo itself, but the lifestyle you are forced to adapt to in order to survive. I was an Adjuchas for a very long time before evolving in a Vasto Lorde. The reason being is that I always avoided conflict, choosing only to fight to prevent myself from regressing back into a Gillion. I steadily built myself up over time, and finally became a Vasto Lorde. After that, there was no need to feed. Once you have become a Vasto Lorde, your evolution stops, and you cannot regress. So life essentially became very dull afterwards, until I met Pesche and Dondochakka.”

Timothy’s face fell a bit. “They gave you company?”

Nel nodded with a weak smile. “I came upon them while they were being attacked by a much stronger Adjuchas. Needless to say, I quickly defeated it, and I was about to leave when they asked if they could join me. I instantly accepted, and ever since then the three of us looked out for each other. They said they have sworn themselves to me, to serve me, but I insisted that I was more than happy just to be considered friends. And that’s how it was for a long time.”

The Lieutenant turned back to the desert and hummed in understanding. “I’m guess that was until Aizen came around?” he asked, getting a nod in return.

“Yes. It was about…fourteen years ago by now. We had gotten surrounded by a group of Adjuchas, and Pesche and Dondochakka had already been defeated. I was nearing the end myself, but before I knew what had happened, they were all suddenly lying down on the ground; dead. When I looked at the one who was responsible, I saw that it was a soul reaper, Aizen. I thought he was going to finish us off, but he sheathed his zanpakutō and introduced himself. He then offered for us to join him and his army; me become an Espada, with Pesche and Dondochakka as my fracción. He said, that as long as I swore myself to him, he would grant me the power to protect my friends, and that he would give me a purpose.”

Timothy rose a brow at her. “So that’s how you came to work for the bastard. So, I guess that’s when he used the Hōgyoku to make you an Arrancar?”

Nel nodded before standing up pulling him up as well when he took her offered hand. “Yes, and gave Gamuza her individuality. I will admit, it was odd hearing another voice inside my head, and things didn’t work out that well between us at first; but as time went by, we came to understand each other, and trust each other. After a while, her and I became very close. I’m not sure how the relationship is with the other Arrancars and their hollow powers, but I would guess that it’s not like me and Gamuza.” She informed, then looked out towards where she felt the two Adjuchas in the distance.

“We should get going, we still have a long way to go.” she pressed, getting a nod from Timothy.

“Yeah, I guess we should. So we’re just going to ignore those two?” he asked as he gestured with his thumb.

“For now. Hopefully they won’t be foolish enough to try attacking us. We may have to try and lose them before we enter the tunnels though. I would rather not have them following us inside.” She cautioned.

“Agreed. If they’re still following us by the time we get there, we’ll hit em hard and fast and make them run.” He advised.

The woman nodded. “Alright. Let’s grab Rukia and Renji and move on.” She concluded, walking ‘inside’ the ruined building.

She saw Rukia sitting on top of a low part of the wall, and Renji standing next to her leaning against it, talking to each other quietly. She came to a stop in front of them and offered a kind smile.

“Ready to go?” she inquired.

The pair nodded as Timothy came up next to her. “We’ve got company keeping eyes on us to the southwest, two of them.”

They both nodded back. “Yeah, I thought I sensed something earlier.” Renji confirmed.

“Yeah. Well, we’re just going to ignore them for now, as long as they don’t try anything; but we may have to chase them off when we get to the tunnels, so be ready for that.” Timothy advised.

The pair nodded before Rukia pushed herself from her seat and down to her feet. “I’m ready to go when you two are.” She confirmed.

Nel nodded firmly. “Alright, let’s get going then.”

The small group exited the ruins and continued their run towards the slightly larger dome of Las Noches; Nel leading the way while Timothy kept his senses open towards their pursuers.

** Squad 5 Headquarters, Present **

“Done!” Hinata blurted out as she slapped the last form from the morning’s paperwork on the completed pile.

“You alright over there, Ogawa?” Tetsuzaemon asked as he looked up at her.

The woman supported her head with her elbows as she rubbed her face vigorously. “All of the morning shit is done, so at least I’m caught back up to ‘today’. But now I’ve gotta get going on the afternoon stuff.” She commented in a relieved voice.

The Lieutenant chuckled as he set a form aside. “Yeah, I’ve still got a few bits to look over from last night before I get into those. How ya holding up?” he inquired.

Hinata let her arms fall down onto the desk as she leaned back in her chair with a sigh. “Tired, depressed, pissed, take your pick. At least I can breathe a bit easier now.” She mocked.

Tetsuzaemon stared at her for a moment before setting his brush down and standing up to stretch his arms out. “Let’s go, Ogawa.” He instructed.

The woman looked at him and rose a brow. “Go where?”

The man dropped his arms to his side before grabbing his zanpakutō and tucking it into his sash. “Where do you think? To go get some drinks, you idiot.”

Hinata scoffed with a roll of the eyes. “Shouldn’t you get to know me better before asking me out on a date, Lieutenant?” she teased with a grin.

The Lieutenant snorted at her joke. “You’re the last person I’d ever consider to ask out, Ogawa.” He shot back.

The woman glared dangerously at him. “And just what the hell is that supposed to mean? What, am I not good enough for you?” she challenged.

Tetsuzaemon came to a stop in front of her desk, turning his head to give her a skeptical look. “You’re not my type, Ogawa; you’re too much of a crybaby.” He informed.

Hinata shot to her feet and slammed her hands back on the desk with a furious stare. “I am not, you asshole!” she returned.

“Not to mention your nasty temper.” He furthered.

She growled lowly before avoiding his gaze. “I guess I can’t fight you on that one. But you’re no saint yourself, Lieutenant.” She mumbled.

The man chuckled. “Never said I was, Ogawa. Now shut up and grab your zanpakutō. The place I have in mind tends to fill up pretty quickly, and they’ve got some damned good sake.” He informed.

Hinata scoffed as she grabbed her sword. “Whatever, idiot. But I ain’t carrying your drunk ass back. If you can’t handle yourself, I’ll leave you behind.” She warned.

He rose a brow in surprise. “You talk like you can handle more than me, Ogawa.”

She walked up to him and flicked him on the forehead before continuing on. “You said it, not me.” She returned as she left the office.

A grin fell on the Lieutenant’s face before he followed behind her. “That’s more like it.” He commented aloud.

Closing and locking up the office, the man continued on until he came out front to see her with her arms crossed and tapping her foot in impatience.

“Well, lead on, Lieutenant.” She said with a gesture of her hand.

Tetsuzaemon gave her a toothy grin. “In a hurry to end up on the floor, Ogawa?” he mocked.

“Pft…please. Just because I’m a woman, doesn’t mean I can’t outdrink your ass.” She returned.

He crossed his arms as well. “Care to wager on that, Ogawa?” he challenged.

She rose a brow in interest. “That depends on what you’re willing to wager, Lieutenant.”

The man chuckled. “How bout this: if you win, I’ll buy ya a flask of the sake from upstairs.” He offered.

This got her attention. “And if I lose?” she pressed.

“Then you gotta pay to have both of the flasks from upstairs filled; seeing as you’re the one who drank it all.” He stated.

“I did not, asshole! You drake just as much as I did! You can’t pin that on me!” she defended firmly.

“I can, and I did. So how bout it, Ogawa? You ready to get your ass handed to ya?” he taunted.

She narrowed her stare. “Deal, but I’m still not carrying your ass back here. You’re on your own in that regard.”

“Likewise. I doubt I’d be able to make it back to the gate with ya.” He returned.

Hinata immediately shook a fist at him. “Are you calling me fat, you bastard?!” she demanded.

Tetsuzaemon laughed loudly before shaking his head. “Not at all, just saying your ego might be to much for me to carry back here.”

The woman snorted and shook her head with a smile. “You’re one to talk, you asshole. Let’s get going then.” She relented.

The Lieutenant smiled back and nodded. “Follow me.” He instructed, then vanished with her right behind.

** West Rukongai, 8th District, 30 Minutes Later **

Tetsuzaemon and Hinata flashed into place in front of what appeared to be a semi-fancy bar. It was still a bit early in the night, but they could easily hear numerous voices inside as the place began filling up.

Hinata took a few minutes to look the place over, giving an approving nod. “Not bad. Never been here before.” She admitted.

The Lieutenant shrugged his shoulders dismissively. “Not that many soul reapers come here, as this is where most of the middle-class nobles like to go. But the people around here actually aren’t that bad, once you get used to em. This is where I go when I’m not drinking with Ikkaku and the others.” He informed.

The woman rested a hand on her hip and gave him an evil grin. “Well, you ready to get your ass handed to you by a woman, Lieutenant?” she taunted.

Tetsuzaemon scoffed heavily. “The only woman who’s ever beaten me, and will ‘ever’ beat me is Rangiku. That woman is a freak, drinking as much as she does and still able to say her own name, let alone stand.”

Hinata then held up two fingers as her grin grew wider. “Well, this woman here is gonna be number two.”

“Ha! Dream on, Ogawa. Now quit stalling and find us a table while I get the sake.” He concluded and began walking inside with her right behind him.

She was able to find an empty table towards the back of the building, and swiftly took a seat to wait for the Lieutenant to come back with their drinks. She didn’t have to wait long though as she turned to see him weaving around different tables before setting down two saucers and two flasks of sake.

The woman pulled the cork from the first flask and pour each of them a drink as he sat down across from her. Setting the flask down, she then passed a saucer over to him, which he accepted before they held their drinks up.

“First to fall?” He opened.

“Until the men fall down.” She countered with a sneer.

The man snorted. “As if.” He said before tapping their cups and downing their drinks.

They continued their drinking at a steady pace as the minutes ticked by; really only stopping for restroom breaks, or when the two got into another session of trading insults. But almost an hour later, both of them were still going strong and nearly through their second flask, with neither of them showing signs of falling out anytime soon.

Tetsuzaemon had to admit that he was a bit surprised that the woman was actually keeping up with him, even being a little pushy at times to speed things up. He couldn’t help but respect the woman a little more in that regard.

It was nearly two hours after they had started their little competition when they both agreed to take a little breather and let their stomachs rest a bit from the sudden inflow of alcohol. Tetsuzaemon was leaning back in his chair with crossed arms, while Hinata had her chin resting in her hand and propped up by her elbow.

Both of them were watching as the ‘sissy-ass noble kids’, as Tetsuzaemon called them, began leaving the establishment in twos and threes. Hinata sighed as her eyes followed a pair of men, clearly waisted, making their way towards the door.

“Lieutenant…” she began in an even voice.

“We’re not in the office Ogawa, so you can ditch the Lieutenant and address me by my name.” he corrected.

She rolled her eyes to him, giving him an odd look. “If that’s the case, you mind using my first name then?” she pressed.

The man turned to her with a raised brow. “What’s wrong with your surname?” he questioned.

Hinata shrugged a shoulder. “Nothing, but like most everyone else, I prefer to be called by my given name rather than my family name.” she clarified, then returned to looking at the groups leaving.

The Lieutenant intensified his stare at the woman. “Somehow, I’m convinced that’s not the real reason, ‘Hinata’. I’m no fool, and I can tell that you’ve got something on your mind, so spill it.”

She rose a brow right back. “You can, huh? Well, sorry to disappoint you, ‘Tetsuzaemon’, but I honestly ‘don’t’ have anything on my mind right now.” She defended.

Tetsuzaemon scoffed and turned away from her. “That’s a load of crap. I know you’ve been pissed as hell with all the paperwork we’ve had in front of us, but I can also see that’s not entirely the problem. There’s something else bothering you, and I can’t have a right hand that’s always distracted by something.”

Hinata lifted her head and leaned back in her chair as she crossed her arms. “Your right hand? Oh please, all I’m doing is looking at endless paperwork almost nonstop. This is the first time that either of us have left the office before midnight.” She pointed out.

“Yeah, and in a matter of a few days we’ve managed to almost get caught back up. And instead of just ignoring paperwork errors, like a lot of other seated officers, you’ve been trying to actually fix em. You’ve saved my ass from I don’t know how many headaches because of that. So yeah, I consider you my right hand ‘woman’.” He confirmed.

The woman sighed and shook her head. “I’m only trying to do the right thing, Tetsuzaemon. And again, I don’t have anything bothering me, so you can rest easy.” She assured.

“And ‘I’ll’ say it again, that’s a load of crap. I know something’s been on your mind Hinata, and I’m just doing my job as your Lieutenant to make sure everything’s fine with ya.” He stated firmly.

A soft growl rolled in her throat as her patience got tested. “Can we please just talk about something else, Tetsuzaemon?” she pleaded.

He swiftly downed his filled saucer and shook his head. “No, so spill.” He pressed.

She sighed heavily and glared at him. “Fine, you wanna know what’s been ‘bothering me’? It’s my name.” she finally admitted.

The man turned to her in confusion. “Your name?”

The woman sighed again with a growl. “Yes Lieutenant, my name. It took me almost eight years to pass the academy, and those were the worst years of my life, just because of my name.”

Tetsuzaemon was now even more confused. “Why would your name have anything to do with it?” he pressed.

She furrowed her brows and growled louder before placing her hands over her chest. “In case you haven’t noticed, I’m not exactly ‘built’ very well in particular areas, Lieutenant.” She started; giving her, somewhat small, chest a quick pushup before crossing her arms again. “During my first year in the academy, a few of the ‘noble girls’ pushed me into the creek on the academy grounds. Ever since then, and throughout the last seven years I was there, everyone called me ‘Kogawa’, meaning ‘small river’; making fun of my small size and being pushed into the creek at the same time. Needless to say, life was a bitch during those years.” She informed in distaste.

The man had to growl a bit at her story. “And why didn’t you go to one of the academy’s masters? They would have put a stop to it, or at least punished those girls for pushing you in the first place.”

Hinata rolled her eyes with a scoff. “Hello genius, they were ‘nobility’; they basically get whatever they want, and no one, beside their parents, can stop them. And do you really think their parents would go out of their way for common ‘trash’ like me? Yeah right.”

Tetsuzaemon sighed with a shake of his head. “So, what ‘did’ you do about it?” he questioned.

The woman grabbed her saucer and shrugged her shoulders. “The only thing I ‘could’ do, ignore them. But even that didn’t stop them from coming up with newer insults. Like: no man is ever gonna want anything to do with a tramp with a flat chest, or how I look more like a man than I do a woman. And every insult always ended with that stupid name, ‘Kogawa’. It’s because of that that I came to hate my name. To be honest, I don’t even know why I kept it, seeing that I don’t have any family that share the name.” she admitted, then downed her drink.

“Is any of it true?” the man inquired.

“Is what true?” she asked in return as she refilled her cup.

“The things those brats said to you? Like you look like a man instead of a woman.” He clarified.

She glared hatefully at him. “Of course not, stupid! Why? Do ‘you’ think I look like a man?” she challenged.

He furrowed his brows at her. “That is not what I said, you idiot. If none of it is true, then why do you care what they say? Last time I checked, ‘you’re’ the one sitting in an officer’s position, not them. So in the end, you got the better end of the deal. I don’t call you by your surname to make fun of you, I call you by that name because it’s a show of respect. If you didn’t have my respect, I wouldn’t have addressed you by ‘any’ name; I would have just told you what to do and been done with it. Your days at the academy are gone, ‘Ogawa’, and you are now an officer of the 13 Court Guard Squads. So quit worrying about childhood bullies and act like the woman you are.” He reassured.

The man then grabbed his own saucer and held it up to her. “Now, if you’re done crying about the past, let’s get back to putting you on the floor, Hinata.” He said with a grin.

The woman rolled her eyes, but smiled. “Yeah right, like you could ever put me on the floor, lightweight.” She returned as she grabbed her drink.

Tetsuzaemon raised a brow in interest. “You still think you can do better than me? Well then, wanna up the stakes, since you’re so convinced you can win?”

Hinata smirked. “I’m listening.” She pressed.

“What do you want?” he returned.

She raised her head with a hum in thought for a moment, then grinned even more when she looked back at him. “If I win, me and my friends get the day off tomorrow.” She proposed.

Tetsuzaemon nodded. “Alright, but if ‘I’ win…” The man paused and returned her grin with a toothy one, making her raise a brow. “…you have to work in the office tomorrow without your kosode.”

Her face didn’t change as his words went through her mind. “…What?” she chocked in a low voice.

“Did I stutter, Hinata? I said, if I win, you can’t wear the top part of your uniform for the whole day.” He repeated.

Hinata’s face slowly grew a tinge of red to it as the thought played out in her head. “…I never took you for a pervert, Tetsuzaemon.” She commented.

He simply shrugged his shoulders. “Hey, go big, or go home.” He returned.

The woman’s face fell as she turned redder. “You just want to see me without my top on…don’t you.” She questioned dangerously.

The man began scratching his sideburns. “Well, it would be a bonus, but it’s mainly to teach you not to mess with me when it comes to drinking.” He clarified; laughing a bit inside because he knew that the woman would never agree to something like that.

“Fine.” Hinata answered in a low and firm voice, shocking the man and making him raise a brow.

“Huh?” he breathed out.

Although she was still red in the face, she was still grinning at him with a raised finger. “But if that’s the case, I’d like to change my prize. If I win, you have to work in the office without your hakama.” She counter-proposed.

He stared at her in shock, not believing that she was willing to go with it. The only other woman he could think of that ‘might’ go along with the wager was Rangiku; and even then, it was no guarantee that she would live up to her end of the deal.

But here was Hinata, and even though she was clearly a bit embarrassed about the proposal, she was obviously willing to go along with it.

“Are you sure about that, Ogawa?” he questioned.

The woman put her drink down and crossed her arms while giving him an angry stare. “What? Did you think I was some kind of ‘pure princess’? Oh please. You should go talk with Kenta and Issei and have them tell you about the kind of wagers I ‘normally’ make. Unlike most women, I’m not afraid to live a little. Just so long as you don’t try anything funny, pervert.” She mocked.

Tetsuzaemon growled in annoyance. “I ain’t no pervert, you damn woman. I was actually just messing with ya, but if you really want to play dirty, I’m game.”

They both raised their drinks and grinned. “Enjoy your day without pants, Lieutenant.” She taunted.

“Ha! I’m gonna enjoy having a half-naked tomboy working for me in the morning.” He returned.

She rolled her eyes. “As if, you pervert. Now shut up and drink.” She demanded.

They touched saucers and quickly downed their drinks before Hinata poured more for them both. “This is gonna be a long night, Hinata.”

She set the flask down and passed him his drink. “I’ve got nothing but time, Tetsuzaemon. So bring it.” She challenged.

“Gladly.” He returned as they both downed another set of drinks.

** 3 Hours Later **

“Iiiii…won’t lose…Tezaemun…” a very intoxicated Hinata droned out.

The Lieutenant turned his head to her and grinned. “Eat…table…Gawa.” He returned, just as drunk.

Izuru sighed heavily and shook his head at the two. “I wish you would have informed us that you were planning on going out, Tetsuzaemon. That way at least one of us could have kept an eye on you two.” He said in a slight whine.

The blonde, Squad 3 Lieutenant currently had Hinata slumped over on his back, holding her up by her legs while her arms limply drooped over his shoulders; all while Shūhei had Tetsuzaemon limping next to him, supported by his arm around the Squad 9’s Lieutenant.

Seeing that Tetsuzaemon and Ikkaku were somewhat like regulars at the place he and Hinata were just at, the owner knew him quite well; at least enough to know to call for either Izuru or Shūhei if he and Ikkaku ever got too incapacitated to make it back to the barracks.

He and Hinata had gotten into one of their bickering sessions, and when Hinata slapped him across the face, and therefor knocking him to the floor, for one of his comments, the owner knew it was time for the two of them to call it a night.

Per previous instructions that Tetsuzaemon had given the man a long time ago, the owner had used the Lieutenant’s soul pager to contact Izuru. Although it wasn’t the first time the blonde man had to bail his friend out, it still got on his nerves every time he received a ‘rescue call’ in the middle of the night.

And now he and Shūhei were dragging the two fools back to their temporary barracks at Squad 5 to sleep off their drunken states.

“Look on the bright side, at least it’s this girl you’re carrying instead of Rangiku again.” Shūhei pointed out.

Izuru sighed heavily again. “I guess you’ve got a point. Though, I do wonder just what it was Tetsuzaemon said to her to make her slap him hard enough to leave that on his face.” He commented while looking at the drunken Lieutenant’s face.

Tetsuzaemon had a perfect, reddish imprint of the woman’s hand on his cheek, and it only made Shūhei shake his head. “Beats me. Tetsuzaemon’s never been one to disrespect women, so your guess is as good as mine. Whatever it was, she must have forgotten all about it; seeing as how the two of them were acting like best friends by the time we got there.” He returned.

“Hey Shūhei! Who…won?!” Tetsuzaemon demanded in a drunken stupor.

Hinata rolled her head to him, hitting Izuru in his head in the process. “Iiii diiid…assssshollle!” she asserted.

The man growled at her. “Liikke hellll…Gawa! I haad…more…than yooou!” he defended.

Izuru moaned in pain and annoyance. “Sadly, both of you lost.” He offered, hoping it would stop the argument there.

“We caan’t…bottthh looosse, Izzuru!” the man pointed out.

Shuhei rolled his eyes to him. “We found both of you on the floor, so you both lost.” He lied in a firm voice.

Hinata looked at him with watery eyes. “Whaaa?! We caan’t…both lose! Noo…fffair! I want…r…rematch!” she demanded in a whine.

“Not tonight you’re not. You both need to get some rest and sleep this off. You two can argue about it tomorrow if you want.” Shūhei insisted as they finally came to the front of the 5th Squad’s barracks.

“This aiiinn’t ovvver…Gawa!” Tetsuzaemon yelled as Shūhei released the man’s arm and helped him stand up straight.

The woman’s head flopped around as she tried her hardest to look at him. “Oooh…bite me…asssshole!” she fought back and Izuru knelt down to let her off his back.

He took a firm hold of her upper arm and stood straight as he pulled her up to her feet, ensuring that she was balanced enough to stand on her own before releasing her arm. He then turned to his sober friend with a raised brow.

“Do you think we should help them inside?” he inquired.

Tetsuzaemon drunkenly waved him off. “Doon’t be…an iidiiot, Izuru. I’m not…thaaat druunk.” He insisted.

“Yeeeaah! Ii’m a…big giirrrll! I’ve got thiss.” She added.

Izuru and Shūhei turned to each other with skeptical faces for a moment before sweat dropping at the two. “I can’t say I really agree with you on that, but if you insist.” Shūhei mumbled aloud.

Hinata trudged over to her drunken partner and threw an arm over his shoulders with a wide grin. “We got…this. Thaanksss…for j…joiiiningg…us, guysss.” She concluded.

The two sober Lieutenants shrugged their shoulders before waving at the two and turning to leave. The two officers watched until they were out of sight before Hinata yawned loudly.

“I’mmm beat…I’m goinggg to beeeed.” She moaned lowly.

Forgetting that she had her arm around the Lieutenant’s shoulders, she ended up pulling him around with her and dragging him along. When she noticed the man ‘walking’ beside her, she leaned a bit into him.

“Hellp me b…baaack to…my rooomm…Tezaemun.” She pleaded in a whine.

They both wobbled a bit as they fought to stay on their feet, really only managing to fight each other in that regard. “Whatsss wrong…Gawa? Afffraid of…getting lossst?” he half-taunted.

She gave him a pouty face. “It’s daaarrrk! I dooon’t thiiink…I can fffind…my rooomm!” she whined even further.

He glared at her and waited a second for his eyes to focus. “I doon’t…know wherrree yourr…room iss…Gawa!” he almost yelled.

The woman raised her head and thought for a moment; it was nearly a whole minute later when she whined again. “I doon’t knnnow eitherrr!” she almost cried. “I tiiirred!” she furthered.

Tetsuzaemon growled at her drunken antics, but in his just as inebriated state, he could help but feel bad for her sudden predicament. The pair stood in front of the barracks door for a few moments, until he opened the door and pulled them both inside.

“Comme onnn…Gawa.” He instructed poorly.

Not really having any other choice, nor being in a state of mind to even understand what was going around them, the woman allowed him to escort her through the quiet halls towards the officer’s area.

Normally, Hinata’s room would have been somewhere in this area, but seeing how she didn’t want her friend to be all alone while they were assigned to the squad, she chose to stay with Yuka on the second floor with the rest of the squad members.

When they came to the first door of the officer’s area, Tetsuzaemon fiddled with the key for what seemed, to Hinata at least, eternity. After quite a while, the woman had had enough, snatching the key from his hand and expertly sticking it into the slot and unlocking the door.

She pocketed the key as he slid the door open very slowly, her face lighting up in a smile when she saw what she wanted most at the moment, a bed. She snatched her arm from his shoulders and almost ran towards the bed, plopping down on it with a very relaxed sigh.

“Beeeeeed!” she moaned out in glee.

Tetsuzaemon tilted his head at her as he closed the door behind him. “What…dooo you think…you’rre doing…Gawa?!” he demanded.

His only answer came in the form of the woman’s loud, drunken snores as she quickly passed out with only half of her body on the bed. The man deadpanned as he watched the knocked-out woman doze away without a care.

“Damn…woomman.” He mumbled.

The Lieutenant stumbled over to the side of the bed before grabbing her ankles and gently pulling them on top of the bed. Shifting over a bit, he then rolled the slumbering woman onto her back, and further to rest back down on her front, now in the center of the bed.

Since Ikkaku had spent the night over a couple of times in his own drunken stupor, Tetsuzaemon kept a spare futon kept under his bed; a habit he transitioned over to this new room upon transfer. Kneeling down, he pulled the spare sleeping arrangement out and set it next to his own bed before plopping down on it.

The both of them were still fully clothed in their shihakushōs, so neither of them had to worry about covers; not like it mattered anyway, seeing that he was too drunk to even care at the moment.

The man took a deep, relaxing breath and let it out slowly as sleep very quickly took a hold of him; just like it had done to Hinata only a minute before.

** Hueco Mundo, Present **

“Alright…” Renji began, panting heavily. “…take ten.”

Rukia came to a stop next to him and plopped down on her butt with her legs at her sides, her upper body supported by her hands on her knees and breathing just as hard. Renji then took a seat next to her before pulling out his canteen, passing it to his friend.

Timothy however just fell back and landed on the sand completely spread out on his back with a very heavy breath of relaxation.

“I wanna die.” He complained in a moan.

Nel gave a breathy chuckle as she took a seat next to him, resting her hand on the top of his head and giving his hair a ruffle. The Lieutenant weakly raised his own hand a tried to swat hers away, but it fell back down to the ground before he could make contact.

“Stooop.” He moaned out in annoyance.

The woman chuckled once more in humor. “I’m sorry we couldn’t arrive closer than where we did Tim, but that was honestly as close as I thought was safe for us.” She comforted.

Rukia raised her head to the woman and smiled. “Don’t worry about it, Nel. I guess we should consider ourselves lucky that we were even able to get here in the first place. So how much father?”

Nel looked out towards the vast dome of Las Noches with a hum. “I’d say about a little past halfway now. If you want…I guess we can spare about an hour to rest up a bit more.” She offered.

Timothy lifted his forearm up without raising his upper arms and waved her off. “Just leave me…I’m done for.” He joked in a whine.

Renji grinned at him. “What’s the matter Tim, ‘getting tired already’?” he mocked, returning the man’s earlier taunt.

The blonde man rolled his head to him. “I would tell you to shut your face Renji, but the truth is, is that I’m too tired to argue with you right now.” He shot back.

Nel sighed as she shook her head. “Must you two always bicker with each other?” she wondered aloud.

“You might as well get used to it, Nel. Tim is too much like Ichigo, and he and Renji are always going at it.” Rukia informed with gesturing towards the man with her thumb.

“Hey!” Renji returned with a glare.

Timothy gave a quick huff. “If that’s the case, we should have the idiot with us. Send those two into Las Noches and start bickering with each other to cause a distraction while we save Orihime. Hell, they’d probably give her back to us just to make those two shut up.” He mocked.

Renji shook a fist at the man. “You wanna die here, you bastard?!” he threatened.

The younger Lieutenant rolled his eyes. “Too late, I’m pretty much already dead at the moment. That bullshit comparison of my spirit energy and spiritual pressure to a marathon that Kisuke used during my training seems a bit to ironic now.”

Rukia casually glanced over her shoulder to the south while reaching out with her senses. “It seems like our two friends are still with us.” She commented.

Nel nodded before giving her a worried look. “And they’re not the only ones now; there are three more following ‘them’ even further back.” She cautioned.

Timothy shot a stern look to her. “I didn’t sense them!” he said in concern.

The Arrancar glanced down at him. “They are beyond the range where you can detect them, but they are still within range of my pesquisa. These three are a bit stronger that the first two; and to make it worse, I believe that they may be working together. That is the only reason why I am hesitant to suggest resting for an hour. Otherwise, I would be demanding it.”

Renji furrowed his brows. “Do you think they picked us up yet?” he inquired with crossed arms.

Nel shook her head. “They are at the limit of my pesquisa, and mine was among the top in the Espada; so I highly doubt they are aware of us yet. But once they move on the first two, I am almost positive they will pick us up then.”

“How long have they been there?” Rukia asked.

The Arrancar looked out to the south. “I first picked them up about a little over an hour ago. I wanted to make sure they were following either us or the first two before I said anything.”

Timothy shrugged a shoulder. “Maybe once they take care of the first two they’ll ignore us.” He offered.

Nel shook her head again and gave him a firm stare. “If they were not operating in a group, that may be the case. But because they are, they are likely not looking to simply feed, they are hunting for more power. Once they have dealt with those first two, they will very likely come after us next.”

Her ‘unofficial boyfriend’ then sat up and rotated his body around to face that direction. “Hey Nel…those tunnels…can we be detected once we’re inside them?” he inquired.

“No, the foundations of the tunnels are made from some form of stone very similar to your sekkiseki. The only notable difference is that instead of repelling spirit energy, it dispels it. It also affects the ambient energy in the air around it; and in tight quarters like the tunnels, it disrupts the spirit energy a person radiates, making them basically impossible to detect. So once we are inside, as long as they don’t physically ‘see’ us, they won’t know where inside the tunnels we are. That is why it is easy to get lost inside them.” She informed.

Timothy narrowed his eyes at the horizon, causing Rukia to raise a brow. “You got a plan?” she questioned calmly.

“Maybe…I’m thinking that…if we keep at a pace where the first two are still at a distance from us, but also at a distance from the other three, we can use those two as a distraction to enter the tunnels without being followed. Once we get to the entrance, we wait for a bit for those back three to catch up to the first two and let them fight it out. While they’re busy, we take off into the tunnels; and by the time those three are done with the first two, we won’t be around for them to pick up. They’ll likely be too busy trying to catch them to even notice us at first.” He put out.

Nel tilted her head in thought for a moment before nodding. “That does sound like a good plan, Tim. But at the rate those three are moving, they’ll catch up to them before long.” She warned.

Renji then stood up and pulled Rukia to her feet. “Well, if that’s the plan, we’d better get moving. If worrying about just two of them was bad enough, five of them is going to be a big problem; especially now that we’re much closer to Las Noches.” He stated, getting a nod in agreement from Rukia.

The Arrancar woman held her hand out to Timothy, and quickly pulled him up after he accepted it. The Lieutenant brushed the sand of his shihakushō before sighing heavily.

“Well, let’s get going then.” He said in defeat.

The group immediately continued their run towards Las Noches, all of them now keeping their senses wide open for any other possible ‘fans’.

** Squad 5 Barracks, Early the Next Morning **

Pain…pulsing, and excruciating pain.

That was what the current 4th seat of Squad 5, Hinata Ogawa, felt as she slowly, and very reluctantly came back from her temporary ‘vacation’ in slumberland. Even though the sun had not yet risen high enough to peek through the drawn curtains, there was still just enough light shining through her eyelids to make her headache all the much worse.

Another pulse of pain in her head made the woman scrunch her face in an attempt to reduce the light her eyes were registering, but it did very little in the end except increase the amount of pain she was feeling.

The woman let out a quiet, and agonizing moan in discomfort as she brought a hand up to her face to try and cover her eyes better, but even that made it worse. She was starting to think that just ‘existing’ would bring her more pain.

“Ffffuuuuck.” She moaned out under her breath, starting to gently rub her temples with her hand to try and sooth the headache.

After a few seconds of rubbing, with no effect, she let her hand fall back down to the bed. It took only a moment before it clicked in her head that something wasn’t right. Her hand had landed on the mattress of the bed, but it somehow seemed like it fell a little too far; as if it had landed ‘below’ her.

_‘…whaaat…?’_ she thought as she started to try and piece it together.

Slightly wincing in pain, she slowly peeled one of her eyes open to get a look at her surroundings. The sudden increase in light forced her to quickly shut it back again, before retrying her luck at it but reopening the same eye even slower, and not as far.

Her vision was exceedingly blurry, as she could just barely make out the color and shape of the far wall and door. Blinking twice to try and clear her vision, with no success, she noticed that everything was sideways, as they should be since she was lying down.

But it didn’t take long for her to notice that something wasn’t right, that everything was ‘more’ sideways than they should be; almost upside-down even. It was only when the rest of her body began to catch up in wakefulness that she fell a dull pain in her neck, like her head was hanging off of something.

Putting two and two together, she realized the reason her hand fell too far; she was likely hanging off the side of the bed, and when she let her hand drop, it fell off the edge to the floor below.

But then, that didn’t make sense either. Her hand didn’t hit something hard like the floor, it hit something soft. And it didn’t fall far enough to hit the floor in the first place.

_‘…The hell?...’_ she wondered.

To make things even more confusing, if she concentrated hard enough, she could swear that the room was…moving? Albeit just barely noticeable, but still moving; and in only two directions, and at a steady, timed pace.

_‘…Where the…hell…am I?’_

Opening her other eye just as slowly as the first, a wave of throbbing pain hit her skull as her eyes fought to register even more light in the room. Ignoring the pain with a low moan, she carefully raised her head up level to stare towards the far wall.

Now that her vision was a bit clearer, she finally noticed that something wasn’t right about her surroundings. The room was quite a bit bigger than she remembered, and the matching sets of furniture on either side of the room for two occupants were missing; replaced by much larger versions of it, and only singles pieces too.

_‘…This…isn’t my room.’_ She concluded in her head.

She didn’t get more time to mull the thought over, as a very quiet, but still disturbing, lull of deep, reverberating noise hit her ears from the side. It only became worse for her, because she knew what that sound was.

She wasn’t alone…Someone was snoring ‘next’ to her.

Her eyes widened a bit in shock and fear, before she swallowed and very hesitantly started to turn her head to the origin of the sound. Seconds…minutes ticked by in her mind as she ever so slowly came to look at the intruder of her personal space.

When her head came to a stop and her eyes fell upon the source of the sound, the woman very nearly gasped in horror with saucer-wide eyes. For the owner of the disturbing sound, was none other than Lieutenant Tetsuzaemon Iba.

_‘Oh…my…fucking…’_ she began, but couldn’t finish in her head.

Hinata was finally able to see the predicament she was currently in. Somehow…someway…she found herself lying ‘on top’ of the shaded Lieutenant, who was lying on, from what she could tell at the moment, a spare futon on the floor.

Not only that, the top of the man’s shihakushō was pushed open slightly; being held open by her hand that was currently splayed out on the man’s bare chest. And to make it even worse, she could fell that her right thigh was resting over top of the man’s crotch with her shin pinned down by his right leg.

As much as she wanted, desperately, to move away from the man before he woke up, she realized that with their current position there was just no way that such a dream was going to happen for her.

But nevertheless, she also knew she couldn’t just sit there in such a compromising position. Slowly, and with as much tact as she could manage in her current state of mind, she tried to pull her leg free from under his.

But that proved to be a challenge of its own. With the way she was lying, she couldn’t get the man’s leg up enough to pull hers free; and with her thigh resting on the man’s crotch, there was no way she could simply pull it out without rubbing up against his…sensitive area.

_‘Fuck!’_ she hissed to herself.

She then tried shifting her body just an inch to get a better position to free her leg, but her movement slightly disturbed the man, causing him to snort a bit and flex his fingers…the fingers of the hand that she just now realized was resting on her left butt cheek.

Her whole body tensed up at the touch, and she could feel his fingers very slightly digging into her skin; causing her eyes to widen to great proportions. She had no chance now; there really was no way she could get loose without waking him.

It didn’t matter anyway, because her last attempt at movement was just enough to coax the man to start waking. His snoring came to a stop and drew her attention to his face to see the man just now starting to open his eyes.

That was when she finally noticed something that she couldn’t believe took so long for her to see. The Lieutenant, for the first time she had ever seen, was ‘not’ wearing his usual dark shades; his eyelids slowly opening to reveal emerald-green eyes.

Luckily, her current position over top of him placed her head over top of his chest; leaving her, at least for the moment, out of the man’s sight. But even so, she was still able to get a clear view of the man’s eyes as he woke, and as much as she wanted to berate herself for it, she couldn’t help but adore them inside.

It was only made worst when she also realized that, because of her hand, she had a good view of the man’s very toned chest. Because of the way the Lieutenant normally wore his shihakushō, she had caught glimpses of his chest before, not really paying that much attention to him. But now that she had a ‘very’ closeup view, she found herself wanting to explore a bit.

_‘Not…the fucking…time!’_ she mentally seethed, catching herself before her hand had a chance to move on its own.

She knew it only a matter of seconds until the Lieutenant realized that something wasn’t right and decided to look down at her; and when his hand, that was so graciously resting on her rump, gave her another quick squeeze, her temper flared a bit and left her pleading he would just hurry and wake up so they could get this embarrassing event over with.

Thankfully, his observation skills were better than hers when waking up. Within seconds of him opening his eyes, they quickly looked down and locked with hers; both sets of them wide as saucers.

No words were spoken for quite a long time as they continued to stare at each other; him trying to figure out if he was still dreaming, and her as she waited for him to get over his initial shock and allow her to move.

He must have finally realized where his right hand was resting, as he gave the ‘object’ a gentle, testing squeeze that caused Hinata to flinch and turn very red with embarrassment and seething anger, and thus proving the man’s fear.

“Get…your fucking…hand…off…me!” she demanded in a calm, and very firm tone.

Tetsuzaemon froze a bit under her furious stare, but still managed to allow his ‘grip’ to loosen a bit and let his hand fall from its perch. This earned him a very angry, but approving nod.

“Now…please tell me…that we did ‘not’…do ‘anything’…last night.” She furthered, keeping the anger in her eyes, but adding a bit of begging to the stare.

The man gave a quick glance at their mashed bodies, his brow raising a bit and causing her to start worrying, before returning to her eyes.

“Considering that we still have our uniforms on, I highly doubt it, Ogawa.” He informed.

Hinata took this time to look down as well and turn a bit redder. Even though the top of her shihakushō opened up a bit and allowed one of her breasts to fall out onto the man’s stomach, they did indeed, thank God, still had their respective uniforms on.

This caused her to almost breathe a sigh of relief; considering that with horrible state the two of them were in the night before, there was no way that they would have been able to put their, already difficult, uniforms back on if they had stripped.

Not to mention that it would have been very likely neither of them would have bothered in the first place with how intoxicated they were.

She finally closed her eyes and let her head drop on the man’s chest with a low thump as she let out the breath she had been holding for the past five minutes. Tetsuzaemon rose a brow again before raising his left finger and lightly giving the woman a tap on the top of her head.

“You alright, Ogawa?” he inquired carefully.

The woman opened her eyes with furrowed brows before glaring at him for his obviously stupid question. “You will ‘never’ speak of this to ‘anyone’. This ‘never’ fucking happened. Got it?” she challenged.

Tetsuzaemon scoffed lightly. “You can relax, Ogawa. I ain’t gonna say anything.” He confirmed.

Hinata gave a firm, yet approving nod. “Good. Now, if you don’t mind, how about you move your leg so I can get the hell up? That is…unless you want a knee in the balls?” she questioned, giving her right thigh a quick and gentle thrust towards his crotch to emphasize her point.

The Lieutenant flinched at the sudden, and uncomfortable feeling between his legs before moving his head to the side to just barely see the current position they had their legs in. Slowly lifting the confining limb, he moved it over to the side and let it back down to free the woman’s own leg.

She nodded again before swiftly removing her leg from his crotch, rolling herself off of him, and picking herself up to a knelling position next to him while holding her head in pain with one hand and swiftly fixing her top to cover herself with the other. The man braced himself up by his arms and started rubbing his head as well.

“Alright…” she began in a much calmer tone, then dropped her hand to her lap. “…what the hell happened? Why exactly am I in ‘your’ room, Lieutenant? Or more importantly, why the fuck was I in bed ‘with’ you?” she demanded in as calm a voice as she could manage.

Tetsuzaemon moaned as a rush of pain hit his head. “I’m guessing you don’t remember shit from last night, do you Ogawa?” he questioned.

The woman growled, but shook her head slowly. “No, the last thing I remember was those two other Lieutenants coming to take us home. After we left the place, not a damn thing.” She informed.

He sighed as he laid back down. “Fortunately for you Ogawa, my memory usually doesn’t black out on me when I drink. You were screwed up beyond recognition; hell, we both were. After Izuru and Shūhei brought us back to the barracks, you started bitching about how tired you were and how you couldn’t remember where you damn room was.”

Hinata dropped her head with a pitiful moan. “Yeah…I have no sense of direction when I get drunk. It doesn’t surprise me that I forgot where my own room was.” She admitted.

Tetsuzaemon scoffed with a roll of the eyes. “Ha! That was obvious. But anyway, I had no idea where your room was either, and I wasn’t exactly going to just leave you in the common area all fucked up like that. So I brought you back here. And I ‘was’ going to pull out this spare bed for ya, but the second I opened the door, you were already passed out halfway off the bed. So I decided to hell with it and moved ya to where you were fully on top of it and passed out on the spare myself. But as far as how you ended up down here on top of me, that’s all on you, Ogawa.”

Her eyes widened a bit in horror before she turned away with her face red in embarrassment. “S…Sorry.” She mumbled. “T…Thank you…for looking out for me, and not…well…you know…taking advantage of me like most men would.” She furthered.

The Lieutenant snorted at her. “Yeah…you’re welcome. I guess I’ll take that as a complement. But yeah, that’s what happened.”

Hinata let out a depressing sigh as her shoulders fell. “I need to figure out how the hell I’m gonna get ready for work. It’s still early, but I know there’s people in the common area around this time, and the last thing I want is for them to see me like this and get the wrong idea.” She moaned.

Tetsuzaemon slowly picked himself up, rubbing his head when he came to max height, and strode over to his dresser. Pulling a drawer out and shifting around for a moment, he pulled out a spare uniform and tossed it over to the woman.

“Here. Go ahead and use the shower here in the room; then when your all done, you can sneak out the window and head to the office.” He instructed.

She looked at the uniform for a moment, then back to him. “What makes you think I’ll fit this, Lieutenant?” she questioned.

The man huffed as he sat down on the bed. “The kosode might be a bit tight for ya with your ‘not so built’ chest, but we’re roughly the same size in regards to the rest. Just hurry up so I can get mine, or we’ll never get our work done.”

Hinata sighed in defeat, then stood and walked over to the door that led to the private bathroom. She stopped just before entering and spare him a quick glance.

“Thank you for looking out for me Lieutenant, and I guess I can forgive this one time for getting all…touchy. But just so you understand, this does not mean that there’s anything going on between us. This was nothing more than…a very embarrassing accident.” She assured.

Tetsuzaemon glared at her in annoyance. “Just shut up and get cleaned up, Ogawa. I ain’t got all day to wait on ya.” He returned.

The woman furrowed her brows with a growl. “Ass.” She hissed, then entered the bathroom.

Closing and locking the door behind her, Hinata gave the room a brief lookover to see that, contrary to what most others believed, the private bathrooms that only the squad’s Lieutenant and Captain were privy to were quite plain.

Besides a small washing area and a just-as-small tub for soaking, there was nothing else. But then again, considering that the rest of the squad had to share two bathrooms, one for males and one for females, having your own personal bathroom without having to share was one hell of a luxury.

As much as she hated her current situation, she couldn’t help but admit to herself that she owed Tetsuzaemon for allowing her to use his restroom to freshen up without having to worry about confronting the other squad members.

Hinata took a calming breath, letting it out very slowly, before setting the change of clothes on the small table beside the door and walking up to the mirror to get the first look at herself. But when she finally did, she almost wanted to slap herself.

Her shoulder blade-length hair was a complete mess, looking like she hadn’t brushed it in months. She had bags under her eyes, and her pale complexion from the night before stuck with her well into the morning.

The woman moaned as she dropped her head. “I look like absolute shit.” She complained to herself.

Giving herself one last glance in the mirror, she began shrugging the soiled clothes off her body; a shiver running up and down her spine as parts of them clung to her body.

“I ‘feel’ like absolute shit, too.” She mumbled as she dropped the top part of her uniform.

Once she was fully unclothed, she sat down on the small stool to begin scrubbing her whole body vigorously. She could feel all of the grime falling off her body, and it only made her relax more and more as she steadily became more comfortable.

A knock on the door froze her in place as she suddenly remembered that she was not in the squad bathroom, but instead in the ‘Lieutenant’s’ personal room.

“Hey, Ogawa, go ahead and take your time. I’m gonna hit up the squad showers and head to the office. Just lock the door from the inside and bring the key with ya to the office when you’re done.” He instructed.

She took a deep breath and nodded. “Y…Yeah…thanks. I guess I’ll…see ya there.” She returned.

She heard him grunt in response and listened intently as he left the room and closed the door behind him. Letting out the breath she was holding, she rinsed herself off and hopped into the filled tub to soak for a few minutes.

After relaxing and sighing contently, Hinata closed her eyes and tried to think back on last night’s events. But no matter how hard she tried, her memory didn’t go past the moment Izuru and Shūhei picked them up from the bar.

Her thoughts suddenly shifted to the way her body was plastered over top of the Lieutenant’s, and now that her head was much clearer than it was before, her face immediately turned a deep shade of red.

_‘Oh my…fucking God…I ‘cannot’ believe that I did that! I have never been the type of person who moves around in their sleep, so why…now of all the flipping times…did I decide to do it out of the blue!? And with, of all people, my Lieutenant?! Seriously?!’_ she mentally berated.

Dropping her head back, she released an agitated moan. _‘I mean…yeah…he looks hot as hell…but he’s my fucking Lieutenant!_ ’

She then closed her eyes and growled lowly. _Oh my God…I am sooo messed up in the head…I just thought of my Lieutenant as ‘hot’. It’s ‘gotta’ be the left-over sake in my system…it’s just ‘gotta’ be. There is just ‘no way’ I look at him like that. He’s my superior, and nothing more.’_

Hinata took a deep breath again and let it out with a small smile. _‘That’s right…it was just an accident, and I’m just freaking out about what my drunk ass did while sleeping it off. I’m just suffering from the hangover, and that’s all. Just calm down, Hinata.”_

Reaching forward and pulling the plug from the drain, the woman raised herself from the tub and began toweling herself off. Once her body was dry and most of the water was removed from her hair, she wrapped it around her chest and began brushing her hair out with her fingers; seeing that she was a guest and Tetsuzaemon didn’t have a brush.

She flinched in pain as her fingers hit the few snarls her semi-short hair had left over from her disheveled state earlier. The more she stared at herself as she ran her fingers through her hair, the worse she began to feel about last night.

Finishing her ‘brushing’, she dropped her hands to her lap with a heavy sigh. _‘I really do owe him way more than a ‘thank you’ for looking out for me last night. It’s been several years since I’ve been that screwed up, and last time my friends said I acted like a complete idiot. If I was that bad last night…‘sigh’…I’m just glad neither of us ‘tried anything’ when we got back. I’ll have to find a way to thank him the right way.’_ She concluded.

Pulling the towel from her body, she began putting on the borrowed uniform piece-by-piece. “I’ll worry about that later. Right now…I’ve got a mountain of paperwork I’ve gotta get done before it buries me.” She mumbled.

Once she was done putting her clothes on, she thought it best to bundle her dirty ones up and set them so they wouldn’t be in his way until she could retrieve them later in the day, once everyone else was in their rooms for the night.

As she picked them up, something fell out from the pocket on her hakama and fell to the floor with a small clink. Reaching down to pick the item up, she noticed that it looked like a key of some sort.

Upon closer inspection, she saw that it was the key to the Lieutenant’s room, and her eyes went wide. _“I’ unlocked the door for us…everything he said was completely true. I knowingly walked into his room last night without a second thought. Oh my God…I am such a stupid idiot. He did his best to look out for me, and all I could do in the beginning was get mad at him for something ‘I’ did. Fuck me…Yeah…I owe the guy ‘way’ more than a simple apology and thanks. I swear…I am never drinking like that again.’_

Stuffing the key into her pocket with a depressing sigh, she left the bathroom and set her soiled clothes down next to his dresser, and way out of sight. Locking the door to the room, she walked over and opened the window.

Quickly giving the area a check to see if anyone was around, she leapt out through the window, shutting it behind her, and just as quickly darted off towards the back entrance to the squad’s headquarters.

** Hueco Mundo, Day 2, Present **

“Damn…these guys are…persistent…as hell!” Rukia said through short pants of breath.

The group continued their run at a very rapid pace as Renji turned to Timothy. “So much…for your plan…Tim…I…blame you…for this.” He growled.

The man swiftly glared back. “T…The fuck!...How the…the hell…was I supposed t…to know they…were all wor…working together…you moron?! How in…the hell is…‘any’…of this…my fault?!” he yelled in between breaths.

“We ‘should’…have killed those…first two…and maybe…we wouldn’t have to…to worry about…the other three…But no…you wanted…to hold off…and let them attack…each other.” The redhead returned.

Timothy shook a fist at him. “You bastard!...That ‘still’…doesn’t make it…‘my’ fault!”

Nel shook her head disapprovingly. “Please…Now is…not the time…to ar…argue…about who’s…fault it is…Besides f…fighting them…our on…only chance…is to…to lose them…in the tunnels.” She pointed out.

“Agreed.” Rukia jumped in. “Our…only option…is to…fight smarter…than them.”

Timothy turned back around to Nel. “How…much further?” he questioned.

The woman shook her head again. “Not much…Another hour…may…maybe a bit…more.”

“And…is the…entrance…hard t…to find?” he continued.

She nodded this time. “Unless you…know what to…to look for…you won’t…see it…right away.” She confirmed.

Timothy glanced over his shoulder towards their pursuers. “In tha…that case…we might not…have to fi…fight them…If we c…can get inside…without…them seeing us…we may…just loose them.”

Rukia rolled his eyes to him. “Lets…hope so…or we’ll…be in a…world of…trouble.” she warned.

Renji looked down at her with skepticism. “We…We could…probably…take em…Ruks.”

Timothy rolled his eyes in disbelief. “Without…telling all…of Hue…Hueco Mundo…that we’re here?...Yeah…good…luck with that.” He mocked.

Nel shook her head. “He’s…He’s right…Renji…We have…no chance at…fighting them…without…alerting Aizen…We need…to lose them.” She affirmed.

The man scoffed a bit. “Damn…I guess…we’ve got no…no choice…huh?”

The Arrancar gave him a warm smile. “No…not really.”

Timothy growled as he turned back to the front. “It’d help if…if we could u…use shunpo.” He grumbled.

Renji turned to Nel with a raised brow. “Speaking of…why aren’t…they using…sonído…to catch up?” he inquired.

“They’re try…trying to tire…tire us out…And it…it’s working.” She answered.

Rukia nodded in agreeance. “Well…let’s hope that…that we can…make it to…the tunnels…before we…pass out.” She commented.

“It’s not…much further…I promise.” Nel assured.

Timothy again glanced behind him in worry. “For…our sakes…let’s hope so.” He said, then turned back front as they continued their journey.

** Squad 5 Headquarters, Present **

Walking out from the small kitchenette in the office, a cup of tea in her hand, Hinata sat down and took a sip before setting her cup on top of the desk. Crossing an arm across her chest, she started rubbing her temples as the tea began soothing her throbbing headache.

Luckily, Tetsuzaemon hadn’t come in yet, and she was thankful for every second she was spared before she had to face him again. She wasn’t exactly trying to avoid him, but then she also wasn’t ready to speak to him just yet.

The woman flinched in slight pain at the sound of someone knocking on the office door; and with how wide open the office was, the slight echo the sound had in the room made her headache all that much worse.

She let out a long sigh and shook her head slowly. “Yeeah.” She moaned out.

The door slowly opened where Yuka entered the office. She looked at Tetsuzaemon’s desk for a split second before turning to her friend. Closing the door behind her, Yuka strode up to Hinata with a gentle smile.

“Morning Hinata. Is…everything alright?” she greeted.

Hinata gently brushed her off with a wave of the hand and a moan. “Yeah…just swell.” She returned in a low voice.

The office door then opened and both women turned to see Tetsuzaemon walking in, passing them with a quick wave of the hand before taking a seat at his desk with a relaxed huff. Hinata leaned back in her chair and looked at the man.

“There’s tea in the kitchen, Lieutenant.” She informed.

The man waved her off and sighed heavily, causing Yuka to raise a brow and turn back to her friend. “You went drinking and took it too far again…didn’t you?” she asked in a condescending tone.

Hinata glared at her with a low growl. “Not. A. Word. Yuka.” She warned.

Yuka sighed and shook her head in disappointment. “I was wondering why you didn’t come back to the room last night. So…where exactly ‘did’ you end up crashing for the night?” she questioned.

The woman froze and began to sweat as her mind instantly went back to her…very unexpected awakening. She began thinking of any possible lie she could give her, but both of them were still new to the squad and really didn’t know anyone well enough yet.

Fortunately, Tetsuzaemon quick with an answer for her. “The fool somehow forgot where her own room was, and I had no idea where you two stay either; so I put her ass in one of the unused officers’ quarters for the night. Idiot.” He mocked.

Hinata breathed an internal sigh of mass relief and mentally jotted down yet another item that she owed the man for. Acting the part, Hinata rubbed the back of her head sheepishly and gave Yuka a low chuckle.

“Yeah…I got…pretty messed up last night. I kinda thought that I could beat the Lieutenant in a drinking match, and got a little carried away. And you know how my sense of direction pretty much goes out the window when I’m drunk.” She said, playing along.

Yuka narrowed her gaze at the woman. “You never learn, Hinata. But at least the Lieutenant was there to keep you out of trouble.” She mumbled, then turned to the man and bowed. “Thank you for watching out for her, Lieutenant. If I had known you two were going to be going out, I would have warned you about her tendency to get into trouble.”

Tetsuzaemon waved her off again. “Don’t worry about it, Sano. She behaved herself for the most part, it was only when we got back that she became a problem. How you and the others holding up?” he inquired.

The woman raised herself and sighed heavily. “Honestly Lieutenant…not so well. Kenta, Issei, and myself learned the hard way yesterday that all the rumors of discrimination against the squad were not exaggerated in the least. Thankfully…the Captain was there before it…got out of hand.” She admitted.

The Lieutenant furrowed his brows. “And what did they say?” he demanded.

Yuka sighed again. “I guess the usual stuff…along with a few remarks about…Junya.”

Hinata’s eye shot wide open in shock. “Oh…Yuka…” she breathed out.

The woman shook her head. “It’s fine, Hinata. Like I said, the Captain managed to put a stop to it before I…acted harshly. I’m fine, promise.” She assured, then took a deep breath. “I just came to make sure you were alright Hinata, so if you don’t mind, I’ll go ahead and go about my duties. Lieutenant.” She concluded, earning a firm nod from the man before Hinata rose to give her a quick hug.

“You know you can ‘always’ talk to me and the other two idiots if you ‘ever’ need to, Yuka. I’ll always listen.” She reassured before releasing her.

Yuka smiled and nodded. “Thanks, I’ll keep that in mind. And please, stay off the booze, Hinata. It’s bad enough that I have to keep an eye on Kenta and Issei, and I’d rather not have to extend that to you as well when you’re drunk.” She teased.

Hinata’s face fell to a scowl. “Shut up. You know damn well it’s been a few years since that last happened, so stop talking like it’s a daily occurrence.”

Yuka chuckled and shook her head. “If it wasn’t for me watching out for you, it would be.”

Her friend gave her a gentle shove towards the door. “Go do your damn duties Yuka, and that’s an order.”

The woman stopped and gave her a low bow. “Yes, 4th seat!” she mocked.

Hinata swiftly grabbed a small paperweight and threw it at the rapidly retreating woman, the object hitting the door with a dull thud right as it closed shut. She growled for a moment, then smiled and shook her head.

“Witch.” She mocked in a low, but joking tone as she walked up to retrieve her ‘weapon’.

“You two are pretty close, aren’t you Ogawa?” Tetsuzaemon inquired.

Hinata froze in front of her ‘acting’ desk and sighed before setting the paperweight back down. “Yeah, I’ve always been there to help her and Junya out with their problems, and she always kept an eye on me whenever I went out drinking; making sure I didn’t go too far. I would have told her we were going out for drinks last night, but I honestly didn’t think you would have been ‘that’ much of a challenge. Which reminds me…” She paused to look at the man firmly. “…you didn’t have to lie to her like that, Lieutenant. You could have very easily just told her what really happened.” she pointed out.

Tetsuzaemon crossed his arms with a grin. “What kind of a man do you take me for, Ogawa? I’m not against embarrassing the hell outta ya, but even I’ll admit that something like that is a little too far. So don’t worry about it. But on a side note, you do realize that I won last night, right?”

Her eyes widened for a second before narrowing dangerously. “Oh really? I may not remember anything after we left the place, but I ‘do’ remember that you were just as fucked up as I was, Lieutenant. So please, enlighten me how the hell you figure that you won.”

He rose a brow at her in skepticism. “Are you seriously asking me that, Ogawa? I managed to find my way back to my room and plant your ass on ‘my’ bed, where you couldn’t even remember where your ‘own’ room was. I may have been just as ‘fucked up’ as you Ogawa, but I was clearly the more conscious one. So that means I won.” He pointed out.

Hinata growled lowly with closed eyes. “Fine. I guess you’ve got a point on that one. And…I…I do owe you plenty for looking out for me. So I’ll pay for those two jugs, plus a few more as my thanks.”

Tetsuzaemon snorted before picking up his first form. “I told you not to worry about it, Ogawa. The truth is, you’re nowhere near as bad as Rangiku when she goes over the edge. That woman flirts with anyone; whether they got something hanging between their legs or not.” He informed.

Her eyes widened. “You don’t mean ‘Lieutenant’ Rangiku…from Squad 10…right?” she asked in shock.

The man nodded. “The same. But the only thing I saw you flirting with last night was your sake saucer. And while we’re on the subject, let me ask you something…was what happened last night the worst that’s ever happened to ya?” he asked, looking at her intently.

Hinata blushed at what he was implying, but shook her head. “N…Not in the way you’re thinking, Lieutenant. I mean…I’ll…I’ll admit that it’s come a bit close…maybe a little too close…but that was a long time ago; long before I became a soul reaper, and even before I met Yuka and the guys. I’d…rather not talk about it. Those were…not exactly the best years of my life, and let’s just leave it at that.” She dodged, and moved around to sit down.

Tetsuzaemon raised a brow. “But you were never actually…taken advantage of…right?” he pressed.

The woman shook her head and grabbed her first form. “As I said, it came close once or twice, but nothing actually happened. Now please…just drop it.” She pleaded.

The man nodded and returned to his work. “At least now I know how you tend to act when you’ve had a few, Ogawa. And on that note, don’t be afraid ask for my help if ya ever need it. You may have a temper, but you ain’t a bad kid.” He offered.

She rolled her eyes to him in anger. “I’m not a ‘kid’, Lieutenant. I may not have been a soul reaper as long as you have, but I’ve been in the soul society for a good while, thank you very much.”

Tetsuzaemon scoffed lightly. “Coulda fooled me, Ogawa.” He mocked.

Her brows narrowed dangerously. “Remember Lieutenant, just because you’re my superior, doesn’t mean I won’t slap the dogshit out of you.” She threatened.

The man started rubbing his, still sore, cheek that fell victim to her hearty slap, allowing her to see the dull reddened imprint. “You already did, Ogawa.” He pointed out.

She flinched and squeezed her eyes shut in horror. “Yeah, uh…sorry about that. To be honest, I don’t even remember what it was you said to me to make me slap you like that.”

He dropped his hand and grabbed his first form. “We were trading insults again and I called you a matchstick; cause of your thin size and fiery temper.”

Her eyes narrowed dangerously. “Yeah, you did deserve that one, then.” She corrected.

Tetsuzaemon gave her a friendly chuckle. “There’s the Ogawa I know. Now, let’s see how much more we can get caught up on before this paperwork buries us again.” He proposed.

She sighed defeatedly, shaking her head with a smile. “Ass.” She returned with no bite to it as she continued her work.

** Hueco Mundo, 1 Hour Later **

The lungs in Timothy’s chest felt like they were about to explode with the rapid, shallow breaths he was taking while continuing his fast pace. Nel, Renji, and Rukia were definitely in no better shape than him.

Over the last hour, the three Adjuchas had gained a considerable amount of ground on the group; and if any of them had looked over their shoulders, they could just barely made out the pinhead-sized silhouettes of their pursuers.

“H…How much…f…farther…Nel?!” Renji demanded, completely out of breath and on the verge of falling out.

The woman barely shook her head in response. “Not…much…farther…J…Just be…beyond that…dune.” She answered.

Timothy was about to glance over his shoulder towards the hollows, but decided against that avoid tripping. “We…We’ve got no…no choice…now…They’re…t…too close now…to enter…the tunnels…with…without th…them seeing us.” He advised.

Nel gave a quick nod, throwing the sweat from her brow. “I…agree…There’s…a place…to hide…near…nearby…to get the…drop on…them…We wa…wait until…they are…close…then sur…surprise them.” She offered.

Renji turned his head to her a bit. “We’ll…have to…to make it…quick.” He warned.

“Yeah…Each…Each of us…takes…takes one…and the…fourth person…double…teams one…of them.” Rukia added.

Timothy nodded, the action causing him to stumble a bit, but not lose his balance. “N…Nel’s the…best at hand…to-hand…combat…So she…she’ll be the…the one to…double-team…Just…make it…it fast…Nel.” He instructed, earning a brief nod from everyone.

“Agreed.” Rukia said in a weak voice.

The group continued their run until they came to the top of the dune, seeing what looked like a small shed of sorts standing next to some ruins; ones that were similar to the ones they had stopped at previously.

“The…The entrance…to the…the tunnels…is in that…shed…We can…hide in…the ruins and…and wait…for them…there.” Nel informed.

Renji nodded. “Then tha…that’s the…plan.” He confirmed.

They continued on passed the small ‘shed’ and quickly ducked in behind the ruins. Everyone now had their hands planted firmly on their chests as they struggled to get their breathing back under control before the enemy arrived.

“We’ve got…maybe ten min…minutes until…they get here.” Nel warned.

Renji nodded and turned to her. “Tim…no off…offence, but…your sword skills…are a bit…low c…compared to…Rukia…and I…So Nel sho…should help…you out…first.”

Timothy waved him off. “None…taken…Nel, you should…stay hidden…until…I get the guy’s…full attention. Then kill him…as quick as…possible…from behind.”

She nodded firmly as her breath began to calm down. “I don’t like…fighting in that manner…but…I fear we have…no choice.” She fretted.

Rukia shook her head. “Sadly, we don’t. We should all…try to su…suppress our…spiritual pressures…as much as…we can.”

“Agreed.” Renji confirmed.

The four of them immediately started focusing on limiting the spiritual pressure each of them emanated. By the time that they finally had their breathing almost under control, they could faintly hear the rapid footsteps in the sands as their pursuers came within hearing distance.

Each of them rested their hands on their zanpakutōs, where Renji spoke in a whisper. “Wait till they get close.” He instructed, earning nods from everyone.

They waited for what seemed like hours as the footsteps slowly got louder and louder; now sounding like they were less than a few hundred yards away from the ruins.

They all got ready to jump out within seconds, but froze when the footsteps suddenly stopped. Timothy narrowed his brows in wonder before turning to Renji in confusion; but the man only shrugged a shoulder in response to the blonde’s unspoken question.

The group was beginning to fear that the attackers knew exactly where they were, and were positioning themselves to better attack them. Timothy gave Renji a worried look, where he nodded and slowly drew his zanpakutō.

Timothy followed suit, pulling Kitsune from her sheath in preparation to attack; but his arm froze in place when one of the attackers spoke.

“Where the…hell…did they…go…damnit?!” the attacker spoke out, clearly out of breath.

Everyone’s eyes went wide as saucers as they looked at each other in shock. “…No fucking way…” Timothy mumbled out.


End file.
